dadof2

Dabster and Atomant, the definition I gave of innovation is neither flawed nor wrong. Of course words can have different meanings or definitions when used in different circumstances but here we are talking about bringing a new product to market (not racial equality etc) and in these circumstances a product must be a commercial success to be regarded as innovative. In fact some learned business scholars would go further and define innovation as "the first successful commercial application of an idea or invention". It reasonable follows from this that as a design ages and becomes obsolete it is no longer innovative. Ponder the following - a man goes to the doctor and says "I have a problem with my feet" The doctor replies "I am a physician, why are you wasting my time with questions about a unit of measurement"

Try a Panasonic Lumix FZ series I am crap at photography, but even in simple mode and bad light it is so good it captures individual blades of grass at 30 yards. Cheap at buyacamera.co.uk

Unfortunately specific information about exactly what ring / bore materials euro manufacturers use is not readily available, for example Sherco state the cylinder is nikasil but there is nothing on the ring material. Gasgas look like nikasil bores. I suspect the ossa will have a ceramic composite bore and possibly aluminium nitride type coating on the rings to withstand 100:1 premix ratio. There is such a range of ring bore material combinations its impossible to know, and although rivals will be able to get them analysed, they may not be able to replicate them. In the UK I would probably seek advice from Phoeton Aptec or Langcourt. One area where there have been big improvements in recent years is analysis of dimensional changes in pistons due to thermal effects and changes to metallurgy and machining techniques to minimise the negative effects of these. This alone will have reduced running in times. The advantages of stressing the barrel and raising it its operating temperature during final stages of boring and honing were known to a few select tuners in the 1970s, possibly before, yet as far as I know it is not yet used in manufacture of mass produced engines. I think Beta still advise 10 hours running in and many oil manufacturers still supply running in oils so there is obviously still believed to be a need for it. It would probably be technically possible to make an engine that did not need running in but it would probably be prohibitively expensive to machine to the tolerances required as witnessed by the price of very high precision needed for high pressure or DI injection parts. Cheaper and more convenient to let the user do final machining by running in. A few years ago I came across an internal grinding machine used for the production of 2t motorcycle barrels in Germany (so presumably Maico or MZ). This produced an exceptionally good finish and it was possible to vary the ratio of reciprocation speed to rotational speed to vary the angle of the cross hatching on the bore. This high quality ground finish probably explained why original bores seemed to last much longer than subsequent re bores using a boring bar and hone. I think Fantic also used to internally grind their bores then find a exact matching piston by an air blowby test.

Have to disagree with you there Dabster. The term innovation is frequently misused To be classed / defined as an innovative product value must be created - the item needs to be a success commercially. Products such as the Delorean, ariel trike, C5 etc cannot be innovations because they failed commercially. No matter how clever a invention or adaptation, if it is not a commercial success it cannot by definition be an innovation.

The suitability of ATF for Gasgas gearboxes is open to debate. I would be inclined to stick with 75w gear oil Interestingly the works Shercos are now separating the gear and primary transmission oils so they can use a different grade in the gearbox to that used in the clutch

Firstly - the bits of missing / rubbed away metal in the photo are aluminium and would not stick to the sump plug magnet so you need to try to identify what the bits stuck to the plug are. Have a look at the trials parts usa website where the Jon Stoodly videos can be found. I suspect there may be a washer type shim missing or on in the wrong place but not having the engine in front of me can't be sure.

I have no particular experience of ty250a but I have come across simliar on other forks. The steel does get stuck absolutely rock solid to the aluminium/ Some people grind as much away with a dremmel as they can the peel the rest off. I prefer to put MIG weld on as the heat breaks the bond and when it cools the steel "flange" shrinks away from the aluminium. TIG can also be used and saves having to shield the aluminium against spatter.

Dabster, you have just contradicted yourself. To be innovative an invention must by definition be commercially / economically viable. To save you looking it up here is the definition of innovation "The process of translating an idea or invention into a good or service that creates value or for which customers will pay. That there are market segments within trials is so blindingly obvious I am surprised you have to ask the question. Beta, Honda & Gasgas all produce 2 variants of the same bike, priced and specified differently with the intention of appealing to different market segments.

Eddie - What I said is relevant and it is exactly why Vertigo have a dilemma, which market segment / segments do they aim for or can they come up with something that is sufficiently attractive to all?

The source coil will should have a connection to earth, it may be hidden or it may be a visible black or black / white wire. A wire will come from the other end of the source coil to the points. A wire will come from the other side of the points to the HT coil. The centre pin on the condenser should be connected to this wire. Make sure the plastic insulating washers on the points assembly are in the right place. Some bikes may have a diode in the wire between the points and the HT coil, I think the diode can be removed. Some points are faulty from new in that they have excess resistance in the riveted connection. This significantly reduces current flow and makes the bike hard t start.

The TY250R was in "" I don' think it will have a Japanese engine and it is unlikely to incorporate any major technical advances. What it may have is the reliability and user friendliness over a wide range of riding abilities that the TY250R had, and hence a good sales volume and economies of scale in manufacturing. Vertgo may have a dilemma. If you look at many trials results the are typically less than 10 on the hard route, maybe a few more on the green / intermediate route but the vast majority of the entry ride the easy / clubman route. Do you aim the specification at WTC level with frequent use of the clutch and lots of power, or aim it at the no stop / infrequent clutch use of the clubmans sections whilst at the same time making the bike capable of winning the hard course at centre level and not being out of its depth at BTC.

Are you sure the seal grooves really are absolutely clean. Any chance mineral oil has contaminated brake fluid - it will cause the seals to swell giving problems you described. Damaged seals do not usually cause piston sticking, they just leak

Plug grade and colour? Float height? Air filter clean and oiled? Squish clearance? Grade of fuel? Make of fuel? Age of fuel and how long since mixed with oil?

Lead was added to fuel to increase its octane rating so detonation does not occur at higher compression ratios, if your engine does not detonate on regular or super unleaded there is no need to use leaded or avgas. In a 4 stroke engine the lead also coats the exhaust valve sealing area to prevent wear. There is a theoretical risk that if lead deposits coat the parts rolling bearings in a 2 stroke crank case, running clearance will be reduced and the bearings may fail. The other problem from deposits of lead in fuel is that they cause galvanic corrosion on steel. That galvanic corrosion will occur is an established fact, however the rate and extent of corrosion on steel bearings may well be insignificant in a typical trials engine. I would think in general that modern oils do not contain additives to counteract the corrosive effects of lead as the general expectation is that leaded petrol will no longer be used. Lead damages spark plugs and catalytic converters.

I can't remember the blokes name and I am not sure if I have got the quote exactly right but the following is quite a famous quote and relevant to this topic "anticipation, although it looks to the future is based on past experience" ie in anticipating what is required of a trials bike if it is to be successful they are using their experience of what has and has not worked in the past.

I had 1969 250 Bultaco trials and the points never gave any trouble at all. Even if the bike had been totally submerged in water a quick clean with a bit of folded paper between the points got it going again. Do points give a hotter spark? They give a longer duration spark compared to basic electronic ignition. You would have to compare the waveforms of both spark types on an oscilloscope to see which had the higher kV and which the higher duration and total energy.

Interesting post,perhaps I can offer a few answers Fuel ratio affects colour of base ring of plug, section of earth electrode close to base ring and centre electrode insulator deep inside plug. Protruding part of centre electrode insulator, centre electrode and tip of earth electrode are more indicative of heat range of plug. On a trials engine both should be a chocolate brown to pale tan colour. Leaded petrol is bad for 2 strokes because its deposits increase wear and corrosion on the steel (Fe) based bearing metals. In 17th-century England, Samuel Pepys (then serving as Admiralty Secretary), agreed to the removal of lead sheathing from British Royal Navy vessels to prevent the mysterious disintegration of their rudder-irons and bolt-heads, though he confessed himself baffled as to the reason the lead caused the corrosion. Modern engines are machined to finer tolerances and better metallurgical properties than the engines in use when synthetics first became available and that it is why it is now probably OK to run on synthetic from new. On 2 strokes good, high film strength synthetics such as Belray MC1 prevented the wear that was an essential part of the running in process. When the engines were subjected to full power use post running in, problems, usually piston / bore seizures occurred because the parts were not actually fully run / bedded in. These problems became quite well known in karting and 2 stroke road racing in the late 1970s / 1980s. Mineral oils contained impurities that "chemically" burned off high spots during running in whereas synthetics do not. During the 1990s Honda were recommending running on mineral oil, not synthetic until the second oil change. It had been noticed that clutches and bores had not run in properly when run on synthetic from new. In the same era Yamaha were specifying manual removal of high spots on 2 stroke pistons after an hour or twos running as they did not wear off when using Yamalube R.

Sounds more like a phantom mechanic

Preston Petty used to make unbreakable mudguards, they were cheap too Falk used to make fork / disc protectors for MX bikes, they were nigh on indestructable

All the best to Dougie and his partner(s). All they have to do is make a bike that incorporates the best and avoids the worst of current designs. I posted the above in # 67 a while ago, it seems Verigo are thinking along the same lines as per the quote below from Dougies recent update "Vertigo have looked at the current crop of trials bikes and have literally analysed the strength and weaknesses of each make by riding them and also by looking at them from an engineering point of view." continued Lampkin. If Vertigo do manage this we could be seeing a new "TY250R" and that will really give the other manufacturers a run for their money.

To the list of 4 Honda dealers I mentioned above I have now remembered a 5th - Mayson Wear Snr - former Honda MX dealer. (who gave good service) who found it not economically viable to continue. Regarding level of service - A Honda 5* dealer I used could not even get a tubeless tyre to seal on the front wheel of a road bike, worse still he fitted a tube instead and did not warn me of the speed restrictions and other risks. Same dealer left an engine bolt out and did not fit the oil filter correctly on my friends 900 - oil filter fell off on the A1 The grey importer I ended up getting my 1100 from let me have long test rides on three different bikes and could not have been more helpful, he is still in business. Steveo - Are Ossa supplying free donkeys to carry their bikes down under? A few lads up this way could do with one to save dragging their Ossas off the fell.

2 non runners being sold off cheap - there's a message there for sure On the subject of accessing / altering ECU info it really p----s me off the way manufacturers make it difficult. All it should take is a lead at £10 to £20 and a DVD at £10. Or they could throw it in free with the bike like Montesa and Yamaha used to do with toolkits.

The ossa has been designed by Josep Serra, the same person who designed the Gasgas pro engine. Extremely clever designs but also built on the limit to be competitive and light not necessarily durable. If ossa (gasgas?) stick to improving it and take on board feedback from customers and importers it will be a good bike, its just a question of when. #44 is spot on about the standard diagnostic port

I think his problem is calliper not master cylinder

The advice from security companies regarding cameras or PIRs is always position them so they overlook each other. This means if someone tries to disable one they will be picked up by the other. If you have PIRs check they still work frequently. There is a way of remotely disabling most PIRs (I am not going to disclose this) that only the high spec, high price PIRs are resistant to. A hidden microphone and movement sensor are effective Police and security firm advice is that the first line of defence are physical barriers, barred windows strong doors, locks etc.