woody

I've had that happen to one of mine, all the chrome peeled off and it was down to the alloy - it wore down pretty quickly in the trial that it happened at...

Some of the works riders used to fit the earlier airbox to the later bikes as they thought the earlier box worked better. Personally I've no idea. The airbox for the M159 to the M191 was the same, the one with the big side panel with the screw in the centre.

You mean an earlier type wheel with the non-chrome hub? Or the later conical hub which was fitted with a liner from the factory?

I honestly haven't a clue. I've heard it said from people who know about this stuff that cast is better but they also say it depends on the grade / type of cast as if it is the wrong type it's no good. I've no engineering background so personally I have no idea. Mine are steel and they work ok but I've no idea what type of steel. A friend did them. The biggest problem on the Sherpa rear brake is the mechanism, not the brake itself, which can lead you to think the brake is no good. I have a linered Sherpa rear wheel in my BSA with left hand brake pedal and it works perfectly.

199a is the model after the red one you've been posting pictures of. It's the all blue model. Good bike. The engine and frame numbers should match Some people used to fit the older airbox to the later bikes as they thought them better, but not sure how you are telling it is from a model 183 specifically

I can't recollect any screen material around the perforated tube but when I've repacked mine it is just the packing around the tube, nothing else. Works fine. I think the screen is to help the packing last a bit longer and not get pulled through the tube with the passage of the exhaust gas.

Bultaco UK do exchange hubs with liners. I don't know anything about the metal spraying technique but I think it's costly and I heard someone saying it didn't last. I've had a few converted to liners and they work fine. Yes your rear hub is correct, the rear hub wasn't chrome lined until the 1976 bikes.

Ask the seller for the engine number and the frame number. When you have them you can either ask on here or look them up on any website that holds the Bultaco frame / engine number information - just google Bultaco frame numbers as suggested above. If you put the numbers on here someone will tell you.

Don't want to put a damper on it Keith, but my Ossa was running really well on a 24mm Mikuni. It was fitted and jetted by Magical when he used to use the bike before he built his James and it revs until you can't hear it... I don't think a size of 24mm will cause the problem you have, a 250 should be able to run on that.

The normal 'Ashford' route has a good mix of rock streams, mud and ground embedded with large round rocks. They had to change venue this year because of a clash with another trial that never actually went ahead in the end. The trial is not usually as hard as that, as mentioned above, the weather played a large part in the difficulty of some sections and you needed to get a move on before the worst of them cut up. Not the trial for a late number... I did enjoy some of those big gear sections though. Definitely go back next year, you'll enjoy the mix of sections at the other venue, it won't (intentionally) be as difficult and this series needs support as it would be a crying shame to lose it and it's down to only 7 rounds this year. Hopefully this weekend's Golden Valley round will be on as it is snowing here at the moment and the forecast doesn't look good.

There were far worse cancellations with foot and mouth with no rise in costs

I thought that was because they tipped a teaspoon of it into the fuel, just for the R smell. That's all you need to do if you just want the smell of it The engine shouldn't be burning off its own oil... I'm not sure it produces the smell just from it getting hot and vapours finding their way out of the exhaust Given the quality of modern oil and the fact that a Honda clutch needs all the help it can get to achieve a smooth action and reduce the graunching, snatching and juddering they usually display, I think you'd be barmy to fill the engine with R.

If it's just the clutch you're worried about, then on the plus side there isn't much you can do that would make a Honda clutch any worse than it already is.... If you're running it as engine oil you should never smell it..??

