ask greeves

http://www.greeves-riders.org.uk/...The best site for Greeves information is the GRA...Greeves Riders Association (the above link)...Looks like a TES model fitted with a later Anglican fibreglass tank, yes it is a pre 65, maybe the gearbox got changed at some time over its 43yr life, should be a wide ratio box or maybe its just as you say, to high geared, or are you riding it to slow.... I hope Don Smith bless his soul, is looking down and smiling.

1st the 301 thru 309 ignition will not fit, unless your willing to cut bottom fin. Ah you forgot about that didn't you Lee. A 240 ignition system would fit, the flywheel is several pounds lighter, if say your ignition were a Motoplat, then a 240 motoplat flywheel would fit straight on. If your 300 is as nice as you say, seems a pity to use it. There must be some pains of conscious, as your worried about destroying the rear mudguard.......Quote: What good is a chocolate teapot.....about as much use as an araldited exhaust port.

I am just a mortal and as such, i bow to those people who are my betters, those people who have proved there worth, those people who put there money where there mouth is. Who knows , who is behind the key board, could be an eleven year old schoolboy or a 60 year old Trials Rider, who has come 8th in the British Experts with a BA hons, Inst mech eng, who is recovering from major surgery and decided to expel some vision and a little humour or maybe just a Bloater with fallen footrests.

After searching the net, i found this photo of Mick Andrews cap, this isn't the photo i remember, the photo was in (i think) MCN, before the days of TMX, a full face shot, with Mick wearing the mystery cap.

No No No, This wasn't a Bell Crash Helmet, this was a Bell cloth cap, from memory it was 4 sections on the top, and as mentioned earlier, was a Gadsby style, somebody must remember Mick wearing it. As a matter of interest Bell had the best advert ever, 'IF YOU'VE GOT A TEN DOLLAR HEAD....WEAR A TEN DOLLAR HELMET'

Around about 1974/5 when Mick Andrews was an OSSA star, he used to wear a very stylish 'Gadsby' type cap, I think it was manufactured by Bell, the people who make the crash helmets. Has any Trials Central viewer got one they would want to sell, or at least a picture of Mick wearing the cap.

Once a piece of steel has been bent, the restraightened item is not as strong as the original (metal fatigue), as yours have been bent and restraightened at least 4 times i'm, suprised they haven't fallen off. Only real solution, is to remanufacture, the hangers, do a proper job.

Betarev3 is absolutley correct, carry on using the chain will wear the sprockets out prematurley, the sprockets will end up being pointed, the stretched/worn out chain will cause this, as it doesn't mesh correctly with the sprockets. I reckon you probably should get 3 chains to one set of sprockets, if you change the chains early enough, side ways play should tell you when a chain is worn out.

The exhaust port is known as a 'bridged port' the bridge it's there to stop the ring popping into the exhaust port and breaking. the small round port to which you refer is a puffer port, it's used as a precursor, to get the exhaust gases moving in the right direction, ie up the exhaust pipe. Wether or not this works, either at low revs or high revs, in my opinion is debateable, I personally would tap the hole, with nice coarse threaded tap and put a loctited grub screw in it, I would try it with and then without a grub screw, see if there's any difference (you would only need to remove the exhaust to get the grub screw in or out) Your Beamish is probably running OK, if your used to riding a FANTIC then the Beamish is bound to feel sluggish, steer slow, have bad brakes, and feel bulky and heavy.

Thanks Trials Central, Your my connection, for keeping in touch with whats happening, in the Trials world. The video clips thier absolutley first class, I spent the tenner, so that I could get the full coverage, the best tenner I've ever spent. They say a picture's worth a thousand words, what's a video clip worth !. Does anybody out there remember Bertalier( think this is wrong spelling) know as Bert, he was a handy rider at the world rounds a few years ago. Anyway I remember seeing a video of Bert, I think it was at a German World Round, where Bert (he was always known as a bit of a firery person) has an altercation with the observer (who looked to be a very big German) and got physically thrown out of the section. It is real classic, any Trials Central viewers remember or got the video.

Hi Lee, Club night tonight, and the concensus of all members is that it may be, the rear frame is missing to hide the fact that the grab handles for a passenger which are brazed on the frame before chroming, have been cut off, to hide the fact that it was an outfit beamish. Also where the swinging arm is rusty, could be where the passengers foot goes. Don't sit in that darken underground garage, on yer little stool, looking like the thinker. Brighten up, think of your 11 Fantics with there double cradle frames, there 6 speed, electronic ignition, plastic tank, waiting to be thrashed, front wheel in air. The conical hubs, mazzochi forks, all working in unison. There is one ray of hope, I've heard that the electric servo motor, from a BMW electric mirror can be modified to advance and retire the beamishes ignition, only trouble is its quite hard to find these servos, as there was a spate of faulty ones.

