woody

The trial wasn't intended to be as hard as it turned out, the appalling weather did it's worst. Rain began at about 7am and continued, very heavily, throughout the trial. Nothing the organisers could do really as it is virtually impossible to get around 40 sections of a road trial and change them. Had it not rained it would have been won on a single figure score. As it happens, almost every section remained rideable (eg, I don't think Nic Draper incurred a single 5) and it was possible to ride some of the worst sections for a 1 or a 2. Very few were 3 or 5 only types. Maybe I'm warped, but I really enjoyed it, just like a good old fashioned National or centre championship trial from late 70s, soaked to the skin, roadwork, single lap and plenty to have a go at. Back to the James, is there really a problem with bikes of this nature or are we just creating one. As has been said before, the people who are going to win, will win, whether they are on a standard bike or not. The riders that win are also more competitive by nature and will look to improve their bikes and gain an advantage over each other, it's how it's always been - compare GOV 132 to a standard HT5... Full of parts not available to Joe Bloggs at the time. So if those riders are on trick bikes, they are still only competing against each other. Joe Bloggs is not going to beat them, even if he is riding a modern bike. So is there really a problem? Possibly, and as I see it, it is this. The riders on the 'specials' or 'trick bikes' are not competing in a specials class. They are still entering in the 'ordinary' pre65 classes (as in the Miller rounds for example) Therefore, average riders on machines which are closer to original spec than the 'specials' are never going to win their class as they are competing against better riders on better bikes. The Miller series was intended initially for riders on standard(ish) bikes and the old rigids etc with sections to suit. I'm pretty sure this is one of the reasons for the drop off in pre65 bikes in the Miller series. They think I've no chance of doing any good against these blokes so bugger it, I'm not bothering anymore. If the specials were moved into the specials class by the organisers (if the riders don't enter it voluntarily) then this would leave the ordinary classes populated by the Joe Bloggses on their more standard machines to fight for class wins and the championship overall. The better riders on their specials then fight for the win in the specials class. I don

The float isn't meant to be adjustable but people who like to tinker make it adjustable by warming the tangs on the float that hold the needle and then bending them from their normal horizontal attitude into a different position which will raise or lower the float from standard. Why? - no idea, but may be worth checking yours to see if they've been altered. If they aren't in line with the horizontal top side of the float then they probably have. This is generally unlikely though and as per the post above the problem is more likely to be a faulty float or sticking needle. The bike should run fine with the Amal as long as it is in good nick.

Don't know if you can still get them but I think WES used to do a replacement silencer for the 247 which replaced both middle and back boxes with one alloy silencer which exited just behind the shock. Failing that, the middle box just needs as much volume as you can give it in length and width (door open for no amount of inuendo....) Don't bother with baffles, just a perforated core of around 35mm diameter and pack it with silent sport packing, the stuff that is like strands of wool. The longer and fatter you can make it, the better. You can make it to take the new repro Cota backbox or just to work on its own.

A stone in weight isn't going to make any difference to the shock performance. My opinion only, but too much is made of weight issues of all types. 3 or 4 stones difference and yes, you'll probably notice but not one. If you bought them new they should be under 6 months guarantee I think in which case if they don't work as requested you should be able to send them back and have them altered free of charge. Phone them and ask. To do yourself they are a pain to dismantle and you'd need to be able to refill with 90psi nitrogen which not many people are able to do at home.... Altering the damping is achieved by adjusting the shimming either side of the piston to increase or decrease the oil flow to allow the damper rod to move quicker or slower through the oil. Basic stuff in theory but difficult to judge how much adjustment is required without the experience of having done it before. A few years ago I took my bike down to Falcon to get them set up as that way I could try the bike and make sure they worked rather than trusting to luck that they would come back correct if I sent them by post.

Have a look here, same question asked on the twinshock forum recently Bulto frame colour

I always thought that the frame on JR's bike was done by someone else, not one of the Cheney frames. Don't know why, something I must have heard years back. Keith (not Eric) Horsman also made mono frames for the Ossa as well as the reed valve barrells (referred to as Harpower reeds)

oooooohhh - the mark up on your parts has just increased....... Dabster, what about these frames, are they 340?

There is no attachment to the engine. They are just the stub spindles you mention, mounted directly to the frame plates either side but I couldn't see exactly how as it is all very tight. I think just a bolt pushed through the bush from the inside and a nut on the outside. The spindle is so much closer to the final drive than on Vesty's bike. It worked well as JR had some good results on it when the Bult was past it's best and up against 240 Fantics etc. Maintenance nightmare though as just to get the clutch case off looks like removal of the swingarm or the engine....

