RonH

I’m riding sometimes trial and other times dual sport, possibly similar to what you have in mind. I have a pair of Gaerne Balance Pro Tech and love them. There’s no break-in period at all and they’re extremely comfortable. Also, very easy to walk in like they’re a sneaker. I like the soles the most because they are very grippy and just enough stiffness (stiffer than a sneaker) for support yet allow me to walk and move my ankles around. There’s no heal either so you can move your feet on pegs anywhere you want. They have another version of the same boot called Balance Oiled that are more expensive because they have a waterproof liner inside. They’re marketed as both trial boots and adventure boots.

Found this photo of Surflex clutch plates to fit your bike and they look nothing like what you have. My guess is that someone put in a pack for another bike that was “close enough” at least for a while.

Sorry but no. He did that in 1975 for me. The bike is long gone.

Search Ebay “gasgas txt workshop manual” and you’ll see several to choose from. Most cost $35.

I have a similar problem with my right arm also. I was severely injured when I was 12 years old and I loved riding my bike. After the injury I couldn’t reach far enough to hold the bar with my right hand so my dad put an extra piece of bar (6” or 7” long) on a hinge near the end of the original bar. The shorter added on piece extended it closer to my body. It was able to swing about 180°. Then he mounted a grip and rear brake onto the extension. When I turned to the right the extension swung outward and the opposite happened when turning left. I had very good control with both hands on the bars. It worked for me. Since then I’ve had some surgeries to give me more freedom of movement and I don’t need one now but I’m not doing splats or anything like that just mainly trail riding and having fun. Best of luck to you!

Has anyone printed a kickstand foot extender for Gasgas trials bikes? There are options for every other motorcycle in the world but not for Gasgas trials bikes. At least I can’t find one.

Ditto! Broken ribs are the worst. Glad you got a vest.

I have a Leatt 5.5 that covers my ribs very well (broke 3 last year in crash). It’s protection is very good at the ribs and I don’t notice it on while riding but others have complained it’s too hot and that It doesn’t have enough venting holes. I wish I had bought an Alpinestars one instead. They have much better venting, good rib protection and level 2 CE. Lots of models to choose from. Go to their website. They have some models on sale right now. You could also check out motocrossvest.com for a Kevlar version that people say are very good. No venting though.

That is absolutely beautiful. Nicely done! I bought a 1974 TY250 in 1975 and still dream about it. I loved that bike so much. I crashed it though and while in the hospital with scrapes and a concussion my mother sold it without warning. I didn’t even get the cash from the sale. I’ll hit her up for it though. 😉

Good idea Konrad! I just wanted to add, in case you don’t know davy1 how it works. Copper annealing works great to revive “work hardened” copper. This will allow you to reuse used copper washers over if you don’t have a new one handy. Work hardening happens when you, for example, tighten down your oil plug. The tightening squishes the copper washer to make a good seal but the squishing hardens the copper. That’s why they always say to replace the washers every time you change the oil. Annealing them softens them up again. To anneal them you simply heat them with a torch until cherry red, making sure you move the flame around the washer to heat the entire thing, and then quenching it in water.

I had a similar problem and the answer for me was the throttle cable and not the carburetor. The rubber boot on the cable that fits over the end of the throttle was pulled away slightly causing stretch sometimes and slack sometimes. It was hard to see because I was concentrating on the carb. If this is the problem put a zip tie over the throttle end of the rubber boot and sinch it down tightly against the throttle. I hope this helps. Good luck!

Thanks Mark! I was surprised too that no one had commented on it. Anyway, I’m glad you may have gotten some inspiration for yourself. If you give it a go and want to bounce some ideas off of me or have questions let me know. Thanks again! Ron

