g4321

If that is the worst area of corrosion I would be happy to use the wheel - my 'bad wheel' is a lot worse than that although I have a new rim ready to build onto that hub. My 'good wheel' is in similar condition to your pictures. I suggest you clean off the the oxidation with a wire brush & angle grinder/electric drill and wash/degrease wheel. Then give it a couple of coats of paint with a thick paint such as Hammerite, leaving it to dry for a few days before re-fitting your tyre. Every time you change a tyre check to see if the corrosion has got worse. On my twinshock TLR250 I cleaned off the corrosion at least 5 years ago and to be honest i have not really seen any further degredation of the rim. My other bike has been sitting for a while and really the back rim is too far gone so I have another rim (not a Honda gold DID!) to fit once I get round to buying spokes.

The price you are quoting for the tank is very reasonable but will have to wait for the moment! Is that a Gollner monoshock tank cover? - just that it looks quite wide to me (it may be the colour or angle the picture is taken at. In the bits you are sorting out what 'non required bits' do you have What are the engine mods? Is the engine still TLR based?

Looks Neat What does it use for fittings - std rubbers or a one-off setup? Is there an Alloy tank as well or is the tank Fibreglass? Most important question What is the cost?

The reason for my comment questioning whether stainless spokes are necessary relates to the above quote. I recently rebuilt a vintage belt drive bikes wheels and we were recommended NOT to use stainless spokes by the spoke supplier. Glad to have given rise to some debate with my comments!

2nd Opinion Time Agree - BUT ensure you use a firm who are used to motorcycle work - that way they know all about masking threads, bearing cups etc. Do all the preparation you can as regards masking off using wooden plugs etc. Speak to the firm you want to use first - they will guide you. Honda fiorks are lacquer coated. Strip the lacquer with paint stripper then rud out the worst of the gouges/scratches with wet n dry or fine emery. Remember its a trials bike - they are meant to be used, not just looked at - what is the point of a mirror finish that will get ruined the first trial you take the bike to? Once you age happy with the general finish its time to polish! Polishing is easy - it is slightly messy but think of the satisfaction knowing you did the work yourself! Have a look at the following site for polishing tips & kits http://www.thepolishingshop.co.uk/ Wheel builders need to know the pattern of spokes & more importantly the wheel offset. Give the wheel to the wheel builder and let him/her source the powder coating of the hub - they will measure up the wheel before the job starts & you will get a wheel which lies central in the frame. It may be more expensive in the short term but its worth it. A bike proficient powder coater is definately required - they know that brakes do not get powder coated! Gold alloy Honda rims are rubbish - dont even dream of polishing or re anodising them - they corrode badly from both inside & outside - if you have not removed the tyres from the wheels on your TLR do so you will get a shock how bad the wheels are. Buy new rims - this is the only answer- whether stainless spokes are worthwhile is debatable? Any Honda dealer should be able to get parts - Some TLR parts are getting very hard to get, especially for the 250 which is a much more 'single model specific' bike with several parts now classed as obsolete. The 200 was for sale longer and is less problemed by the 'no longer available part' syndrom. In addition many motor parts for the TLR200 are similar to the XR200, XL200 185 & 125 Appleyards know what they are talking about as regards TLR's. There are some parts available from Dave Silver Spares - BUT NOT MUCH, you really need parts numbers and browse their stock list. Have a look at the following US sites - http://www.powersportspro.com/ - they have an online fiche for the TLR but dont give parts nos http://www.ronayers.com/ - they have a fiche for the XR200 online - much of the motor bits are similar

Just rebuilt an engine - replaced most of the bearings (ie those that were in need of replacement! - including mains), cam chain, tensioner, rings etc etc. Bottom end of motor sounds mechanically rough when it is running. No obvious wear in big end. I suspect wear in the primary drive gear/clutch drive/oilpump drive since this is the area the noise is coming from & it sounds more like gear noise than a bearing going. Has anyone else experienced similar symptoms? I heard from a local mechanic that XL125/185 etc can sound rough in this area.

Joe Thanks for the prompt reply - Going to 2.5wt oil appears to be my best bet as you say, i am glad you agree with my interpretation (which I did not put down to see the response i got!) . It may be the 5wt oil I had was miss-labeled? I have some 2.5wt oil I used for an experiment on an MX bike in the past - its more like water than oil! First of all I am going to try increasing the 'air pressure' - this will increase the spring rate a little to see if this has a noticable effect - but this is NOT the route I wish to go down more pressure = more chance of seal failure & I prefer to run with zero air pressure. The other thing I will check is alignment in that there is the risk of 'stiction if the forks are not aligned properly. Some day I will my trials bike to handle the way I want it - then again I won't have any excuses if this is the case?!****** Gordon

Suspension AGAIN I have a reasonable feel on the front suspension on my bike - but I have one problem which I would like to be able to cure. Spring rate/sag & compression damping are fine but the bike seems to have far too much rebound damping in that there is too much delay in the forks returning over a series of bumps. I have no options for adjusting damping except via oil weight & level/volume (also the addition of air pressure) Any suggestions My thoughts were :- too high an oil weight (I only have 5wt in at the moment) Too high oil level or volume (this has been checked and is very close to the recommended for the forks) Too much preload making springs too far compressed - the forks are from a lighter bike - I dont know whether the damping orrifices are std ( i needed to add 10 - 15mm preload from std - the springs are within tolerance) Yours confused