I'd put money on that being John Reynolds' Monoshock Ossa as he was the only Ossa UK 'works' rider on the mono at that time. Can't remember who made them but not Cheney. Don't think they were Whitlock either, pretty sure he only did the twinshock frame.

No, the spindle doesn't go through the engine, it is mounted either side of the engine

Yes, thought it was you. Didn't recognise you though at the Peak Classic I rode late last year at Bracken. Think you were observing on one of the sections on the Sunday - I missed the Saturday after Friday night reunion with some old work colleagues but was still feeling it Sunday... Probably why I didn't recognise you as I still couldn't see much. It was like looking through one of those kaleidescope things that were around when we were kids. The bike is a pretty good copy of the frame mods to Vesty's bike except the swingarm hasn't been moved but I know someone that can do that for me if I want to go that far. It needs the rear mudguard mounts repairing and all the welds and joints need tidying but he can do that too. It would be nice to copy the JR one but it is a lot of work and you have to move the engine or swingarm just to get the clutch cover off so a bit impractical. But it would be nice to do it.... Biggest job is that it needs an exhaust making as the standard Bulto one won't fit between the shock and the wheel. Hope to have it done this year but I'll be lucky

Fact is this. The rebuilable makes are ALL as good as each other IF they are set up properly. If they don't work as you like when you get them the damping can be altered by the shimming inside and/or oil weight. Obviously it it is better if they work correctly when you get them as you don't want to be messing with them, just fit and ride. As an illustration I had a pair of Falcons for my Seeley which worked as I wanted from the box but I put them on my BSA which was used more and needed shocks and they are the same length and angle as the Seeley. They work very well on the BSA. When funds allowed I got some more for the Seeley, exactly the same order as before. These don't work. Spring rate is too soft and damping may be too hard, difficult to tell untill the spring rate is corrected. How can this be, two identical orders for the same bike, one works the other doesn't.... It's not the end of the world and can be corrected, just a nuisance. BUT, if I was a customer who had only bought one pair of shocks, that being the second pair, what do you think my recommendation to others would be - don't buy Falcons, they're no good - which obviously isn't true. Had I bought only the other pair I would be singing their praises. See what I mean, people will recommend on their own experiences and from what they expect from the shocks. Hence my opening line. Rockshocks - again different opinions. I know people who have them and are very satisfied. I have a pair that don't work the way I want as again the spring rate is too soft. Until that is corrected I can't tell if the damping is right. So again, if I didn't understand what makes the shock work I could be deterring people from buying Rockshocks as my experience is that they are cr*p. Again, this would be wrong as they aren't, it's just the set up of that particular pair and I knew the springs would probably be too soft when I bought them. Higher rated ones are available shortly. In terms of alloy or steel bodies, it isn't going to make the slightest bit of noticeable difference to the way the bike rides. It will save a bit of weight but so what, it means nothing in reality. As Malcra has said, the biggest gain would be for us to lose weight, not the bikes... Alloy shocks definitely look nicer though. I've a mate with Betors on a 72 Bultaco and they work reasonably well and another with them fitted to a 240 Fantic. They work well enough but are a bit soft as the bike came from someone considerably lighter. The action seems good though. As far as I know they aren't rebuildable so obviously, with these units you are stuck with what you get as there is no way of altering the damping characteristics, only spring rate. So pot luck if they work as you want when you get them. If I were you and funds permit, I would go for a rebuildable pair as at least they can be tuned if they don't work as you like from the box. As for as which brand - personal choice. Forgot to mention - one thing to consider is that the Rockshocks are far easier to service at home due to the way they are put together. The top/cap unscrews unlike Falcons and there are no circlips to fight with. They were designed with this in mind as other shocks, especially old style original Rockshocks can put up one hell of a fight when trying to remove the cap from the body and with circlip removal...

Yes, I'm also assuming it's a 340 frame. You're right about the back end having more feel OTF. Mine has the shocks moved up the swingarm although the pivot isn't moved (was it you I bought it off?) and the difference can be felt over the stock bike as Bults always feel a bit dead at the back. They work, but just not much feel.

You're not kidding - have you ever priced up the plastic swing arm protector that runs top/bottom of the swingarm?

If it was January and off the A44 it would be the Evesham Midland Centre Championship trial.

