scoobydo

Hi Dan, Can I suggest that you try a fully run in 2011 250 4T ? (if you were in Halifax you could try mine out for size - tho its not for sale !) New out of the box feel to fully run in feel are two different things ! I have one and I can honestly say its the BEST bike I have ridden. A few guys I know have bought the 300 4T and have struggled to get on top of them (the one guy who has is a pretty handy rider who rides a bit like he has just stole it style ! ) The 4T's do have a mapping switch to alter the feel of the engine AND a lot of owners (myself included) have dropped one tooth on the front sprocket - this has a calming effect to the feel of the bike.... kinda makes stuff happen that little bit slower ! (I like that ) Four strokes will always feel slower than a 2 stroke I'd say but you will get used to this. A friends 2009 Evo 250 4T feels different to mine so maybe the one you tried wasnt illustrative to what they can be like. For what you describe you ride a 250 4T would be a great bike - in the end its down to you though ! Good luck ! GAW.

Should it be called a SparkSpark ?

Here is another perfect example why trials riders needing TPFT cover that legally covers you in competitions as well as bobbing off down the woods for practice - should choose MSN Insurance brokers !

Throughly check the condition of the rear suspension linkage any lift or play will mean $$$ if you can get the parts and as a consiquence of potential wear in the suspension linkage - look to see if the swing arm has any cracks in it especially at the point where the arms meet the cross brace you need to really look hard at the inside faces here. If either / both have suffered I'd walk away. Welding a plate on is not an option. Cheers GAW

Nothing about it is

Very good ! LOL

Crikey guys ! I had no idea that they still had what appears to be BRAND NEW fantics in the States ! Very nice metal there

I have those super grippy new Talon ones on my EVO - and I cannot fault them. Chewy on here also makes his version - and are said to be very similar. IMO the differance is the fact that these new type of pegs use allen screws to provide the grip, and having changed to these type there is no way I would change back !

Carol Nash DO NOT offer road cover whilst taking part in competition so on that basis its a waste of money ! Also they do not cover all trials bikes manufactured. If its not on thier list - they wont (can't) cover you. - "Computor say's no!" Get in touch with MSM they are trials friendly and have a scheme tailored especially for ALL Trials bikes. They will issue a cover note on the Vin number valid for 14 days which is sufficiant time to get it redgd. (take the docs yourselfto the VOSA office to be sure) I have mine covered with them and they base the cost of the policy on the value of the bike - so if the worst happens and it gets stolen you know the value you will get back. clicky linky http://www.msminsurance.co.uk/ Hope this advice is helpful to you.

Nice clean honest bike you have there sir, and a great bike too to " Kickstart" your trials career on Best of 'feet-up' to you my friend

Its simple really.... Road trial = Road legal bike. If you choose not to be legal - then dont moan if you are caught! We all know the rules dont we lads and lasses? RTA rules are actually there for good reason - to protect all road users and pedestrians and don't forget the insurance and legality is there to protect you too. Just hope that if this kind of spot check becomes common place - that the actions of a few don't end up spoiling it for the majority, and we all start to loose land and the good faith of others we rely upon for our sport. Cheers GAW

Ok - finally some considered advice from someone who used to manufacture racks. The nose weight on the bar is that which is dictated by the manufacturer of that bar (and they will vary - its their choice to state what they calculate / guesstimate the max load to be imparted onto their product ) The figure quoted by the vehicle manufacturer is the MAXIMUM they allow the vehicle to be loaded upto in this specific area. The fact that this will have a safety margin of possibly x3 is irrelevant - but its this x3 margin that we eat into to physically allow bikes to be carried on vehicles on racks. The issues here are legality - (who actually knows ?) Who wants to be the laws test case ? No me neither ! The loading that a rear mounted bike imparts in a static manner or "if you jump up and down on the tow bar" - type of idiotic comment / test IN NO WAY represents the real life loadings a moving vehicle hitting whoops and bumps out on the PUBLIC ROADS ! These dynamic loads are higher than you can imagine and over time will translate to flex / twist and other stresses of the towbar neck - and this is where you could get problems. Additionally the rear end dynamic loadings encountered can act as leverage and cause 'lift' to the front of the vehicle - making steering light - with the dangers this can cause. Its this aspect a traffic cop worth his salt will be most concerned about. My opinion ? Use a trailer and be totally safe!

"Golly" (pardon the pun) that looks the real deal ! Nice.

