woody

You could also try Dave Renham at Bultaco UK as I've noticed he has recently had new Ossa parts (seat cover, silencer etc) for sale on ebay, so maybe he knows of a contact or parts supplier in Spain.

Very nice indeed, lovely job. These bikes are just crying out for a Pre74 or 75 class in the ACU Classic series. They don't stand a chance against the more modern stuff with good riders on board but it would be great to see them able to compete in a class of their own on an easier route. Enough are being sold on ebay, as are Ossas and Mont 247.

I had one from new and broke the gearbox by hitting a big rock step hard with the sump. I was told at the time it wasn't too uncommon for this to happen. What broke with the shock of the impact was a pin, or pins, on the selector drum which engaged with the fork so that the gearbox would no longer select. My mate had to tow me back up the valley with his 242 Mont. Nightmare... it had to be the bottom section, never the top one by the carpark. So it may be worth checking that this isn't the cause of the gearbox problem when you have it apart. Parts are hard to find for Armstrongs. A possible source of used spares is Ellastone off road as they have broken these in the past. Last time I was there they had a complete bike (310 though, not 320) but the forks were gone on that too. However, forks are common with just about anything else at the time as they all used marzzochis and Grimeca front hubs. Motor on 310 is the same I think, apart from the obvious difference in capacity, maybe the ignition is too but I'n no expert on these. Someone has posted elsewhere that a Kawasaki jet ski piston will fit as Hiro items are like hen's teeth You've a bit of a task ahead to sort it but you don't see many of them around any more so would be nice if you do get it done. Good luck.

Not just the trial that was cancelled either. I've ridden in this event for the last 7 years or so and it's a thoroughly enjoyable weekend. Take a non trials riding mate with me and our road bikes as well and make a long weekend of it, belting up and down the mountain twisties on Friday and Monday, trial for me Sat/Sun. This year a second mate was coming also who was looking forward to seeing a trial for the first time as well as thrashing his Blade (ooer missus) As everything was already booked before the cancellation, ferry, hotel, insurance etc. etc. we decided to go anyway for a holiday. We always see lots of historic rally cars pass through the area as there is a classic hill climb or rally in the area on the same weekend so thought we would take a look at the rally whilst there. Sadly not. This had also been cancelled by the same officialdom, as had a local enduro. What really p*ssed Joel off was that after last year's cancellation, he had sought assurances that this year's event could run and had therefore put a lot of hard work into setting out the course. A week before the event and everything was still ok, then 3 days before the event they withdraw permission leaving Joel to try and contact all competitors with the joyous news it was off. Some people had already turned up. No consideration whatsoever that people travel from Italy, Switzerland, Germany and UK every year for this event. All locals we spoke to whilst there thought it was a crazy decision to cancel but there is obviously someone with some influence in the area who doesn't like motorsport of a 2 or 4 wheeled nature. I hope they live the rest of their life happy with the dissapointment they brought to a lot of people. There seem to be more and more of this ilk these days whose sole and selfish intentions are to stop others from pursuing activities, of any nature, that they enjoy. Given that this is 2 years in a row he has had to cancel it I guess it is doubtful it will be run again, so another longstanding event will probably dissapear from the calendar

For improving the drum brake efficiency, see the Honda thread as there is something in there under 'tlr brakes' (or some such title) where it has been suggested to use car paint 2 pack hardener/activator on the shoes. Searching the Honda forum using any of those words should find the thread for you. I wouldn't worry too much if they aren't good enough for stoppies etc. as none of the sections require absolute stopping power and most of the later twinshocks have more than adequate brakes for the sections. There are none of the stop dead, flick the back and ride back up your own @rse type sections found in modern trials.

Just in case you don't know, disc brakes aren't permitted in the ACU Classic, drums only. Phil Wiffen is leading the series on a 300 at the moment.

Bill Pye knows more about Fantics than I do, but I remember the Michaud replica when it was introduced, as a friend of mine had one from new, but the only difference in the colour scheme was that the petrol tank covers were white instead of red. Frame was still red, definitely not white. Thw power delivery was claimed to be softer than the standard bike but no other differences as I recall

Rubbish - the Mont gets up anything the other bikes do in WTC Outdoors and stuff that others couldn't at Hawkstone last year according to those that were there. Indoor sections I agree with you but we're not talking about that circus act. Besides that I can't see it has anything to do with snappy power. They hold the things on full revs and fire them off the clutch. When it's on full revs, the way the power is delivered off tickover doesn't really count for much. The 2-strokes rev higher. Doug is also a fair bit heavier than Raga which makes a much bigger difference than the fact that the GasGas is a few pounds lighter.

