Some stuff is obvious - leather etc. , but adhesive etc. is not obvious at all and would need research if it's that important to you
Yes, very much so. Most industrial products like paint and so on have (or their ingredients) been tested on animals at some point. Which is much more unpleasant than just eating them.
I disagree. I had the use of a brand new EM Pure model with clutch and tickover (and new tyres) for over 6 months and in my opinion it was very difficult to control in hilly wooded slippery conditions in the South of England. This was in direct comparison to my normal bike a 300 TRRS over the same ground. The EM was much harder to ride. It needs traction control...
The EM has traction control on most the new models.
By a strange coincidence we bumped into a friend last night at the (mountain)bike shop. Her son is a good trials rider and is at Inch Perfect this weekend to try the new Factor-E. She thinks they (Inch) might let him have a deal on a bike to showcase it.
I have asked for a full report so will post up if we get to know anything.
Seeing as how EM buys a standard charger out of China, their logic is severely flawed.
Oh, and just to be clear, I'm shocked that it could cost only $12k USD. I had been anticipating something like $16k (not saying I think it's worth that, however).
It is £9,300 in GBP which is less than the Escape. A new KTM EXC 250 Six Day is £10,550.
If I sell my TRS and my Honda CRF I could afford it. (Or the wife's Ducati....)
The guy that is selling the Vertigo Bikes is the Russian National Multichampion and he as a " trial club/school " . It's a piece of land in which he has build a trial course with obstacles of different kind and level with a shop that has mechanics and spear parts. Himself and another guy offer training lessons. I can leave the bike there and I will have a place for my equipment and showers/sauna. Outside the club you can do some free ride as well but is kind of flat around that area.
Wow. That sounds like a great facility. The Vertigo would be a nice choice if they are able to do the repairs and services.
From the little literature I found in internet it seems that GasGas is more of a " Racing " bike and the Vertigo is a little more " all around " and easier bike to ride. Is this a correct impression I got from the " virtual world " ?
This is just marketing. A 300cc trials bike is a high end competition bike.
I wish I could try a bike but there are no bikes for test plus I am a super newbie and can't really judge. This is why I am asking you guys as you might tell me which bike is easier and which bike is a no way for newbie. The 250 cc bikes are not imported at all here.
Which bike is really very personal, but the 300cc bikes are more difficult to learn on as they are very powerful. If that is the only option then you will have to accept you will find it a little more difficult at first. All 4 options are good and whatever you buy will be a good bike, just a bit more difficult to learn than - for example a 125cc.
It will be much more important that you have somewhere to ride and someone to help you learn. You can find a lot of good instruction on YouTube but having a good rider to watch you makes a big difference.
300cc is a lot of bike. I am sure you would be OK if you have riden MX, but it does make the learning more difficult. The Gasgas (with an aftermarket low compression head insert fitted after you buy it) would be my choice if you cannot find a smaller engine bike where you are.
My memory of riding the big-wheel Beta 80 is that it was OK for me at 5'10" but I would think it might be a bit cramped for someone tall. The motor was easy to use in sections.
Modern 125 two-strokes are excellent.
The modern mecatechno (electric) trials bike is extremely light.
I agree 100% with your post. However to the OP I would say you are getting tied up in knots over just a few kilos. A decent modern bike is about 68-70Kg and the Mechatechno is 60Kg and (I think) the lightest option of all. Unless the bike falls on top of you you will not really notice much difference. If you have a bad back it will be technique and skill that will have the biggest effect, not the weight of the bike. Most people, for example, when they first start try to pull up the bars to lift the front wheel and that can stress the back muscles. Once you learn to let the engine and clutch do the work it is no stress at all.
Try to get a ride on a good 250 and I think you will be pleasantly surprised. But yes a 125 is a good bike if you can pick up a good one. Much easier to find a 250 that has had an easy life. If you can afford it and buy new the Mechatechno (10 grand) is an amazing thing, my missus has an electric (EM) and they are really, really good. If money were no object that (Mechatecno) would be my choice.
Based on smell rather than an accurate survey I don't know of anyone using castor in anything other than a few old bikes like BSA. Our last trial was 80 riders and not a whiff of castor exhaust fumes. I can't think of any reason to use rubbish old technology other than nostalgia for the distinctive smell.
...Or cars that have touch screens with 532 different icons and menu items that you have to learn to navigate just to shift the heat from your feet to the windscreen - ever heard of a knob with discrete positions?
Drives me nuts!
yes, yes, I know. It's actually the bean counters who figure they can save 10c by adding software rather than putting in a knob. It's a conspiracy!
I blame the Golgofrinchans.
One of the reasons modern cars are going this way is more computing built into the system. It is not a saving on the cost of physical hardware, but making a system where the mechanic and repair shop have to buy in the software to do the repair. Without the software you cannot "tell" the vehicle it has been repaired so it isn't. This means the vehicle owner must use a repair/service outlet that has the software and you can licence the software only to dealers in your brand of vehicle. BMW are pretty much at that point already.
It is very refreshing that in trials both Vertigo and EM offer the engine mapping software to the owner and end user. In the pedal cycle world the lack of compatability between motors/versions and batteries is a real problem forcing 'scrappage' of working machines that cannot be upgraded. It is all driven - as you rightly say - by the profit motive and a total disregard for the environmental cost.
This could be the long awaited e-trials that starts to nip on the heels of the ICE bikes. I'm staggered it's taken so long to travel around the circle and recognise there's good reason for a big flywheel, clutch capable of using that flywheel and gears to adjust power delivery characteristics.
I agree, but I would guess that the weight issue has been holding back development. If battery technology moves on and gives us a lighter and more powerful "fuel" then things will really move forward.
There is a report on the new enduro bike in the US but the European website is just pushbikes. The domain (jotagas) is dormant or unused or squatted.
I guess they are like a lot of others needing to see a market. Mecatecno look in much the same place with the Dragonfly. Electric pushbikes are the big thing and Gasgas have hit that market with a big range. Ducati are also playing in the e-bike market. The electric pushbike is the thing of the moment the boomer generation must-have toy. Us poor old trials riders just don't buy enough or exist in enough numbers for anyone much to make money out of us.
Yes, but pause the video at about 15 seconds. You can see a bulge on the motor casing that I'm thinking is a rotary encoder.I don't recall that on the German conversion.
By the time you have bought a donor bike and a kit you have spent as much as an EM. We are at the importers (EM) on Thursday for a short training session, I will report back if I get any news (and if I get any tips about vertical lift from a standstill as I know you are interested)
This looks very similar to the German conversion kit that used the old GG bottom end. There is a YT video of Raga on Spain's "quiet day" that looks also very similar.
I really like the Mecatecno but they have not really hit the market yet either. Hopefully 2024 will see the start of more interest and activity, the Yam is going to be in the competitions as well.
So very much depends on where you are in the world. Brazil went to E10 in 1977. They have a large number of vehicles that run on 100% Ethanol. Clearly a lot of the problems reported in other countries are exagerated or made up. Brazil is a very interesting case study. The Wiki entry is a bit of a long read, but worth a look for anyone interested in the subject: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_Brazil
One really good thing from this example is that it is possible to run a petrol ICE without the need to extract crude oil. So, when the world finally gets round to banning mineral based petrol we will still have a liquid hydrocarbon to run our old bikes on.
Vegan friendly trials boots
in Trials Gear
Posted
True, but my TRS is hard to start on burgers.