roester

I snapped my ACL riding trials, so it is possible! I’ve worn a brace since. It doesn’t really restrict movement.

I think it depends how you ride. My 2017 Super Smooth 300 suited me because I like to ride on low revs in higher gears and, if you ride it like this, the engine is incredibly flexible, grippy, torquey, predictable and, well... smooth. I think it is much easier to ride than an early (2001 era) 290 Sherco and easier than a 300 Factory. I'm in my late 40s and not particularly fit. If your riding style is to rev a bike more in lower gears I think even the Super Smooth 300 would be much harder work than a 200. If you wind the revs up a 300 SS still takes off like a scolded cat!

I think sections with mud, roots and cambers might help to level things a bit. Bring back muddy Butser Limeworks! My feeling is that a really good national level rider might still be able to compete in a world round in that type of trial. It would be tough and the cream would still rise to the top...

I fitted Magicals, along with 7.5 wt oil, rather than 10 wt, to my TY mono and was really surprised how much difference they made. One of the best upgrades I have done. And yes, you are meant to have the tighter wound part of the springs at the top.

I think it is worth considering putting two or three hundred aside to spend on the bike once you've bought it. You have to be pretty lucky to buy an older bike for that sort of money that turns out to have everything working really well and that is fully reliable. You can buy a good Beta Rev or 315 for £1300 to £1400. Why not hold back a couple of hundred to treat the old girl to some fresh bearings, seals, oils, filter and the other odds and ends that might be damaged or badly worn. I bought a fairly low hour 2007 Rev 3 a couple of years ago on a tight budget. I love it and it has been very reliable in the long run but took a bit of work initially (wheel bearings, fork seals went early on, water pump seal, brake calliper rebuild and pads, air filter, thermostat went, and a few bodges needed undoing). It has been a lovely bike since - smooth, stable, grippy and turns well. Best wishes

I would suggest putting lots of obstacles all in the same area. If you have lots of banks, holes, ditches and logs fairly close together then you have a wide range of options for different sections. Good luck!

I recently bought Answer 'pee wee' knee pads for my daughter and they seem ideal. The lower part tucks inside the boots. Lightweight and comfortable.

It might be worth spending about £1300 and saving a couple of hundred to freshen up the bike - new grips, controls, plug, bearings, filter, fluids, silencer packing, and perhaps a tyre. The bike will be more reliable and will ride better. Good luck with whatever you buy.

Thanks for your replies. I took the shock off, cleaned it up, put it back on and bounced around on it for a few minutes and fluid started coming out of the bottom of the shock - there is no crack - just where the base of the shock fits to the main body. Any ideas what has happened? Has the bladder gone? Looking at previous threads it looks like these haven't been available for a few years. Goudrons - have you got a contact for Ollie? How much was it? Many thanks.

I've just got back from riding my 2007 Beta Rev 3 250 and noticed some oil around the bottom of the rear shock. However, there is no oil on the shaft. Can the shocks leak from the bottom? I have taken the shock off and there are no obvious cracks. The oil smells like suspension fluid I think. The shock has been working well although I did wonder if it went a bit dead near the end of my session today. The bike is fairly low hour. Thanks

Nigel Birkett's fabricator made another batch of silencers - I think they have still got some. They are well worth considering. They perform well and also tuck out of the way better than some. The Magicals fork springs were a great upgrade for my bike ( it is a solo though). A couple of years later I'm still sometimes surprised what a difference they have made. Craig Mawlam was importing them - I assume he still is. Perhaps you could contact him through his Majesty website? Good luck - great bikes these Yams! Alan

The DOT factory still exists, although they haven't made motorcycles for a few decades! You could try giving them a ring on 0161 8345472. They still have some spares the last I heard and are quite helpful. Cheers - Alan

What a stunning bike - well done. It just looks so right.

Thanks from me also - brilliant videos - I looked forward to them each day!

Very low production but Cheyney and also Franks (Kelvin Franks - Australian).

I agree - if you are used to a modern bike, the riding position of the old Yams feels pretty strange for a while. Putting higher bars on is well worth trying, particularly if you are tall or have a Pinky model (the shock shaft is a bit longer on them - in 1991 and 1992 most of the team riders ran slightly higher bars to compensate for the back end being a bit higher). I've got 5.5" Renthals and lowered the pegs a bit (Sammy Miller weld on brackets and pegs)and the bike is really neutral and feels great. I didn't move the pegs back much at all after two of my mates, both long standing Yam riders, said that it upsets the balance of the bike, making the back end heavy and the front a bit harder work on climbs. I guess it is all down to personal taste though... Cheers - Alan

What a fabulous looking bike. It has got me dreaming about building one!

