old trials fanatic

The red one was also apparently one of Lampkins old ones. Did hear it's also up for sale. No price tag though. Shame Dave didnt have Vesty's old bike on show especially seeing as there has been so much interest in it of late on this site. One question. The bike shown in your photos, number 34/35 i think. What is the engine in that? Was it a diesel? Just got a feeling it was something weird. Some good engineering evident on the bike but i was puzzled as to the powerplant. Why also came to mind but Why not would probably be the answer. So what was it? Funny you took a piccy of the Mecatechno. So did i. Now that was a tasty bike. Very well put together and thought out. Anybody rode one? How did they go? Anybody took a picture of the James of Alan Wrights just inside the door? I'm looking to build one and am trying to gather as many piccys and info as i can before i go ahead.

Great photos. I tried but there were too many people milling about to get any decent shots. Helps if youre in before the massed hoards. Enjoyed the show but didnt see many "bargains" ,loads of rusty junk, honestly i've thrown a lot better stuff away ! First time i've been though and will definately go again. Think the best thing is to pre order any stuff you need from people you know will be there and collect it. Saves the postage and effectively means you go for free The SWM display looked impressive and Dave Renham at Bultaco had a good display. The CCM was georgeous but i wasnt too sure about the front brake torque arm working in compression instead of extension. Oh well what do i know. Saw a lot of old faces and some regular ones so a good day was had by all. Did notice you could get in at 9.00 but were charged

Kawasarki i got my hubs from Alan Whitton 01246 419805. They will probably cost you in the region of around

Give Millers a ring they fit cub hubs, widened, to their B40 bikes so should know the lengths. The Bantam hub would have been better because it's wider. The normal mod is to saw the hub in half insert a band and weld back up again. Personally i feel too much trouble so i bought some billet alloy ones. Expensive but lighter and much much stronger as made in one piece from aircraft grade alloy. Only problem when using Cub hubs is because they are narrow when used in a C15 rear swingarm one side has the spokes almost vertical and as such is a weak area. Might be worth having yours widened before you rebuild the wheel

Didnt listen did you? We could have told you so. Think we did actually. Look on the bright side at least the bike will hold it's value. How much is a 12month old Montesa 4T worth? At least your bike wont depreciate. Just dont add the cost up thats fatal.

Nice one. What forks are they? Some centres get a bit touchy about the forks and yokes. Mine and Yorks seem to accept modern internals inside Norton etc outers. Any yokes seem acceptable as long as the clamp bolts are inboard of the legs not out side of them. Good luck with the bike apart from the forks it looks pretty std B40. You may struggle with the ground clearence. Just about every B40 round these parts has had the engine lifted a bit to help. Post more piccys as the build progresses please.

OOOOH that do look nice. Sort of the posh version of my B40 If you get my drift. You dont see many of those. Remember one on e bay and that fetched nearly

It's one of Alan's PVLs. Hopefully barring catastrophies i will have it up and running in the next few weeks. Then it's shakedown time and see what falls off, doesnt work, jams, breaks etc etc. There's a world of difference between building a bike in the shed and making it work and stay together out in the real world. Thats why i posted on here hoping to pick peoples brains and hopefully benefit from their experiences so as not to make too many mistakes with mine. It's always expensive and time consuming when you have to scrap it and start again. Still all part of the learning curve. Thats probably why pre 65 bikes are so expensive to buy. Will post some piccys and a diatribe when i eventually get it running.

Thanks for the offer. I've been a fan of your site for some time and Mr Whitton has been trying to talk me into riding at one of your events for a while. However a few problems. Firstly it would take me over two hours minimum to get to your events but the biggest problem after reading your regulations is my frame is illegal, my front forks are illegal and my fork yokes are illegal. So not a lot of point. Saying all that though the videos and photos do look very nice and i am amazed how quickly you get your results on the website. Usually the same night as the trial. Thanks for the kind words about the bike though. The carb i have may be a bit big at 26mm from what you said. Will give it a go if i can finish the damn thing in the next couple of weeks. Might take it up to Micks (Bracken Rocks) and take a 24mm carb with me, if i can find one, to try back to back. Watching some of the bikes today at the Peak Classic trial the cubs definately seem to find grip when the B40's were spinning out. Constant or constantish throttle does seem to be the order of the day. What ignition advance is good for the B40? or is it just play around till it feels ish? Any extra tips for building an awsome B40 ?

There have been a lot of contributions of late about Cubs and the building and setting up thereof. Well for my sins i an in the final stages of building a B40 so what are the recommendations for a B40? You know the usual stuff? Carb size and type. High Comp or Low comp piston. Sports or road cam. Gearing. Michelin or IRC tyres. (While I'm at it I've been told that tubeless Michelins are slightly softer construction than tubed ones. Is this true?) My bike has a Faber frame and Betor front forks and has a Ex WD GB B40 Engine at present with points on sidecover but has had them removed and a PVL ignition fitted. I was thinking of fitting a Amal Mk 1 Concentric 26mm NB Good idea? I know we have a lot of Cub experts here but anybody know anything about B40's

