woody

You will get different opinions on this but this is my experience My mate has a 240 Fantic that had the tank painted years ago and it is still fine, no paint has come off. I had my Bultaco tank painted about 4 years ago and it has been used regularly and taken a lot of abuse. Only in the last few months have a few bubbles appeared but what the cause of that is I can't say. It certainly didn't blister or lift everywhere as soon as petrol went in it. At the same time we had another Bultaco tank done, this one hasn't been used since and still looks brand new. Another mate had his 330 Cota tank painted a couple of years ago and no lifting/bubbles yet. Recently I bought what I thought was a red Cota 349/4 tank off ebay as it looked like the fibreglass tank from that model. When it came it turned out it was a plastic MH349 tank that had been painted. The paint finish made it look like the fibreglass tank. I've no idea how long the paint has been on it but the finish was good, no bubbles etc. However, it was the wrong red for my bike so this is now being repainted. The durability of this one will only be as good as the original prep work which is unknown. The tanks we've had painted were done by friends who are car painters by trade (except the Fantic as that was already done when he got it over 6 years ago) The tanks were prepped well, plastic primed with the flexi additives and whatever else they use and finished in 2-pack. I'm still convinced that most of the problems in the past with painting these tanks is because of poor prep and wrong paint. Done properly they seem to last well (based on above experience) but obviously this is not a 100% guarantee. However, if they last 4 or 5 years I can live with that and I'll just have it done again. Hope this helps Having just realised you said it was just the white flashes you wanted to tidy up, it probably doesn't.... I'm pretty sure that if you just brush painted on some Humbrol enamel as used in plastic model painting it would stick ok. If these tanks do 'breathe' there is plenty of surface area for it to do that if it is just the white flash that's painted.

Yes, the motor will fit no problem

Or there is this http://bps-eng.pagesperso-orange.fr/html/products.htm It's for a TL125 but again, no idea about the dimensional differences of the two. BPS is in France but is run by an English guy Stuart Brown who now lives there.

You will be incredibly lucky to find a tank/seat unit like that, a copy of the Honda works tank fitted to the 70's bikes. An option would be a Seeley tank/seat unit which is very close and could possibly be made to fit although I've no idea how they compare dimensionally with the TL. They consist of an aluminium tank which has the fibreglass tank/seat unit as a cover. The cover is available as a new reproduction item here in the UK but you would have to have a tank made, or adapt something else to fit underneath to hold the fuel. This is the website http://www.classictrial.co.uk/services.html scroll down the page and you will come to the Seeley tank

Hello Woody, Do you turn the backplate anti-clock to retard the ignition ? Thanks Hightown Yes

They have an O ring on the middle silencer where it fits inside the rear silencer. This has normally perished and the flange on the rear box can get distorted and the end flares out so it is no longer a tight fit. Just make sure the joint is a tight fit and use silicon sealer, regardless of whether you use an O ring again. They also have a spring to hold the joints together, you will see the spring mounts for where it goes if the spring is missing.

If you can't source any in your part of the world you can try here http://www.rotax.co.uk/

Fantastic event today - well done Andy and the team, all the hard work was well worth it and very much appreciated. Trial was superb, riders who didn't enter missed a great twinshock/Pre65 event with proper sections, challenging but rideable. It was up there with the best of the classic events in terms of section standard and enjoyment. Lots of rocky gullies and the new long double waterfall sub was a cracker. If this trial runs again next year get your entries in and support it BUT, if you enter Pre65 Expert, make sure you are comfortable with the capability of yourself and your bike. Some sections are testing and if you run a big bike or Cub/C15 etc that is only lightly modified, you may find them a bit on the hard side as they're on a par with the better Traditional/Normandale rounds. Clubman rote would be fine however. Here's hoping it does run again next year - 50 plus riders wasn't a bad entry but with the effort and organisation that goes into running it, the trial deserves more.