Hi Lee, Yes you'll ride it in anger, every time you get on it, you'll think 'what have I done, am I a dumkorf'. Have you noticed, it don't start in gear, the earlier silver ones did. Make sure piston dimensions are the same, not just the bore. Whoever bores it should know what clearance for a liner engine, it's alot bigger than the Fantic with chrome bore. If the Hilary that posted is the northsea diver with no front teeth, then his original 325 was far from standard, it had lots of special parts including barrel and boysen reeds. Your bike probably just needs a good work over, nothing a grand won't put right. Check to make sure , it aint had a chair fitted, as this kills them prematurley. My other speciality are Austin A35's and Morris Marina's, as your an ex rally driver who used the BMC marque, you've now joined another elite group of 1950's design revamped to compete in the 70's and 80's. Yes you probably will be allowed to use it in pre 65, just paint the frame black and the tank green and call it a Lee Francis, or Francis Barnet, but what chance have you got against a BSA Bantam !

LEE.. What's come over you, did fall of yer bike in Devon...bang yer head. You exchanged one of the best twinshock trials bikes ever produced, for a hotch potch of Japanese trail bike mixed with a beauuuutiful English built chassis albeit 1960's angles and size, finished in yellow.....yuk, almost looks like a SWM. There was only one person who really got a Beamish to go somewhere how it should, that was John Gaskell (not forgetting John Reynolds on a solo, but he could balance), he used a 4 stroke cosworth piston, bought a blank and machined it to fit, but the original barrel wasn't a standard barrel, but a works barrel to start with, this was in the days before Robin Luscombe won everything. Incidentially Robin was one of the first exponents of using a monoshock trials outfit, yes a Fantic 301, everybody thought it wouldn't work. Anyway you'll probably have no problem selling the Suzuki in Germany, cause as they say 'Germans have a sense of humour, HA HA HA HA HA.

It's not a straight forward 'changing of bits' don't bother, from memory the bolt pattern on the 245/305 is different, get yourself the correct bottom end to go with the barrel piston, also 245 not interchangable with 305, different rod length/stroke.

I would take out spark plug, put finger over sparkplug hole turn over engine, when finger is being pushed by air, that is the compression stroke. Four stroke has two tdc's compression and split overlap, you need the compression stroke.

All 240 frames have the rear frame/mudguard support, if its missing, its probably to save a bit of weight, could have been owned by a super trick rider, trying to find the ultimate super lightweight setup. I'd check all the nuts bolts spindles, they may be titanium.

The usual problem is the master cylinder is not returning to fully closed, have you adjusted the brake lever, as not to have any free play. Any access fluid, caused through expansion, must be able to return to its resevior.

Bell Crash Helmets had a wonderful advert several years ago "If you've got a ten dollar head.....Wear a ten dollar helmet"

What your considering , needs loads of thought before you attempt anything. The piston on a two stroke, not only opens and closes ports on the top side of the piston, but also on the underside, so the length of piston is very very important. Example you wouldn't want the exhaust port opening up into the crankcase at top dead centre or maybe the inlet port opening onto the top of the piston at top dead centre also, Martin M's suggestion would probably be the best route, get the right length piston, with the correct gugeon pin height.

After I've done all the pumping, bleeding etc as a last little trick , I pump the lever 4 or 5 times and hold it tight, then wrap a bungie strap or similar round the lever and handle bar and leave it overnight, primed up under pressure. If the systems in good condition, this gives a really good brake.

Reading this thread, I noticed 'it takes the seat height over the maximum required to register the bike with DVLA as a trials bike, so therefore needs type approval (or SVA)' being a very very old git and i'm not upto speed on the latest regulations. I didn't know the DVLA had a special registration for trials bikes. Can anybody give me the info regarding registration or point me in the right direction. thanks

On a one cylinder engine, the balance factor is built in at the factory, if you wanted to change the balance factor, by drilling crank and fitting either lead, heavy metal or expleted urainium thereby altering the counter weight opposite the reciprocating parts, then your knowledge or that of your balancer on recipricating factors, must be at the cutting edge of technology. Best bet would be just to make sure crankshaft is true and that the crankpin is intact.

SPUD in my opinion your a star. It's nice to see moving pictures of any trials, but really great to see outfits, keep up the good work.

It would be nice to see the quality of your work, how about posting a few pictures of say a BILLET TOP YOKE and a PAIR OF FOOTRESTS, that you've made, just to see how radical and innovative your parts are. Don't worry about them being anodized, a real close up picture, showing the quality of your work, would be the best way to sell loads.

CORSA IT WOULD