The popular mod of the period was to increase capacity to approx 264cc using a Yam IT 250 piston,shorten the inlet tract,can't remember how much and also cut away some of the reed valve petal.I cant remember if any porting work was involved- probably was.I had various tail pipes on mine,ranging from one of Shirty's to a Kato,then a WES "GO" and finished up making my own.I had a spare back wheel with a Talon hub like quite a few people.There must be a few still about.There were various aftermarket carbs on the market at the time all reputed to improve performance.There were some good riders on Yam monos at one time,Scarlett,Alderson,Birkett,Andrews etc.Probably the most exciting rider I saw was young David Page.He was destined to be very good but sadly his premature death ,from I beleive leukaemia,meant this was'nt to be.
If you have a thicker liner and minimal clearance,you can use standard shoes-no need to machine shoes every time they are replaced.Just my opinion.Incidentally why iron in preference to steel? Cheers,ALT.
Hi Feetupfun,I don't know if you've had steel liners put in the hubs yet but when you do it might be an idea to find someone(a local machinist perhaps)who will machine the liners such that you end up with the absolute minimum clearance between lining and liner.This will help to increase the contact area and also reduce the amount of lever movement.I did this to mine and the results were really good.Cheers,ALT.
OK,thanks Charlie.By the way,are you a pseudonym (dont take it the wrong way!)?Reason for asking is that I don't live a million miles from you and have been riding trials for 31 years,so there's a pretty good chance that I should know you!
Big John,I already own a B40 and I don't plan to enter the 2 day on a cheat Cub,, even if it appears to look "right".Cheat bikes are killing pre-65 trials(my own B40 included),so I can sympathise with your views but can someone answer my question?
What is the maximum engine capacity that can be achieved on a 200(late motor) Cub without increasing the stroke?Anyone have any comments on the no doubt numerous ways of doing it?Cheers,ALT.
Hi Superhondaman,I have a genuine trials swinging arm on my cub but even using that it can problem if you use a normal type chainguard.To get over this I use a tubular type guard similar to what Montesa used to use but only on the top chain run.I made mine using 25mm electrical conduit.It works well.Cheers,ALT.
Hi SwooshDave,If you just type in John Collins in the search facility provided on this site,you can scroll through his many posts.Thats how I found the info.Hope this helps ,cheers,ALT.
For anyone who's interested I've managed to do it by using Barnett friction plates and taking the trouble to set things up as John Collins suggested in one of his posts.There is no slip and no drag and the "bite" point is in just the right place relative to the position of the clutch lever.I did however need to leave out a friction plate and a drive plate because the Barnett plates are a lot thicker than standard.Cheers ,ALT.
Don't you have to register Trials bikes in the UK in case you have to go on a public roadway between sections? I'll bet some factory rider was going to use the bike for something like the 6 Day. Probably figured the Scrambler engine would give him a bit more zip. Be interesting to know if the bike ever was ridden in the 6 Day (or some other big national event).
Alan
It would be nice to think that someone well known rode it but there are no CD pre-fixes to the frame or engine numbers.The most likely thing,perhaps, is that it was built and used as some kind of test "hack"and then sold off to someone who worked at BSA.Whatever ,it's still a nice thing to own.I will put a close ratio cluster in it,put lights on it and use it as a trail bike.Cheers,Alt.
I have in my possesion a C15 that I bought in bits (and I mean bits!).I obtained it from an ex BSA employee.The bike had passed through the hands of a number BSA employees before him.The chap I bought it off trialed it in the early to mid sixties.However,he used to ride it to work and whilst doing so had an altercation with a car which resulted in,amongst other things,a bent frame.This of course required a strip down for repairs and while the engine was out it was completely dismantled,Alpha Bearings did the crank in readiness for the rebuild.The frame repair didn't go well however and because of this he lost interest and never rebuilt the motor.Basically the bike stayed in a million bits until I bought it four or five years ago.I've since nearly finished it.Now for the interesting bit,if anybody is still reading this!When I went to see the pile of bits I was under the impression that I was going to see a C15T.It turned out to be a C15S.(Yes I'm aware that the trials frame had an S pre-fix).The motor is a scrambles unit ,C15S pre-fix,it has a scrambles big valve head and cam but had a trials gear cluster!Must have been interesting in the sections!