Found this on Youtube - arena type event from 80s Around 8 minutes in is priceless. Some of this wouldn't be allowed these days. Risk assement would demand frogmen on standby, riders must wear breathing apparatus, the pool must be drained, bikes must have airbags for buoyancy - and then health and safety would not allow it anyway as too dangerous to participants

Why Nicky? Stoner got straight on the Ducati in 2007 without any development work, destroyed Capirossi who had been helping develop it, won first time out on it, won 10 or 11 races in total and the championship - in his first year. Rossi has to better that before people can start jumping up and down about how brilliant he is because he gets on the podium in the first few races. Or will what Stoner did conveniently be forgotten by Rossi fans and the TV pundits. I am in no doubt how good Rossi is as a racer but I'd like to see him go to Ducati on his own and see what he can do with their current crew instead of taking Burgess and Co with him. Jerry Burgess had a proven winning record before Rossi came along, so how much of what has been achieved in bike development is Burgess. If he went on his own and turned it into a regular podium finisher that other riders could also put on the podium, then I'd have more belief in how much input he has had to the development and design of the Yamaha. For me, seeing Stoner wrestle the Ducati round has been the highlight of MotoGP for the last few years and I don't think MotoGP will seem the same without him on it. They've lost their way this year and I wonder how much that has to do with the fact that they were probably planning for Rossi's arrival next year. But in the previous 3 seasons, watching the way Stoner used to just bully the thing around tracks was jaw-dropping at times, it rarely had both wheels pointing in the same direction or on the ground at the same time - and the way he destroyed them all when he came back from illness last year was phenomenal. Rossi has a lot to live up to at Ducati

The change in position will be the problem. The more lean, the higher the spring rate. No idea what rates are available for your shocks but as a guide, on Falcons, more upright shocks like early Ossa MAR (in the conventional position, not moved up the swingarm like a Fantic or later twinshocks) would use 50lbs springs for an average weight rider, whereas a later MAR or Majesty with laid down shocks would use 60lbs. Try preloading them more or see if NJB do a higher rated spring.

This is a proper intro. Drum count in, couple of stabs on the synth, build with a couple of riffs off the lead and then finish off by smashing into the vocals with the bass. Relentless, aggressive and unstoppable.

Why are you worrying so much about what the timing is when fitted per the instructions. Just fit it and ride it and see how it performs. If it's too docile advance it, if it's too sharp retard it - just experiment until you get a setting that suits what you want. The original manufacturer recommendation is just that, the timing can be set anywhere between 1.5 to 4mm BTDC, just depends on the bike and how you want it to perform. That recommendation is also for the original points ignition with no built in advance. The modern electronic has a built in advance which means static timing can be more retarded for a soft delivery off tickover if desired with no loss of mid/top end power as the timing will advance as the revs build. I have electronic on my 340 Sherpa and have no idea what it is timed at, I just set it where I'm happy with it. You're worrying about nothing really, the only time to get the strobe out is if it won't run properly at all, regardless of how you position the stator.

The chances are that the internals are probably a little worn by now which won't help damping and Bulto forks were always a bit soft on springing and damping anyway. Most of the damping is controlled by the holes in the damper rod, the large hole at the bottom does compression and returns the oil on rebound, the two smaller holes at the top do rebound but also allow excess oil through on compression. There is also a 'shuttle valve' piston assembly (usually circular with either holes or slots in it, but square and solid on 199B) that also controls some of the oil flow on compression and rebound. If this is worn (I have no idea how to measure tolerances on this) then more oil will flow and the damping will be softer than intended. On my 199B I went up to 30W oil and gradually increased the quantity in an effort to stop the forks topping out repeatedly and also slow down compression damping. I got to the point where there was too much oil causing a hydraulic lock on compression but they still topped out on rebound (nothing to do with spring rate) I assumed that the shuttle valve was letting more oil through than intended due to wear. As there was nothing I could do about that I blocked off both rebound holes on one damper rod and one of the rebound holes on the other to reduce oil flow. The result is a much plusher fork using 7.5W oil - a bit lighter than normal due to the reduced flow rate. The bike has just had a good hammering in a 2 day National trial with plenty of big rocks, steps and waterfalls and the forks worked very well. Still a bit of experimentation to be done but as a starting point I was very pleased with the improvement. I have one longer uprated spring with no spacer in one leg and a standard spring with a 1" spacer in the other and the spring rate of the forks is just about right too (for me obviously) I have no idea how the valve in the fork caps is supposed to work but every Bulto I've ever had (and Ossa or Montesa) has successfully spewed air and oil out of these caps like a geyser. Whatever they are supposed to do they have never done it. Letting air out also makes the forks softer. I either block the hole or fit caps with no valve. The fact that the air doesn't come p***ing out also adds more resistance to the compression stroke. Never had a problem with blowing fork seals due to pressure build up in the forks.