Think of it this way. Good forks/yokes =

Don't understand how you can say the 4RT is at best in development. No-one other than a WTC rider can say whether a bike is good enough for what they require and none of us on this forum or of that standard so how can we draw that conclusion. If said it himself then fair enough. It won WTC rounds last year with both Doug and Fuji, and Fuji has won one this year. If Raga was running away with the series winning every round by a significant margin I'd agree with you but he isn't. Five different winners so far this year? Seems to be rider errors (generally) by all of them that is costing them wins rather than one of them being consistently ahead. It only needs Doug to win one and Raga to have an off day and it could be all square again. Raga is nowhere near as far ahead of the others as Doug used to be - he regularly slaughtered them indoors and out. Can't see Raga dominating like that. And the other point about the 4RT is that Doug lost his championship to Fuji on the 315 so a 4 stroke wasn't at fault there, so no guarantee he would be doing any better now on the 315 or other marque. Comparison to Rossi? His record, talent and commitment are every bit a match for Rossi. Doug was winning on Beta, switched to Montesa and carried on winning. But he doesn't sulk and hide away from cameras when he's put in a duff performance. Rossi is a brilliant rider but still needs equal or better machinery to win, just like Schumacher. The Yamaha is a good bike and Yamaha performed miracles giving him a competitive bike to start his campaign with them. He wasn't riding the same duff bike that they used the season before, it was completely reworked before he rode it. We've seen he can't make a duff bike work this year with some of his results, just like Schumacher last year. Now it's working again he's back at the front. I really hope he can do it but it is going to be a tough job and there are still others firmly in the equation too as they will all take points of each other if the topsy-turvy results continue. I guess in about 10 years time, when his Honda Montesa days are firmly behind him, is when we may learn the truth about what he feels now as to whether the 4RT is up to it or not

Simon Bateman at Nametab in Redditch does an electronic ignition. I've got one for my Villiers but haven't tried it properly yet, only fired the bike up with it. It looks as though it could be made by the same people making the Majesty and Bultaco ignitions (I don't know if it is or not, it's just a very similar looking setup in terms of source coil and HT Coil/CDI Unit) With the Villiers ignition he will take your backplate in exchange and supply a modified one to take the new stator plate. It will work with the existing Villiers flywheel. Can't remember the price off the top of my head but give him a ring and he will tell you what is involved and cost etc. Bultaco/Majesty ignitions are about

Yes, it's a great site - I've spent many hours dribbling over the bikes on there. Just found another couple of pictures of a '97 TYZ but the decals on the tank cover and frame are the same. Maybe a bit clearer than the brochure pic

It was the first the one with the white tank cover/blue mudguards and boost thingy on the exhaust manifold. Should be a picture on here if the link works... TYZ pics

If you're riding in those trials then you'll have no problem with the hard route of the Miller series on the Ossa. It would also be ok in the ACU Classic rounds too. I've ridden them for years on my '74 Ossa MAR 250 and '75 310 and they have been capable of handling the sections. I only swapped to my Majesty this year as everyone else was on modern twinshocks and the Majesty put me on a par with them in terms of machinery. The most important thing though is that the bike is functioning properly. If the engine and suspension are in good order the bike will be fine for the series, if you're having to compensate for a knackered engine or poor suspension, then the sections in the ACU Classic will make things difficult. Although the later twinshocks are better bikes, the Ossa can still get decent results against them, you just have to work at it a bit harder...... Next Classic round is Mansfield Maun on 18 June - still time to get an entry in if you fancy a go.

Yes, I'd agree with that, a very good event. Nothing daft but not easy either, sections of just the right severity that they could all be cleaned but it would take a damn good ride to do it each time as just one little slip off line was punished. Good job by the Lancs County team. Wish we had sections/terrain like that down here.....

Sections usually are fairly easy, enough to take a few marks from the winner but nothing daft. Difficult to give you an idea of what to expect without knowing what trials/route you ride. However, there are two, maybe three routes, so one of them will suit - unless of course you're a centre expert in which case you'll get bored... The severity of the the hard route is nowhere near as difficult as the ACU Classic series (which is one route) I've done a couple of Miller rounds to test chamges to my bike and they are an enjoyable ride out if you enjoy the traditional type event of 1 lap, 30 - 40 sections. Most I think are of this format and most if not all include roadwork, maybe the odd round that is all off road now, but I believe roadwork was one of Sammy's criteria for a club to stage a round. 1977 Ossa is fine as there is a class now for twinshocks of any kind. As a guide, the 1977 Ossa would easily cope with the hard route. Don't worry too much about Ossa brakes as the sections don't require you to stop dead down banks and then turn up your own @rse. Next event is on 11th June I think, organised by Rhayader club. Could be one of the more challenging rounds of the series as they generally put on good events (Classic Experts, Welsh Trophy)

They aren't on sale in the UK until July at the earliest I believe. The 10 that are here at the moment are for dealers to demo them but one person managed to buy one outright somehow.