I thought some of you might like to see how I transport my bike around. I don’t have a truck or trailer and was not even considering getting one just to haul my bike around, so I designed and built this one and have used it, with no issues, for about a year now. I’ve read others describe something similar, but I had never seen photos of what it looked like, so as an architect, I thought I’d design and make my own that’s simple, effective and affordable. I drive a Mini Cooper S and first looked at off the shelf carriers but all I found, in the US, were overly large and cumbersome plus they required a 2” hitch setup. Also, with the hitch I put on the car, the only option was a 1 1/4” hitch, which gave me a tongue weight of 300 pounds. With the off-the-shelf models, a 2” hitch and my motorcycle was pushing the tongue weight close the 300 pound limit. The carrier I made is about 25 pounds so with my bike weight of about 160 pounds I have a safety margin of 115 pounds above whatever the safety margin is on the hitch. It’s made of 1 1/4” square, steel tubing with a wall thickness of 3/16”. After it was all welded up, with extra plates at the joins, I drilled 5/8” holes so I could use locking hitch pins to hold it by the foot pegs. I also drilled and tapped two more holes to hold the bike down using the skid plate at the front. I just simply lift the bike up onto it and bolt it down. Easy peasy! The paint has taken a beating over the year but it’s worked swimmingly. I plan to have it powder coated next. It’s easy to store in the car boot too which is a plus because it’s so small. There’s no ramp, straps or tire supports because they aren’t needed and the forks and shock are never compressed. Anyway, it’s worked out well and I’d do it again in a heart beat. Just thought someone might be interested. Be safe!

It seems light to me too. Now you’ve got me concerned. Errors do occur in books. When I smack my spokes they give off a nice sharp ping though. I think I’ll call my local dealer to ask the question. Good luck!

Here’s the specs right out of the manual. I have the same bike.

I’m in the US but found this place on Google Earth. I don’t know how far away it is from you but It looks like a great place for kids and it’s legal. It looks like it’s only about 20 miles west of you. I tried to paste the link but it wouldn’t work for some reason but it’s right below for you to copy and paste. Gook luck! Beginoffroad.co.uk Another one: trials-school.co.uk

A couple of images…

I had the same issue with my 2023 Gasgas 250. It was an absolute pain to start. The piston has to be in the right position and you need the leg of a rhino to start it. Wore me out fast. My solution was to put a 1mm head spacer on it to lower the compression. It’s very easy to do and cost me about $25 to do it. It’s a different bike now. I got the head spacer from Trial Enduro Direct https://trialendurodirect.com/product/gg-pro-model-cylinder-head-spacer/?v=7516fd43adaa. It costs £12.75 and shipping to me in the USA was about another $12. I love it because it’s a lot less expensive than the S3 low compression kit and it worked. Good luck!

Wow! Did not know that. Thanks for jumping in. This is the very reason I posted the question here to learn what I don’t know. Given what you said I don’t think I’ll try my experiment. Thank you!

Thanks for the input. I meant only in the tail end of the pipe. The oil contamination was what I thought might kill the idea too but I think it still might be worth a try. Carbon fiber weighs about 15% less than fiberglass so the weight savings is negligible but I think density would be about the same keeping performance the same. Longevity and resiliency to heat and oil are the goals in my head. It can definitely take the heat better than fiberglass so that leaves the dreaded oil problem. If you try it using the unidirectional fiber let me know and I’ll try woven. I don’t think this idea will save the world but it seems like a good experiment to me. Thanks again for jumping in!

I’ll let you know if I pull the trigger.

I’ll wait to see what others think before trying but I agree with your concerns. It’d be interesting to see and hear.

Oh, forgot to mention that I did a quick back of the napkin estimate and by volume 1 square meter/yard would be equal 1,200 grams of fiberglass packing so you could repack a typical trials silencer with one square yard three times. Typical costs range from $30ish to $45ish dollars per sq. yd. That would only cost $10ish to $15ish per repack. Maybe I’ve gone bats! Probably.

I realize this may be a crazy question but has anyone used carbon fiber as a silencer packing? It’s sound insulation properties are very high and it won’t burn or get brittle. I know it’s expensive but it might just last indefinitely in a muffler and could possibly be reused once it’s fouled. Seems to me that sound decibels would decrease and would last a good long time. When it comes to acoustic properties, carbon fiber is often compared to materials like aluminum, steel, and fiberglass. Carbon fiber generally has better acoustic performance than these materials, as it has a higher stiffness to weight ratio and lower density. Laugh if you will but I’m just wondering. Cheers!