It doesn't appear your jetting is too far away from the jetting for the 250cc Ossa Montesa and Bultacos that ran 27mm Amals where it's generally around 25 pilot, 106 needle jet, 150 main and 3.5 slide. The needle is one standard size only on the Amal MK1. I'm assuming it's a 26mm carb you have. Coming down from a 160 to a 120 main jet is a huge change and the fact that it doesn't change anything suggests the carb isn't the problem. If I put a 120 in the Ossa instead of the 160 it would definitely make a difference. However, you don't mention the needle jet and needle position, if they are too rich it could maybe give the symptoms you have. 105 or 106 needle jet and middle clip on the needle is a good start point. Some new Amals can be less than 'satisfactory' but usually the symptoms are poor slow running because of poor pilot circuits. So it doesn't suggest the carb itself is an issue if it runs at low revs ok. The problem with Villiers engines is you never really know what you've got. I had what should have been a 250 37a once with square barrel. It turned out to be a 200cc with a karting barrell or suchlike as it rev'd it's nuts off but had no bottom end whatsoever. In the end I got fed up of trying to sort it, it was swallowing money and pretty soon it went out the door - the end of me and Villiers engines. I entered a whole new world of pain with BSA 4-strokes instead... It could be the porting that's at fault, wrong head, restrictive exhaust - anything. You don't say what ignition you've bought but sounds as though you can probably rule out the ignition due to the problem being there before it was fitted If it was me, given the lack of change in performance following the main jet range and assuming the oother jets are in the right range, I'd be looking elsewhere now. Double check the timing as mentioned elsewhere as there is no guarantee it was correct when the points were fitted. If your ignition is Electrex it could be timed incorrectly. It would be worth trying a carb from another bike that you know works correctly, just as a comparison, but as OTF said, you'll find what works on one Villiers may not work so well on another. Then look at the intake, does it have a restrictive filter (how does it run with no filter / airbox. What kind of exhaust is on it etc. I don't think there is a definitive answer to this one.

You're joking right...? The factory RTL bikes have about as much in common with the production TLR as my Bultaco....

Yes, that's the 'R', a completely different bike and engine from the TLR250F/G. It's actually a very smooth and torquey motor, better than the proper trials motor ironically, but getting it geared down to suitable trials gearing will be difficult.

Ignition fault?

It's a lot of work and really not worth the effort. The original mounts have to be cut off, the top of the yoke milled flat, underneath filled with weld to offer strength / support, then the top yoke can be drilled to take bolt on bar clamps. It won't alter the steering.

No problem doing that but I have very few pictures and only a couple that show the footrest position, one of my 340 and one of an M92 I rebuilt a few years ago. Should give you an idea of where they are. If I can get a shot at the weekend I will but can't guarantee it

If it's like the Bultaco, no you can't do it for the reason you state - stud spacing plus thicker liner. Try Steve Goode motorcycles here in the UK, he may still have some Italjet stock left and can probably answer the question http://www.stevegoodemotorcycles.co.uk/index.html Stevejgoode@aol.com

Funny how perceptions differ. Myself and two mates tried an RTL when it first came out. We all had Mono Yams and someone turned up to the trial on the RTL. All three of us thought it wasn't a patch on the Yams. The riding position felt as though I was performing a handstand as the pegs were so high and the bars low, the steering felt loose compared to the Yam and then there was the usual grabby Honda clutch. Have to agree though, in Rothmans colours it's a beautiful looking bike

If you think a TLR had tons of power I don't know what you're going to make of the Jumbo,,,

I don't, no, but I just ask the local KTM dealer for SX65 seals in that size and he has no trouble finding them. Could be that all SX65 have 35mm forks

The RTL would limp home licking its wounds after a shoot out with a TLM260.

As above, not all forks have circlips Seal size is 35x47x10 - one per leg. This is the same as a KTM SX65, so if you get a genuine KTM seal it should be a good quality. A lot of pattern seals in the past have been 6mm deep, therefore they fit two per leg instead of one. If there are three in yours, they must be like O rings.... Be careful if you go to a local seal stockist for seals as they usually only stock rotary seals, not hydraulic seals. Rotary seals are for spinning shafts as in gearboxes etc, whereas hydraulic deal with in/out piston type movement. Rotary seals will leak very quickly if you use them in forks. Looking for cheap seals is a false economy, it's worth paying a few quid more for good quality seals. If the forks leak with good quality seals, the chrome on the stanchion is probably worn with age/usage