Thanks for the info The tank fitment on my Gollner is not the best design I can think of (rubber bands to top tube) - whether this is original I dont know but I have some ideas in mind how to modify this when it comes to refitting the tank. The tank top on my bike is a badly fitting simple plug in 'bung type' top, whether a replacement alloy tank has been made at one time I dont know, again this is something I am not happy with - hence the question about tank top. The fibreglass cover is held at the rear by a bolt through the rear mudguard & rubber clip/band at front - this looks original but I probably have a couple of DZUS fastners looking for a home. Looks kike a nice bike you have though I see you have rebuilt the wheels - i take it due to 'Honda wheel rot disease' - did you bother with double diameter spokes Gordon

Look at the decibel figures being quoted - they are rediculously low - ie less than normal conversation. I have coppied this from some obscure website. remember Decibels are Logarithmic Note! Doubling the signal level increases the decibel with 3 dB ! Normal conversation (3-5') 60-70dB Telephone dial tone 80dB City Traffic (inside car) 85dB Train whistle at 500' 90dB Subway train at 200' 95dB Level at which sustained exposure may result in hearing loss 90 - 95dB Power mower 107dB Power saw 110dB Pain begins 125dB Pneumatic riveter at 4' 125dB Jet engine at 100' 140dB Death of hearing tissue 180dB Loudest sound possible 194dB

Twostroke or Fourstroke - its all really a matter of personal choice. Manufacturers are trying to move away from twostrokes for road bikes (mopeds excepted) primarily because of emissions - lets face it twostrokes are not very environmentally friendly (ie they pump out oil and SMELL!) In my view 2 strokes make nice chain saws, strimmers, mopeds and GP race bikes. Otherwise 4 stroke is king.

Looking at the picture again the seat/tank unit looks very similar to my Gollner Monoshock TLR. Does this use the normal TLR tank fittings rubbers at the front or is it held by a 'rubber band' ? What capacity is the tank? Where did you get the fuel cap - or alternatively what does the fuel cap come from, the cap on my bike which is still in 100 bits is a very poor fit. I still fancy fitting this type of tank/seat unit to my twinshock TLR - either this or a Plastic tank from a Fantic or similar. Gordon

where did you get the tank/seat unit?

Ducky Whats the bore n stroke of the Cagiva ? Is it same as Bultaco 350? The other option is a T350 Italjet

I look forward to hearing anything at all. Particularly engine mods & front suspension mods. There is the rumour of things like one-off gears being made for these bikes. gears. The exhaust seems to be a 'one off' , the silencer is on the RHS when on a normal TLR the silencer is on the LHS - this is due to the position of the shock. I have the engine in 1000 bits at the moment (along with the rest of the bike) & it is gradually being fitted back together! Gordon

Mr B It can be done locally - John at North East used to do it - also there is a small bike shop in Aberdeen which can help. It aint that difficult, there are some good guides on the web, although pushbike related, the principles are exactly the same. Central Wheel Company will supply spokes to your specification (there are numerous other suppliers) How did you get on on your travels?

John I will give one of your RTL's a good home - I assure you it will be well loved for, regularly used and regularly seviced. I would even let you have a go! Just think this would give you the space for another 2 stroke

Best of luck on your travels Mr B. Are you camping or is the employer puting you up in some of his facilities on the way? G

David Knight winning - well that is a real surprise - NOT I would have been very surprised if Mr Knight had not won - MX ace, enduro ace , trials ace & Super muto ace!

thanks Hopefully just what the doctor ordered!

You got a link for me?

Anyone out there in Email land able to give me suggestions for the correct static sag - without & with rider for trials bike forks & rear suspension. Its about time i sorted out the suspension on one of my bikes & since I aint got a clue about setting up trials forks (Motocross or road - yes) I am looking for some help. Its fair enough saying look at the handbook BUT the forks & bike are not std - it would take too long to explain! What I am looking for are some guideline figures.

Nice looking motor - Is that a balance shaft in the bulge at the front of the crankcase? As for cost - has anyone compared the difference in price between a 2 stroke ( horrible smelly things, make nice mopeds & strimmer engines!) against a 4 stroke motocross bike from 1999/2000 when Yamaha first launched the YZF 400 - the 1st of the new era 4 stroke bikes. I suspect the price difference would have been similar to the

Nice bike John I was interested in the exhaust side to see the size & shape of exhaust - if there was a 'front silencer' as well as the main silencer & there is - a nice big volume which should = loads of torque low down. P{ity it will make it very quiet though. There cant be much airbox volume? Gordon I take it you will not be competing on the Alvie rocks this weekend with this Honda? See you Sunday - lets hope the weather is DRY & the sections are P65/TS friendly

Does this mean you have the bike home now John? I will ensure my clothes are clean and I dont fall off too hard when i come round for that test ride you promised me! Is that a set of TLR forks or just similar? Can We see a photo from the exhaust side? Gordon