02-apr

I've just bought a puller which claims to fit all TYs and is 27mm dia by 1mm pitch. It is undamaged, as is the flywheel thread (which is the same size), but it won't go in more than half a turn so ??????????????? A friend has just ruined one trying to get it to screw in so be careful.

Reminds me of the pal who had an RGV 250 which specified a very expensive oil. His neighbour had an RGV too and one day the conversation fell to the price of two stroke oil. The neighbour looked puzzled and said that he just used what he had left over from his old lawnmower........................... For all that a trials bike uses it is not worth skimping. Remember the days of 16:1 anybody?

Is your box full? I can't send a PM.

If it is indeed a pukka comp tyre (I was led to believe Michelin no longer did tube type) I might be interested if you want to sell - will be at Lomond on the 25th.

Yes, I seem to recall Thorpey struggling a bit to force his round the Scottish.

I can't imagine it being possible to buy leaded petrol at the pumps now. Anyway, ACU Regs demand use of standard unleaded with no additional additives

The air fork was a conversion offered by Sandifords and used a light spring in addition to the air pressure. The air plays no part in the damping. If I remember correctly the standard pressure was 15 psi but I may be wrong.

Same bike - I cured the problem by using Shell V Power.

I have never seen a figure quoted other than with spring out. If we think about it then, as we're going to the millimetre, we would need to ensure we had the spring in the correct way up (in the case of a progressively wound spring) and that is never mentioned. Have you any idea how much oil you put in? If close to the recommended then you know you are right as you are.

I wonder where the other RTX sold in Britain ended up. I jest there, but only a handful could have been sold. I think I only ever saw three and the power band seemed to reside well toward the top end of the rev range. Even if you could find parts you would not have a very great bike. However, the frame looks like it might take another motor with a bit of work,

There's a nice Kirk not far from Alvie..............

Thanks guys. Ausy. I intend to change the levers anyway as those fitted are the most horrible I have experienced being rectangular in section with a scrolled end - most unpleasant to use. However the pivot point/nipple hole relationship seems to be as per the norm (I have an old Jap blade lying about) so the leverage should be right. However I take your point, but don't like the look of the sticky-oot clamp on the Domino laying in wait to catch my knee. I had intended to fit the new Maguras I never quite got round to fitting to the Bulto forty years ago but the adjusters won't take the larger diameter cable outer. Feetup. Well there's hardly any cam movement before contact due to the new shoes so leverage there should be OK. The cable looks new but I will need to try another I suppose. Contact area should be better after the next trial (I don't have the facilities to turn the linings down to suit.

I have fitted new shoes (no thicker than the old ones really)in an effort to improve my front brake. It will hold the bike from running backwards if stopped on a hill but has no retardation properties whatsoever. I have tried a couple of ideas but............... After Sunday's trial it was obvious that the power was being lost twixt lever and brake so I had a closer look at the setup. I don't know if this is the standard cable http://s346.photobucket.com/albums/p409/Olddabber/Yam%20brake/?action=view&current=002.jpg but there is a bend in the adjuster to clear the proprietary mudguard stay. Pulling on the brake causes this tube to flex (trying to straighten) which seems to be the cause of the sponginess (the cable seems to be fairly new). Is this in fact the standard setup and has anyone had any success in adapting to suit this type of stay? All advice/theories gratefully received as I don't have access to a standard bike for reference. Drum is in good order and surface clean.

Well, Italjet managed to make a mess out of copying a Bultaco so it's been done before.

Have a quick look in the port while you have the pipe off. You may see any damage.

Nice to see that, despite all the sophisticated appliances, assembly still involves the use of a lump of wood.

Depends how old the bike is as to whether or not the owner was lazy. Back in the day when everyone bought a bike unregistered to avoid the VAT (a loophole which was eventually closed I think) then registered it a bit later, the Q plate was the standard issue. One of the several penny-pinching trials rider attitudes which resulted in the loss of a body of bikes to keep road trials viable.

It may be worth noting that if Ralphy's method does not work, and there is actually no seal problem, that using a syringe to push the fluid from slave to master cylinder often removes those elusive bubbles. Just be sure you don't squirt fluid out of the master cylinder on to the the paintwork!

Could be many things but, assuming all settings are correct, go for the cheapest option first and fit a set of crankshaft seals. it should be possible to do these without splitting the cases?

Or at least have put the springs on the right way up.

Sado masochism just about covers how I felt. And yes, I've used BVM in the past for modern stuff, is John still there?

There's a very good reason why the monoshock Yamaha rendered twinshocks obsolete overnight, mainly to do with finding grip. You will notice the difference. Not to mention being a bit easier on the old back, though a modern monoshock is even better from that point of view with its more upright riding position.

I'm afraid i just have to get this frustration off my chest. I'll not mention names to avoid embarrassment to TC but.......... Decades ago I used to deal with a supplier of bits and, as often as not, they had to go back as they were either just the wrong thing or fitted so badly. Now that the management has changed I thought I would try again and have just spent a fair bit of time form filling on their website (which would not let me set up an account to save all this, though the facility to do so was ostensibly there) to get to the final point of payment and find that it is procedure to phone them with card details rather than complete the transaction electronically. What sort of half-ar$$d set up is that? OK, phone. It's after hours and the answerphone tells me that they are only open Monday to Thursday so I can't complete the transaction until next week, so the chances of having the item in time to fit for the trial are slim. Things must be better than we thought in the trials world if a supplier can afford to only be available for a half week. Contrast that with Trialsbits who unfortunately were unable to obtain the item but who lifted the phone well after hours, when I was not really expecting a response, and have processed another order electronically and followed up with e-mails to confirm the situation.

Thanks for all the advice- I was wondering how best to establish the actual contact area. If we were back in the 70s I would just get the shoes relined with thicker material and get it turned down in a lathe to suit the drum but nobody seems to reline these days. I recall as a teenager taking my Honda shoes in to the local brake shop and the guy just buffed off the linings on a grinder - I fear his last few months on this earth must have been rather unpleasant.