01789 751422 after 6.00pm and at weekends

I wonder what you mean by "snaping the throttle"? remember 1. it's a four stroke. 2. the engine has to accelerate the heavy flywheels. 3. It's a Amal carb not a CV unit or a Mikuni (although the above also applies to a Mikuni) As Scotty used to say "Ye canna change the laws of physics". You cant expect an old cub to behave like a modern 2 stroke. Now this may or may not be the case but i was just wondering what you were expecting? I dont know your previous trials experience but riding a pre65 bike takes a radical modifying of your technique. These bikes respond to more of a constant throttle, momentum is all, and you cant just "snap" the throttle open and expect the bike to behave like a modern one let alone a 2 stroke. These comments are meant helpfully not as a criticism and it may be an idea to try your bike back to back with an already well fettled cub. Also what sort of cam is fitted? what sort of piston? which head as this will have a bearing as will valve size and therefore inlet gas speed and therefore atomization? Have you got a thermal barrier fitted as my cub was a bugger to carburate without one. Also mine was very critical on inlet tract length, detonation problem, and also air filter flow rate, more of a problem at high revs but did affect "spitting back" at low throttle openings till i increased the size and flow of the pipe connecting the filter to the carb. Finally silencer ability to flow gas freely at low revs can sometimes cause excessive back pressure that isnt such a problem at higher revs due to increased flow. Cubs are notoriously hard to "set up" and a lot of the local guys fit the carb from a TL125 and report it solves a lot of their problems. Just an observation. Good luck with the cub.

Now firstly sorry to post this in this section but i respect the advice and opinions of the contributors. I have just bought a new NZI carbon fibre helmet from Sammy Millers to use when riding the B40 in local Pre 65 trials as i understand helmets are now compulsary. On opening the box i noticed the helmet didnt have an ACU gold sticker. Didnt have any ACU sticker to be precise. Rang Sammy Miller and they said that was right that the helmets are not ACU approved but that this shouldnt be a problem. Now in your opinion and experience is this so? I would have assumed that Sammy Millers being a major trials specialist should not be selling items that are not suitable for the intended purpose. Am i going to come up against a problem when i enter the next trial? Should i try to peel the sticker off one of my old helmets and stick it on this one? Must admit i feel a bit cheated by Sammy Millers and that they should have clearly advised that there may be a problem before selling me the helmet if this is the case. So please help an old fart out as i dont want to walk into a controversy at the upcoming trial. If there will be a problem cant i return the helmet to Sammy Millers for a refund?

Bother didnt come up as a hyperlink never mind Big John just cut and paste. Sorry

www.motoswm.com Not very often i can be of help

Didnt have to have any machining done on the B40 to fit PVL. However it's a points on the side cover engine and if i remember rightly the C15T should be distributor so might be a different system. Still looking at Mr Whittons C15T he's just blanked off the distributor and fitted a PVL in place of the Lucas alternator. Agree it makes all the difference. First or second kick starting every time. Well worth the expense.

Got no excuse left then now have i? Think i will take Alans offer then and do a Yorkshire round or two next year.

I agree with you about Peak Classic. They are a much more realistic bunch so i will probably be doing a few of their trials in 2006. Alan keeps trying to get me to go with him to some yorkshire events but theyre all "hard men" oop there and i'm a bit of a wobbler myself. Will see what transpires. Dont like big rocks much. Actually it's the bruises i dont like to tell the truth. More of a grassy banks and streams man. :santawink:

The shocks are available from Alan Whitton you will have to check the price with him as it would be unfair of me to mention how much i paid. Depends on the exchange rate etc. The frame is an earlier Faber not the current Mk2. I dont really find the difference that marked as a lot depends on the length and stiffness of the rear shocks also depends if you are using forks with a leading axle which all affects the effective head angle as does the fork spring rate. Forks compress angle effectively steepens. Longer or stiffer rear shocks effectively the angle steepens. It a bit more difficult with an oil in frame frame to "modify" it. Just ride it as is and fine tune the suspension. Try droping the forks through the yokes to steepen the angle if it bothers you and see if it is preferable. They are quite strict up here too but i will mainly be riding in club trials and they are not so bad apart from Midland Classic who get their knickers in a twist if the yoke clamp bolts are on the outside of the stantions not the inside. The James will have fiddle forks i.e. Mr Whittons billet yokes with Marzocci inners in Norton sliders. Just annoys me that you have to cheat to be accepted? Whatever. Then after all that i will lob it down some Derbyshire cliff. Makes you wonder why we bother doesnt it?

Aww shucks thanks for the nice comments guys. The rear shocks are Mick Andrews Classic shocks that Mick brings over from Spain. The exhaust pipe is a std B40 one from Sammy Miller but the silencer i made myself. I wanted something to keep the bike slim, cant stand the miller one it sticks out and gets damaged too easily so i fabricated this one up. Works fine and sounds really nice. The exit is level with the rear mudguard so deep water is no problem. Just got to finish the bottom engine mount and she's about done. Hopefully the James will be even better and once i get the bits assembled, frame being made next week, then i will post some piccys. Good luck with yours Uncle Buck and have a nice Christmas everybody. :hat:

Try again one more time. Remember as i said it's still got a bit of work to do before next Spring but it's well on the way.

Did i build it from scratch? Well sort of. I assembled it and made parts as required on the lathe etc. Frame from Faber Forks from OSSA Gripper Front wheel SWM Rear hub Billet alloy care of Mr Whitton PVL electronic ignition also care of Mr Whitton Rear shocks care of Mick Andrews Exhaust pipe Sammy Miller Hebo footrests BVM Moto Air box and side panels fabricated and welded care of ME Seat covered by RK Leighton Usual Renthal bars and Amal Levers Bit like most Pre 65 bikes really just assemble what comes to hand or make yourself. I would post a picture but it keeps telling me the file attachment is too big and i dont know how to resize it.

Unfortunately i bet you havent got a contact number have you/

Earlier this year there were some photos of competitors in the Scottish Pre 65 trial on this site. Can they still be accessed?

Havent got a bike thats legal for Midland Classic as they are a bit tight on the spec of bikes. Will try to do some Peak Classic rounds but found the ones at Mick's place a bit on the hard side for an old bugger like me. Hopefully see ya next year :hat: