baldilocks

No Dan I'm not a dealer, its just my sense humour, I'm not getting at you. I have had most bikes in recent years and I'm not brand loyal to anyone, I just buy what I fancy riding. What grinds my gears as you put it is the quality we receive from all the manufacturers not just Beta. To give a more balanced view I own a sherco and the standard rear shock is very poor and tends to fail in the uk, not all of them but enough to be an issue. I had a few Gas Gas Pros, fantastic bikes to ride but the kickstart gears break, the gearboxes are weak and I had ignition problems on two of them. I have had a scorpa, that was the most reliable bike but I found it difficult to ride. I have never owned a 4rt but many people replace the sumpgaurd and footrest brackets for more robust items. I had an 03 and an 04 Rev 3 and I am a very rare owner in that the original ignition never failed on either bike. The funny thing was John Lampkin sent me an ignition stator the week before the six days to fit which was supposed to be of better quality. When fitted to the bike it didnt even spark and it was brand new ! What sort of quality control had that component passed ? I put the original one back on and it was still working fine 6 months later. My question to you Dan is why you are working to resolve a problem Beta have had for five years that I am aware of ? Why arent Beta and the rest of the manufacturers resolving what are well known problems ? And why are people so keen to see the xispa fail ?

which is great in theory Dan but I'm sure somebody has recently posted of an ignition failure on an 08 bike. Perhaps you work for Beta ? they tell us every year they have fixed it.........

A friend of mine had an 03 270 Beta. Four sets of electrics were replaced between getting the bike at Christmas and it being sold just before Easter in 2003. He hasnt had a Beta since and the lights had been removed by the dealer before he got the bike. So I can say that in this instance it wasnt the lighting that caused the problem.

The bike will be around

some modern bikes like the Beta and Sherco dont have enough clearance for an Oring, on a sherco I think it may catch the slave cylinder for the clutch on the beta it catches the brake pedal. Another issue is that an Oring saps power as they create a lot of drag.

There is time yet OTF. In 89 when Tarres brought the first Beta Zero over most people didnt know until he wheeled it out of his truck. The Beta two stroke must be due a major overhaul soon, its been tweaked every year since 2000 when it came out? Will there be a side valve GG at the SSDT ?

Mick Andrews , MAJESTY, Devon ?, 1980 perhaps

come on kirk whats the use of another 2cc if it doesn't spark ?? in a 40 section trial as a kid i actually lost 203 marks. Fived every section and lost three on time, boy my old man was proud that night ....

On the 240 the chain tensioner was mounted behind the plastic sumpgaurd and was easily damaged. I'm not sure if it was the 300 or the 301 that first had the tensioner mounted on the swinging arm ?

How far did Paul Lowther travel in the 1998 SSDT before discovering he had not filled his bike with Petrol the previous night ? How many miles are covered in the SSDT following the course ? and following the Kinell route ? perhaps more sensible how much does a trials bike weigh ? what tyre pressures are recommended for taking part in an event ? is a trials bike rode legal without lights?

I would nt recommend for the reason HAM2 gave but also if the middle box is aluminium the caustic soda may damage the middle box. I bought some once to decoke a 314 mont exhaust but when I read the instructions they said NOT to mix in an aluminium bucket so left it alone. Get the bike down a fast track for half an hour its a lot more fun and probably a safer way of decoking.....

Gas Gas 280 is a very good bike but is probably too much for a novice even taking into account your motocross experience. go for 250 if you want a Gas Gas, Scorpa would be a good choice though, easy to ride and very reliable although a bit heavier than the Gas Gas. Whatever the brand is you go for I'd say the 250 would be enough. Moto X jeans will be fine as long as the weather isnt too hot. Remember you will be on the bike for 3 to 4 hours rather than 2 x 30 mins. Good Luck

Paul Rose early 90's national trials rider and a lion tamer as well.

I think Crawford is also quite handy on skis, like as if the above isnt enough

he did, they have only signed him as test rider I think from the translation. But who in last years top ten hasnt signed for anyone yet ? Was Bruand top ten ?

I dont mind a 10 times british champ winning an over 40s award but Novogar points ??? thats a bit daft really isnt it ?

In europe I dont understand why we have importers any more. Its the european free trade area under the Treaty of Rome (wont bore you with the details) so there is no charge made by a country to pass goods across a border within the European area. The idea is you pay tax where you buy the product but you can buy things tax exempt or duty free on the understanding that above a certain price you need to pay tax in your home country. So how can somebody import from a country within the EU if its all one trade area ? Clothing and motorcycles need some people removed from the supply chain to make the prices paid more reasonable. this all sounds great but from a different perspective we need the importers for back up when things go wrong and to support riders.

Just been talking about this tonight, I had a policy through the 90's from 91 to about 98 from Devitt DA which provided cover only when taking part in an ACU organised event and it was less than

Thats not Tony Scarlett on the JCM (99) its Patrick Fereud (I think thats his real name) otherwise known as MAYA, he was Berlatiers minder for a while at Aprillia

The first two pics are definately 87, Saunders was on the Rothmans Honda in 86, my first year. In 87 I was right at the back of the entry list number 290, Les caught me up a few times. Apparently he went down to John boys I think on the tuesday before hand to try the Beta with a view to moving on to it after Scotland. He liked it so much he rode it in Scotland, his Dad thought it was a little rash to change bikes that late. Dougie is on a 1995 Techno so guess that will be 95, his second win.

I dont think those grips are pre 65 and the side pull throttle definitley isnt BANNED !!

I'm no fan of the 4RT to be honest but I still think the HRC factory bike is best out of all the factory bikes and thats Dougs problem really. He is now trying to compete with the same riders as last year but his bike isnt as competitive. still as many others have said it would be great to see him win another round

Brian Hutchinson I doubt anyone has photos of him doing any farm work !! He was riding at the Richmond Club Boxing day trial and there were some photos on here but not sure if they had a photo of the long snorted legend ( well he does call me baldy)

You can get them off motomerlin on ebay, thats where I got mine, they arrived within two days so I recommend them as a supplier.

Windlestone is this another problem on the perfect bike ? shut off the gas, you have engine braking so no need for a brake anyway I'm going to regret this Gary aren't I?? see you Sunday