If you get someone who is a really good painter and who knows how to prep it and use the right materials (plastic primer, flexi additive etc) it should stick ok and last a few years before (if) it starts coming off. I have a Bultaco tank that was done about 4 years ago and is just starting to bubble in one or two small areas. A mate has a painted Fantic 240 tank that was done years ago and has no bubbles. As Martin mentioned, cost of a good paint job will be the same as a new plastic tank at least. Only problem with the new plastic tank is you can't put decals on them so you are stuck with the decals they come with or the plain tank.

Busy clearing the site I'd guess

Hoping to go but probably need all day to sort my Bultaco for the Long Mynd trial on Sunday - and the C15 has puncture

AJS/Matchless Jampot Trial. Sat 7th August 4.00pm start at Breach Farm, Hunnington, near Halesowen, B62 0JS

Prices are crazy for classic trials here - it could go up to

Not sure of the RAL code for the original sickly pale orange, bu RAL 2004 is a nicer and deeper orange which is also a pretty close match to the orange mudguards

I've lowered the pegs on my 199b, they are fractionally below the bashplate but with such high ground clearance it isn't really a problem. Golden rule, I was told, is footpegs shouldn't ever be below the spindle height as handling is adversley affected. Below the bashplate means there is more chance of catching them but as mentioned before, they're only a fraction below and with high clearance it isn't a problem. 6.5" bars make it reasonabley comfortable as I'm 6' 3". I only moved them down, not back, or if I did, maybe just a few mm. Just weld a plate extension on the rear frame tube, gusset it for strength to stop it bending and weld on new footrest brackets in desired position. I'd leave the brake/gear lever as they are. Lefthand brake with a rod is better than righthand with a cable.

I've just got a Faber MK3, took a few months but have it now. Not so much difficult to deal with, just a bit slow and communication not the best. You have to keep chasing them. Haven't fitted it up yet, that's a way off, but looks a nice job. More faithful copy of a C15 frame (minus the swan neck and bolt on subframe of course) Looks a lot neater than the previous versions with no bottom frame tubes. At

Bit confused as you don't mention the engine or frame numbers. The first digits of these denote the model type, so Model type 124 begins with 124 Front exhaust pipe is chromed, rubber joint to a separate middle silencer, rear silencer could have been fitted from any model over the years so could be anything. The 'clubfoot' is like the one on your 199a. The previous one to the clubfoot and fitted to the 124, was the banana, same length but didn't have the big box on the end (or clubfoot) Front pipe is held onto the screw in collar by springs. Clutch cover is old round style, different from your 199a. Rear hub sounds as though it is the correct one, if you look inside the hub you will see the allen heads of the bolts that hold the hub together as it is in two halves, not one casting. Can't remember if they were chromed liner or not. The 124 type frame was first used on the series 2 model 91/92 so that frame type is not a guarantee that it is a 124. Assuming the frame and engine numbers are sill intact, that is the way to identify what you have. Removable parts can have been swapped with those from other models over the years, but from what you say it sounds like yours is a 124. I think the one on the Haynes manual is a model 150, later style clutch cover, as your 199a and coarse fins on the cylinder and head like the 325. Been a while since I've seen the Haynes manual. This type for frame was an improvement over the previous model as it feels taughter to ride and turns better. Engine gives really good torquey power delivery. Nice bikes.

This is from a current entry form for a trial they are sponsoring in a couple of weeks sales@sammymillerproducts.co.uk

When you say no movement, do you mean from trying to slide the barrel off the studs or the studs themselves. I had the same problem with a couple on mine which had rust build up along their length in the barrel and the only way to do it was to remove the studs themselves. Unscrewing the studs was sufficient to break the hold the rust had and allow them to be removed, but there was no way the barrell was going to slide off the rusted studs, rust build up was too much.