neonsurge

No, what I'm experencing is the clutch failing to engage from cold. Start the bike, warm up for a couple of minutes, pull the clutch in, select a gear - bang, the bike jumps forward and stalls out. If I push it in neutral with the engine running, jump on and select a gear, the clutch starts working normally within a few seconds. This only happens from cold. I've always used PJ1 Clutch Tuner oil in all my bikes and change it at least once a month, so I don't think that the oil's the problem. HOWEVER, shortly after I bought this particular bike the water pump seal failed and I replaced both the seal and the impeller shaft. I've had the clutch problem right from the start so I'm wondering if the pump was leaking for a while before I noticed it. Maybe I've still got moisture in the clutch? Anyway, like I said it's a very minor annoyance rather than a real problem but if I can get to the bottom of it it'd put my paranoid mind at rest. Thanks for everyone's suggestions!

So he's a cat lover. What's the problem?

You may be right, but this is my 3rd Beta and the first one I've owned (or ridden) that's had the problem. My old GasGas suffered with horrendous clutch drag that I never managed to completely eliminate but up until now my Betas have all been as good as gold. It's a once-a-day minor annoyance more than anything else but I tend to worry that this kind of thing is a symptom of something more sinister. I'll try pumping the clutch a few times while it's warming up like you mention and see if that helps. Thanks for your input!

I didn't want to possibly derail this thread while GregD was asking questions, but now that his query seems to be almost resolved, I'd like to ask another clutch-related question, the answer to which I believe may be related to GregD's problem (hence I didn't want to create a new thread): The clutch on my '03 250 doesn't work until I've ridden around for a minute or so after starting. When I say "doesn't work", I mean there's no clutch at all. After starting it for the first time that day, engaging the clutch, selecting a gear and releasing the clutch while stationary stalls the bike. If I put it in neutral, get it rolling and jump on before selecting a gear it's OK and I can feel the clutch returning almost immediately. After 20-30 seconds it's fine and works perfectly for the rest of the day. What's going on? Worn plates/spring again?

Awesome riding from James. Hawkstone was the first time I'd seem him ride and he was obviously head and shoulders above the other Junior class competitors. To score points in his first event in the champ class is fantastic. And now Micheal Brown has emulated his "team mate" in winning the junior class in Germany (I must've missed the Top Trial Team announcement that they've signed Micheal - anyone got any more details 'cos after today's performance I expect other teams will be taking an interest... Beta should hang onto that lad.) Well done Micheal!!

I rode both last year and found it a bit of a struggle to get around 3 laps in the morning before the sections were pulled, even though they were quite close together. Mind you, most others seemed to manage OK, so it's probably just me. The afternoon is a bit more relaxed but I expect the morning will have better sections if you want a bit of a challenge. EDIT: I expect that WORLD ROUND WINNER Michael Brown (see TC front page!) will be riding next week - he usually supports all SDMC club champ events. WELL DONE MICHAEL!!

This page on John Lampkin's site shows the frame numbers for all Beta Techno/Rev3 models. This should help you to make sure that it's really a 2002.

Yep, if you ride clubman B in the morning, although it'll be tricky there's usually nowt daft. Take Curly's word for it, unless you're at least centre expert level stay well away from the "masters" route If I remember previous years correctly, the Jason Kirkwood trial in the afternoon is run along the same lines as the Wednesday night series with very easy, easy and hard routes. Very novice-friendly with the hard route being approximately the same level of difficulty as clubman B in the morning (maybe slightly easier). I find 2 trials in a day too knackering (unfit, overweight etc.) so I'll probably ride one and observe the other - pop over and say hello (fat, sweaty bloke on a Beta... not that that'll be any help - there'll be loads of fat sweaty blokes on Betas )

The fork seals on older TXTs (don't know about the Pros, I've never done one) are very easy to replace since the top sectoin of the lower fork can be unscrewed and removed complete with the seal. Much easier than my Beta!

I'm sure we'd all be interested in any additional information you can provide! If I know it's going to be an improvement on the Mikuni I might sell one of the kids for medical experiments and give it a go!

I'm renovating a '98 TXT and need to know the amount of fork oil per leg - can anyone remind me? A forum search didn't turn up any info on the older models. Is it 300cc each side as per the Pros? Many thanks in advance!

Dellorto UK: Eurocarb ltd 256 Kentwood Hill Tilehurst Reading RG31 6DR United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 118 943 1180 Facsimile: +44 (0) 118 943 1190 E-mail: sales@dellorto.co.uk http://www.dellorto.co.uk Can't find the VHST model on the web site though

sparkplugs.co.uk is a good place to buy all kinds of plugs online. Cheap as well! The link is to the NGK Iridium range but they also supply Denso and Champion.

They're about 10Mb each so are a little large to email. There's some very good super slo-mo demos of step techniques etc. but like I said, all of the commentary and on-screen text is in Japanese. They look like excerpts from some full-length DVD or video. Can't remember which site they came from but if you drop me a PM with your address I could send you a CD... I'd still like to know who this Gatti bloke is - he's obviously a bit handy...

I've accumulated quite a few downloaded trials videos and several of the Japanese ones (JTC annual reviews etc.) seem to feature a bloke called Gatti quite heavily. I have one that's about 10 minutes long which seems to be him training and practising. I just wondered who he is (my Japanese isn't up to much)?

Every Beta I've owned has had this "problem" - it's normal and doesn't seem to cause excessive chain wear and long as you keep 'em properly adjusted and lubed (a cheapo Iris chain on my 270 lasted over a year.)

There are some brilliant hi-res wallpapers on Fujigas' web site: http://fujigas.net/gallery.html

If you go to TopFun's web store and click on "Beta" under "Bike Parts" on the left, it shows a Keihin PWK28 carb (product # KE0000), the description for which says "with settings for all bikes". Hmmmm. At 150 euros plus shipping it'd be an expensive punt. Anyone with lots of spare cash fancy an experiment? Kinell?

I wonder if the factory bikes suffer from the same problems and if not, how it was overcome? What's that float bowl extension all about? Maybe to allow the float height to be set low enough to prevent the overflow/flooding problems but still maintain a reliable supply of fuel...? Has anyone tried one? PA, the pumper carb idea is interesting. It was a common mod on Suzuki DR-Z trail bikes (which were supplied with a CV carb as standard) and allegedly improved the fuelling immensely. Never tried it on mine, though. I might drop an email to Allen's Performance to see if they have any thoughts on the issue...

Looks nice and all, but apart from the carbon bling and Repsol logos what's the difference between this and a standard 4RT? What I mean is, are there any performance-related mods like bigger bore (like the factory bikes), uprated sussies or ignition?

M&P sell Vee Rubber off-road tyres. Google is your friend

You sure it's the selector seal? If one or more of the casing bolts aren't tightened properly, a hard impact on the bash plate can cause the whole (clutch) side casing to move slightly and break the oil seal. This happened to me on my previous bike and I've heard of several others where the same thing happened. It pretty easy to fix - water pump off, side case off, new gasket (make sure that you use one of the paper type ones) and put it all back together. There's a bolt right at the bottom of the case behind the rubber that's usually the cause of the problem. It's worth chopping a lump out of the rubber so that this bolt is more easily accessible for checking for tightness in the future. If it is the selector seal, the same process (and the same advice re. paper gasket) applies! No need to drop the engine and it's a half hour job (excluding refitting the bash plate which took me ages!)

I'm told by those who ought to know that the stator problem is completely resolved on the '06 models.

In the past 6 months I've owned 3 Betas: In order, a 2002 270, a 2004 200 and a 2003 250 (my current bike). A had the 270 for almost 2 years and it was great for messing around on and the occasional easy trial but the huge amounts of power available (and the snappy way in which that power was delivered) meant that it very often got me into more trouble than my modest abilities could get me out of. Many of the top experts in my area ride Rev3 270s and I can see why - the trouble is, I'm nowhere near expert level and when I started to take competition more seriously it was obvious to me that the 270 wasn't the most suitable bike. If you're an experienced rider, give the 270 a go but be warned that it's similar to the Gasser 280 Pro in many respects - you need to be able to handle it! I tried a 200 because many people on this site recommended the smaller bike as an excellent way to improve the technical aspects of your riding due to the fact that you can't simply rely on the power to drag you through sections - you actually have to ride the thing. That's exactly what I found and in my first trial on the 200 my score was significantly better than what I'd ever achieved previously in events of similar difficulty (on the 270). The problem was, I didn't enjoy riding it. It was OK in trials although long trailrides between sections were a pain due to the lack of grunt and I'm sure that if I'd kept it I'd be a better rider than I am now. But when riding "socially" which is very important for me, I just kept wanting more power. Ideally I'd have a 270 for fun and a 200 for competition but finances don't currently allow 2 bikes. If you're lighter than 14 stone or so, a novice or only ever ride in competition, the 200 would be a perfect choice. For me as a ham-fisted, overweight thirtysomething who likes to ride often and compete occasionally it just didn't work. I now have a 250 which I find to be an ideal do-it-all bike. It's got more than enough grunt to be a laugh when out with the mates but the power delivery is much softer than the 270 and it doesn't have to be dragged around sections like the 200. Works for me! It's true that many Rev3's have problems with the electrics, usually the stator. As far as I can tell, this is caused by moisture getting into the ignition and corroding the coils. Whenever I wash the bike one of the last things I do is remove the flywheel cover (and flywheel if I can be bothered) and give everything a blast of WD40 and I've never had one fail on me. Apart from that, I can only echo what Buster's already said: All Betas are smooooth (I love that turbine-like clutch noise), the Paioli suspension is superb (especially the forks) and apart from the occasionally dodgy electrics (which I believe can be avoided with simple regular maintenance), they're absolutely bulletproof. Hope this helps!