Dabster, tried to PM you but it won't let me as it says your inbox is disabled or full. I'll buy one off you if you're selling as mine is badly damaged. I could maybe sell the other one for you too if OTF doesn't want one.

No appologies for again mentioning the results achieved by Dave Hooke on his standard 340 in the ACU Classic series a few years ago now, winning many rounds over the seasons as well as the series outright. The bike is plenty capable, it's down to the rider. OK, back in the day it was lacking against the latest twinshock machinery but trick riding was in full swing and the last of the twinshocks were developed for it whereas the Bult wasn't. Classic trials are non-stop so those disadvantages disappear and it can hold its own against the rest under such rules. I'm not saying don't modify it, if it is done well and the mods improve its performance there is no reason why they should devalue it, but in my opinion the bike is for riding, not an investment and ultimately it's your bike to do what you like with. Anyway, to the point - some pictures. Vesty's last bike JR's bike - serious mods

Still looking for one of these decals or an old mudguard with one on that I can get copied. Come on guys, there must be some TYZ owners out there with one of these decals on an old mudguard that they don't want. I'll buy it off you for the cost of a new replacement plus the postage costs

Check Falcon shocks website, it has a chart with the shock length of most trials bikes so the 175/200 Majesty may well be on there too.

Yes, the Bulto is a handy design in that the seals are held in carriers which bolt onto the crankcases from the outside, so no need to split the engine. Just unbolt the carrier, replace the seals and refit (either side) Crank seal went on my Ossa today, just hoping that I can dig it out and replace it without splitting the engine.

Have a look on this website of a dealer here in UK who sells a lot of RS and TL Hondas. If you look at the SOLD link as well as the TRIALS one there are a lot of pictures of Honda RS and TL trials models http://www.trackandtrialmotorcycles.com/

There's an M80 wheel on ebay at the moment. I know you have one already but if it comes at the right price and has a brake plate (doesn't say) it solves your missing brake plate problem. Item 230090795724. Yours is a model 80 slimline which is 71/72. I'm guessing the rear silencer is a Miller one. It's not original as all Bulto one's were steel and that shape was fitted to later bikes anyway. The original type would have been the triangular silencer that everyone threw away (and now wants again.... although you can get new ones again now) There is a mounting lug on the rear of the rear frame tube under the top shock mount which is for the triangular silencer. Model 80 was the first to have this.

From memory, I think the colour is actually Ford Electric Monza blue. It's a very good match to the original Bultaco blue. As per above post the frame, tank, sidepanels, swingarm, mudguards are all blue, engine and fork legs are black. Sounds like yours has been fitted with the earlier airbox which was a period mod (don't know why) as the 198a should have the smaller sidepanels. Bigger ones were fitted up to 1977.

627 carb is the correct type, as in 600 series, 27mm. You can still buy new Amals but only in 'even' number sizes such as 24, 26, 28mm etc. so unlikely it is a new carb unless someone had sourced some new old stock. Timing is personal preference really, anywhere between 2 and 4mm BTDC. Can't think of plug type of top of my head. NGK BPES6 or 7? Front wheel doesn't look like an early Cota as they were massive hubs, could be an early Pursang. The lug on the left of the brake plate showing behind the fork leg looks like it is the cable mount as the earlier Sherpas and Pursangs up to about '72 had the brake arm pointing rearwards under the fork leg. Type 91/92 Sherpa onwards had them pointing forwards with the cable locater on the bottom of the torque arm. Clutch cover definitely off the later model but you'll easily pick up the correct type if you're bothered. Yours looks like a type 80 but the front exhaust pipe looks like a 49 type as it is straight across the top instead of bending down to meet the silencer. Instead, the silencer (Sammy Miller one) has been modified with a bend to meet the front pipe. Love the alloy back box, Miller again I think. Nice straight bike on the whole which wouldn't take much to make 100% original if that is what you want to do

Ignition timing can be anywhere between 2mm BTDC and 3.5mm BTDC depending on what kind of response you want from the motor. Personal preference really - although on my MAR I could never tell any difference whhichever it was set at - just felt the same at 2 as it did at 3.5. Can't help with the wiring as I've never owned one with the points ignition so not familiar with it. Can't you download a diagram from Mats Nyberg site? Ditto the carb, never had one with a Bing but it may give the settings in the Clymer Ossa/Montesa/Bultaco combined manual (the thick one with the brown cover) as I think it has a supplement for the later bikes in the Ossa section.