A larger airbox was on eBay a couple of months ago - might be wrong but I think it was Nick Draper selling it - don't know if it sold. How old is your mono Yam? The early ones didn't breathe as well. In 1988 the White frame model was much improved with a better air box, and improved silencer and carb settings. The exhaust system is really important, as with most bikes. The packing needs to be good in the middle box and the silencers make quite a difference. The 'YAM' ones are good. I have got Nigel Birkett chatting about mono Yams a number of times and it is always fascinating. He said to me the other year that the main reason the mono Yam became uncompetitive at British Championship level in the 1990s was its weight. At the time the engine didn't hold it back for some top riders as it could be modified to suit rider preference to quite an extent- it could even be fairly quick revving and a real screamer if that was what you wanted. Shirty also built some more modern style engines including a 330 which was based on the TY350 but the bore and stroke were changed to produce about 342cc. It was ridden by Tony Scarlet and Gerald Richardson in world rounds. Mind you, however the Yam was modded it never did suit everyone. My personal preference has always been for Mick Andrews modified engines - more grippy than a modern bike at the bottom end and with real torque but the ability to rev hard at the top end. They are totally deceptive and with a dip of the clutch will take off up pretty big steps whilst also firing up big hills and yet being able to find grip on the whiff of a throttle that few other bikes could achieve ( yes, I'm biased!). I guess trials bikes are very personal things but I love this set up. Despite having ridden them for 25 years though, when I jump on a Yam after a modern bike they always feel awful. Half an hour later I'm starting to remember how to ride them and after a couple of hours I've cleaned 90 percent of what I could on a modern bike. Muddy cambers and slick roots are easier. I believe that a decent Yam with good period modifications with weight trimmed wherever possible is still far better than most people would think these days. The trouble is that most Yams out there, because they are so tough, have been worn out to within an inch of their lives and are hard work and expensive to bring back up to their best. Mind you, that is all part of the fun!

I would love to see this BTC 'make-over' include a real emphasis on the type of sections that particularly suit no-stop rules. Over the years, in our own South Midland Centre trials, I've seen Alexz Wigg and Sam Haslam drop many dabs and even the odd five on flowing, muddy sections full of roots, despite them being among the top mud-riders in the country. Yes, they always win easily in this centre, but what is interesting is that these haven't normally been killer sections though, but tough sections where you can't afford to stop because it is slippery and if you get off-line you pay the penalty. These same sections can be tackled by a decent centre expert who, although they will drop a lot of marks, I've seen get threes and even the odd 'dream clean' on a section that took a mark or two from Alexz and Sam. Put those same top centre experts in sections full of technical trick riding and big steps and they would five everything whilst Sam and Alexz can clean that sort of thing all day. Bring back more cambers, roots, slick twisting rock climbs and streams, and a round or two of winter mud-plugs and big blasts like the Colmore or Hoad - I think this approach to section plotting allows more riders to have a genuine go at the sections whilst still taking marks from the stars. The top guys will still win but more can at least compete. I reckon this greater variety of section and the more flowing riding style of no-stop would attract more spectators overall as well.

I think it is a great shame that trials in the UK has had a number of significantly different sets of rules over the years, because I believe it has led to confused observers and frustrated riders who are marked inconsistently. It is no good for an observer to claim "I always mark everyone the same" as if that justifies him using the wrong rules and giving everyone that stops a five, whilst the next observer gives a clean! It would be just as crazy to have the referee and the linesmen officiating football to their own differing sets of rules - the players wouldn't know where they are! On behalf of the Berko club, I've run Trials Observer Training mornings for a number of years. Normally well attended, the main thing I notice is that there is huge confusion over the rules - some think a stop is a five, others a one, a clean or even a two or three! If most major sports can agree on internationally accepted rules and stick to them, then surely the small sport of trials should be able to, with some strong leadership from the governing bodies (?!). The main reason I think the SE Centre were right to go non-stop by the way, is that, despite the fact that they run some great trials, it gets enormously boring sitting in queues for hours whilst 10 or 15 riders bounce around in the sections for ages in that centre. Obviously at centre level time-keepers are not normally an option when it is not easy to even find enough observers.

What about having a wider range of types of trial in the WTC, including sections the average club rider can recognise as being part of the same sport. Remember the British world round near Petersfield in the late '80s which Steve Saunders won (was it called Butser Limeworks)? Huge gnarly fourth gear muddy climbs! It was a wet horrible day but spectacular for the crowds.

They can be re-sleeved - Nigel Birkett (Birkett Motosport) can help. You can bore them out quite a way though - again Nigel does re-boring and can source the pistons - he has got a lot in stock. Best wishes - Alan

As OTF says, the piston looks to be a Yamaha one, and I've got to say that I also love the 270 engine. Nigel Birkett (Birkett Motosport) is the man for this, whether you just have a rebore or fully mod the engine - he has a lot of pistons in stock and also does the rebore himself. He was even a development rider for this bike back in the early '80s! Are you certain the big end has gone? Whilst it might have done it is very rare. The main bearings do wear over time though and it would be worth checking and probably replacing these, and obviously if you split the crank cases do the crank seals as they are not much and do start blowing eventually. Once the engine is done, they run for years. Best wishes - Alan

Yes, the clutch arm has been extended - the standard one is in one piece. The clutch is excellent on these - strong, light and lasts for ages. The additional spring shouldn't be needed - I would think doing what you suggest with the standard spring should do it. If it needs more than the original spring there is something wrong. There is no harm in extending the clutch arm by this amount, and if the cable is well lubed, has a clean run and the clutch lever and bracket are in good condition, the clutch should be very light. Good luck with it - they are great bikes - Alan

The manual suggests 10 weight oil which is what I've always used. Cheers - Alan