Yes, I'm going but it is a shame to see less and less twinshocks and pre65 bikes at these rounds. Less than half the entry at this one on old bikes for what should be a Classic championship. I'm not against the mix of classes but just hope the actual 'classics' aren't eventually squeezed out by sections becoming more suited to the modern bikes. This series badly needs 2 routes now. Championship and support.

Pete had an ad in TMX a couple of weeks ago but I don't have it to hand at the moment. Contact details were in it. The new Rockshocks are a new design, not exact remakes of the old ones, just for your info. New design makes DIY 'fiddling' a lot easier.

Bloody hell Nick, that didn't take long.... Nice job, very nice So is it coming out to play in the Classic this weekend?

Thanks for that. Looks like it turned out just right from the scores. Would like to have ridden it myself but didn't have the time regrettably.

Have the results been finalised yet? There's been no further mention of the trial on this thread and no report in TMX. I didn't ride it, just always interested in the results of this series.

Yes, meant to say it was as you had found it but got carried away - was only meant to be a few lines of my first impression in a carpark.... Also forgot to mention I've never ridden a Sherco 4T so can't compare the Scorpa (or Mont) to one of those

Had a ride on the Scorpa 250F in Scotland as someone had one at the Pre65 2 day. It was only a ride around the car park so not enough to give an idea of how it will perform in sections of course but first impressions are; - Nice feel and balance to the bike - Suspension seems very good, smooth/plush - Steering quite quick but very positive and didn't push out/tuck under (carpark was loose surface not tarmac) - quiet - no problem starting it, hot or cold - didn't feel heavy - no modern trials bike can be described as heavy anyway in my opinion, they all just differ with front/rear weight bias - motor very flexible and doesn't feel short of power, probably a bit stronger than the 4RT with a higher rev limit. What I liked about it better than my 4RT was that it can be ridden at a conventional low tickover without using the clutch but it doesn't snap like the 4RT (standard unmappable ECU) when you open the throttle, it is more progressive. This really allows the bike to be ridden old school style if the rider chooses, without the clutch, although it is just as happy to be flicked around off the clutch as well. I felt it would be very nice up the more traditional SSDT type sections where it could be ridden in bottom gear, largely without the clutch, using just the throttle and front suspension to guide it. This appeals to me having originally learnt to ride that way, way back when. I have to pull the 4RT back on the clutch when I really want to slow things down because of the higher tickover. The Scorpa will go at snail pace clutch fully out but also gave the impression it will rev to the moon if required. It certainly doesn't seem to lack any power. Bike looks nice too but is still a bit bland, needs more decals to brighten it up. What I felt may need attention though was the time it takes to warm up from cold as it does take a long time. I couldn't help thinking that if the bike cools down whilst the rider is looking at a section it could take a while to warm it back up before the section could be ridden without fear of a cough stall. When it was fully warm it didn't cough stall but I did get it to cough by snapping the throttle open the second time I rode it, maybe as it hadn't fully warmed, although I thought it had - not sure, but the warming up time is something that may be improved upon. That is something you can't fault the 4RT for. I like the bike enough to want to try one properly on sections, both muddy and rocky. Personally, after that brief try I think it will perform well. Narita finished 21st in the SSDT and didn't have a problem all week. Of the other two, one finished ok, the other retired on Friday with a smashed casing although I believe the rider was a bit 'bull at a gate' style and it wasn't the first time he smashed things.... If you get the chance to try one, do so, as I think you will be pleasantly surprised if you like 4 strokes.

Head gasket went on Tuesday (very unusual for a TYZ - but if it is going to happen to anyone....) so that put me out of the trial. Got back to parc ferme and fitted a new one and rode again Wed/Thur under exclusion but had overheating problems again on Thurs afternoon which made me late. Had to retire for good on Friday. Gutted. Oh yes, fried the clutch on Monday's moors too, so had to fit a new one Tues morning in the half-hour prep slot. Just did it... At least I finished the Pre65 so was happy with that. Lucky to even start that due to the traumas of rebuilding the C15 motor which I finished at 11am on the Thursday morning. Left here at 3pm and signed on in Kinlochleven at 8.59pm..... Nick retired on Wednesday with suspected food poisoning or a bug of some sort.