What? exactly do people give the 4rt

I have tried bikes that have been fitted with most of the current crop of pegs fitted to them. IMO the best at the moment are the new TALON footpegs. They are incredibley grippy and have a nice sized surface area so your feet stay supported and comfy. They dont seem to clog up with mud and as for cost are a lot cheaper than the "follow the herd" alternative! They tick the box for bike bling appeal too I think Sammy miller is also selling the exact same pegs but with his brand name on them. Either way you would NOT be dissapointed with a set of these

Hey - you have forgotten the Evo !

It's the world we live in I'm afraid. Been followed home myself - but I was watching for them (aware of the potential) instead of doing a loop I dived into a layby (pull in to side of road is the same as) to make the 'suspect vehicle' pass me then I immediatley pulled back out and took its number then give him the full blue beam on and off - over and over again. He did a handbrake turn and smoked his wheels as he ( with hand coving dipped head) raced away. Notified the Police of what had happened too - so the car could be linked to other crimes if possible. They didnt 'visit' me in the night as I had clocked onto them before I was pulling up at home. Be vigilant get insured and lock down your machine in your place of storage. (just a pity we can't wire them up to 240V live !) Best GAW.

Ok (from someone who used to manufacture trailers for bikes) there could be a number of reasons the trailer is vibrating. 1. Check condition of tyres and rims if appear ok lift off the floor and spin to check concentricity any wobble and the wheel is U/S and needs replacing (are the wheel nuts tight?) if ok then look elsewhere. But dont overlook the fact they wheel tyre may need balancing. Check tyre wall condition if any blisters or rips change immediatley. Trailer tyres are made as cheap as possible and can be sometimes so out of balance they can sound like a road drill ! If this is the case fit new and get balanced as a precaution. But also do this in conjunction with no 2 below. 2. Check condition of hub. with wheel off the floor check for smoothness as you turn slowly by hand - any amount of roughness and change the bearings. If they are taper bearings it is essential that there is end float - about 1mm on the hub (check with wheel removed so not to be confused by the magnification effect of the wheel). End float can appear to be like wear ( but its not). Not knowing what make of hub you have makes it hard to give precise advice here but - Make sure the hubs are smooth running and appear to be concentric in their diameter (I have seen hubs that have not been machined on their O/D and no amount of balancing will fix the vibration this causes !) If they are not turned take them off and have them licked in a centre lathe by an engineer- to a smooth diameter (dimension not critical - but onlt remove a minimum of material). 3.Trailer chassis - check for cracks or looseness - if found fix or scrap trailer if severe. (your trailer is an extension of your car and is viewed as such by the law - so its your responsibility to ensure its road traffic act compliant) 4. Suspension units - rubber cord units (indespension type) should move slightly when you jump on them (be careful though) if they have siezed then swap them. Also check condition of drop arms (from body to hub) these can corrode though and collapse - scrap both sides if in doubt of their condition & replace with new. As for weight ratings. Trailer static weight plus bike (total weight) to match as close to suspension units rating. These units run best under loading and are tested by manufaturers to 3 times plated rating. We used to use for single bike 150 kgs for trials, 250kgs for 2 bike 350kgs for 3 bike (trials bike ratings only NOT MX ENDURO or ROAD bikes) Go heavier than this and the trailer will not tow very well. I know this as I have carried out extensive testing of this - and sold finished trailers to Indespension themselves. If you have cart springs on your trailer then you are obviously a moron (and should be shot) change them for rubber chord units - as they are not suitable for a bike trailer as they have NO damping effect at all. 5. Tow hitch and ball - the most often over looked item. These do wear. (Always grease your balls chaps )Once had a customer insist of a vibration in his new trailer (and of course it was OUR fault!!!) he said he had checked everthing (yeah right yardy ya) Not happy - so came up to us (100 miles) with trailer - went for a test listen and Yup it vibrated - asked him if he had (as we has asked him to) run the trailer on another vehicle - yeah of course he had (not)So we put his trailer on our van - perfect. Now dont laugh - we measured his ball (tow ball ) and it had corroded / worn down size by 2mm on diameter. A new ball was fitted and he was a happy man. So what I am saying is dont forget to check your balls guys ! Hitches can also wear - harder to check - but if there is any amount of slackness up front you will get knocking / vibration. 6. The load on the trailer - ie your bike - This must be taut on the trailer with no movement whatsoever. If it can move - then this may cause vibration. Also the ideal situation for load distribution is to have the loaded trailer about 30-40 kgs nose (towball end) heavy. Under NO circumstances should the trailer be rear end heavy. 7. Your tow car - check the rigidity and integrity of the tow bar and the condition of the cars suspension and the balance of the cars tyres. Any / all or a combo of the above can cause towing problems. Remember no one ever maintains their trailer do they ? but expect it to carry ££££'s worth of bike at 'God I'm gunna be late type speeds' ! Give your trailer some TLC ! I hope this helps! Cheers GAW.