I have the old buff logbook which shows that the BSA factory was the first registered keeper and that it duly passed through BSA employees hands.The chap I bought it off could shed no light on things.
Why would the Factory road register a scrambler and why would a scrambles motor be fitted with trials gears?Any thoughts?
To reply to Big John's post:I don't have enough talent in my right wrist to ride without using the clutch!In any case old habits die hard,I've been riding "on the clutch" since I had my first Bult in 1982.My Dad tried hard to persuade me not to!Incidentally,I recall the first time I saw anybody hopping the front wheel whilst using one finger on the clutch-a certain Mr Saunders,at a Stratford trial at Camp.He had just swopped from a 250 to a 340.I remember Wrighty trying to do the same on his 325 Beamish-without success!
I need help from you Bulto experts(please)!What is the best way to achieve a one finger clutch operation on a 199?Years ago I used a front brake actuating arm on the clutch to give more leverage(but I'm struggling to get hold of one at the moment!!!)and also backed off the clutch nuts at the expense of clutch slip when pulling a high gear.I can probably rig up a lever system in order to give some mechanical advantage,as I have on my B40 but on the Bult it will be difficult to package it neatly.Any suggestions?Also,is it worth replacing the Bing carb with perhaps a Mikuni?Your replies are appreciated!
What petrol/oil ratio do folks use nowadays with synthetic and semi-sythetic oils?I seem to recall using 32:1 with semi -synthetic back in the early eighties.Also ,what is the recommended sparkplug for a 199?Can anyone help?Cheers,Alt.
Hello all, just rode Pa's 350 Bulty 199 (1979) in a trial at the weekend, and i'm still suffering with left arm tiredness (boo hoo)
The clutch is really heavy (and virtually useless). Any pointers or tips? The Italjet is having a bit of a rest, so I'll use the Bulty for a couple of trials.
Cheers
No quick fix but lots you can do. How long do you have?
Message for Nigel Dabster regarding anything 199.I seem to recall reading somewhere that you have a list of mods/improvements.Any chance you could post it on this site or mail it to me?or would that be giving too much away!Cheers,Alt.
Hi chaps,dont know what happened to that last post!Anyway thanks for your replies.
Greg,does your frame have an SM prefix to the number as mine does not?Mine is numbered 619.There are subtle differences between it and the photos you posted.The footrest mounting plates are different as are the rear spindle plates.Also the sumpshield on mine has a more curved profile as viewed from the side.Cheers,ALT.
The frame number doesn't have an SM pre-fix and after speaking to Jeff Bungay(Mainly Spanish)who worked for Miller at the time the later 199 frames were being made it was suggested that it might be a Whitehawk frame.Incidently I had a new Hi Boy frame back in 1982 after breaking the front downtube in half,just above the engine mount on my 199A.The back end was much better than the standard set up I recall.I rode it until late 1984,until it seized due to a handfull of revs and the skirt broke off the piston and disapeared into the bottom end,doing allsorts of damage!Julian Wigg bought the wreckage off me,including the frame.Wonder what happened to it?
I've recently bought a 199 Bult with an aftermarket frame which I thought at first to be a Miller frame circa 78,79.I`m now pretty sure it isn't.Anybody know about Mick Whitlock Bultaco frames?It's not one of Steve Wilsons and I can't think of anybody else who made chrome Bultaco frames in any sort of quantity.
Mick Mills may be worth trying.I believe he made a small batch of frames a couple of years ago.He may not have sold them all.As I recall they were about
Vim Vos
in Twinshock
Posted
Hi Chaps,wasn't Eddy Moermann sponsored by Vim Vos when he was riding the 242 Montesa?Cheers,ALT.