Oh dear ! Not what we need to hear - I hope someone can get some clarification on this quickly so that the brand doesn't suffer from any adverse commentry. I hope that Mr Birkett can quickly respond to this with some positive news and put this to bed as soon as possible. Here's to OSSA's continuing.

My guess is that this is an American car (it is a left hooker) I have seen some (older) images on mvbrumbybrat / Ausubaru site that show a company in California who convert std cars to cabbies. They do actually pile loads of steel into them to stiff them back up (!!!) - This way of doing it is an accuired taste over factory jobbies imo. Can't think of a bigger waste of a fine car than this 'effort' totally runs against what the scoob is all about ! - the potential wind rush factor here would make for the same facial exression as Jeremy Clarkson had when he drove the Atom ! Nb. just noticed the dealers sign - Manchester New Hampshire in the USA. Deffo not any good in Manchester England !

This wouldn't involve planting the Beta's Knobbly tyre pattern over the roofs of the van's by any chance would it?

Welcome back to the fold ! You will be re-riding each section in your mind all week ! Good little bike to start again on too. I have it on good authority that Darwin put on excellent events so be nice to the missus this week eh?. But don't be too shy and do venture 'overt 'till into Yarkshire and come and have a friendly ride out at one of the Spen Valley novice and Beginner trials. We get a few visitors from Lancs coming over. Only £1 to join the club too Follow this link for upcoming events. All the best GAW. http://www.spenvalleytrials.co.uk/

Looked closely at both myself and talked to owners of them as well. Opted for the Beta Evo (albeit a 250) great bike to ride and not snappy just smooth linear power - and the re-assurance of excellent spares and back up from established and very helpful dealers / importer

They ride amongst us !

Ok I fully understand the 'handcuffs' you are forced to wear whilst orgainising this fantastic event (SSDT) However from time to time its good to take a new look at what you are doing and ask yourself if any aspect can be improved / tweeked etc. Fundamentally the SSDT is excellent - but this discussion thread has brought up this issue regarding fuel. To simply say 'Whilst it may well be legal to carry spare fuel in specific containers, that doesn't mean it's permissible' this does NOT answer the requirements of the MODERN trials bike. 2.5 Ltrs of fuel is barely enough - and thats not the riders fault its down to the development the way the modern trials bikes have gone in the last few years. In any other trial its adequate - In the SSDT its not ! Fall off and spill some of your fuel onto the SSSI land (which can and does happen) The idea that carrying fuel over this land is bad (because its in a container) is a non argument because the simple fact that a bike is passing over this 'special' land is risk in itself and may or may not leak some fuel out. So how can it be a complete no no to carry fuel on this basis ? It does just not make sense ! Of course EVERYTHING should be done to protect the future use of the land used for not just the SSDT but all trials events. SO with this objective in mind - and due to the NEED to have spare fuel avaliable to get a bike off the moors (if needed) I believe its high time to close this grey area once and for all, and for the orgainisers to allow an 'approved bottle' that the riders can choose (or not) to carry in case of need. The hebo fork tanks are not the answer in alot of riders opinion (and isnt that what counts? Rider opinion??). I am not suggesting that any old bottle is allowed only one type and that its approved by the Club / ACU / SACU whoever. I would have thought that if the Clubs technical advisor were to endorse this then there would be amicable acceptance by the land owners that this practice be both safe and acceptable. It could be argued that this allowance could be in the INTERESTS of health and saftey - not having the push a bike over soft / rocky / difficult ground etc etc etc! I dont think its fair to suggest that riders would 'throw away' empty bottles - maybe log them out / log them in or similar? If riders are aware of the need to retain emply bottles then in this enlightened to environment day and age they will not discard in a wrong way. Hand them out in the morning / hand them back at night - I am sure there is a simple soloution to this aspect. As for the risk assesment argument. This would be dealt with by ALLOWING a safe & approved bottle - rather than turning a blind eye to what is currently taking place. Accepting that any 'offender' is outside of rules will cover the 'hind side of the club, not enforcing the rule however, wont. Yes the rules are there to protect the current staus quo but they should never be regarded as somthing that can never be adjusted to suit changes overtime. Of course the rules currently say not to carry fuel, but people do and people will (because you really have to - because 'steady on the throttle' as some say simply isn't a guarantee you will get off the longest moors) - so time to modernise the rule here - to help ensure the continued success of the best trial in the world ! Cheers GAW