oxymoronic

It's a shame i didnt ask to drain the oil before i purchased-would have saved me this hassle. I've purchased the idler, the pawl and both springs-hopefully that will sort it. If it doesn't i can see this getting very expensive-those bits alone cost me 56 quid from gasgas uk. They're not particularly helpful either or willing to give any discount. Any suggestions for cheaper part prices?

Well, I've taken the whole clutch off and the kick start assembly and it would seem that the kick start pawl may be the cause of the swarf: Pawl 1: Pawl 2: Pawl 3: Gear: What do people think? The pawl teeth are very burred and sharp. I'm tempted to replace the pawl, the gear and the springs, put it all back together with a new gasket and see how it goes. If there was noise or the gear box was clunky I wouldn't mess about, I'd strip it but I'd rather be riding it instead of having it in bits everywhere until I can find some time to sort it out.

I guess having the magnetic sump plug there then this make sense, but I'm not collecting a fine paste though. I should have taken a photo really, but I would say its more like the swarf you would get from drilling with a poorly sharpend drill bit. They're quite sharp, the first time I noticed I managed to get some bits stuck in my thumb! Perhaps I'm being over cautious with it but I'm slightly dubious about the machine as I don't think it has been quite as well maintained as the chap made out - the first time I changed the oil what came out can only be described as muddy water. Out of curiousity, what type of oil are people putting in the gear box? I've tried a couple so far, 1 being Halfords 2 stroke geal oil and that was rubbish and expensive - made the clutch drag and the other is ATF dexron III which is a lot cheaper and the bike seems happier with it. Thanks for advice folks, greatly appreciated. Any more tips will be welcomed. Sam

Hi folks, I've not this bike long and its my first modern (mono shock at least) trails bike. I've replaced lot of service bits on it already just so I know everything is in good shape. However, I've changed the oil in it several times now over the last few weeks and the magnetic sump plug is picking up metal fragments (so must be iron). They're little, sharp slivers rather than chunks- either way I'm not sure what is causing it. There is also a silvery film to the oil drained which looks like it could be aluminium. The gear box seems ok and I can get through all 6 gears without problem. Sometimes getting neutral is a bit tricky, especially when cold, but I think this has more to do with the rider than the bike. I thought it maybe related to the kick start mechanism as it has slipped on the odd occasion but after whipping the clutch cover off I can't see any evidence of it being in that area - although I haven't removed the clutch to see everything going on. I'm toying with idea of stripping down the whole motor and rebuilding to try cure the problem unless anyone can suggest anything less drastic? If a rebuild is the answer, are there any guides/tips and specific gasket/bearing kits I should order from Gas Gas? Cheers Sam

I'm also having rear brake related issues with my 02 TXT 280. I have just re-built the calliper with new seals etc and installed it back on the bike, which went relatively well (apart from getting the pistons out which was a bit fiddly). Although I've got the brake bled using the technique suggested by Jim Snell - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcQq4U5ALyk - I don't get any real bite until the lever is near the bottom of its travel. The master cylinder push rod is adjusted to the max length so no more adjustment can be made there. Has anyone experienced this before? The only thing I can think to try is removing the pads (which are brand new) and push the pistons out so that the pads are lot closer to disc to start with. Any advice would be appreciated. Cheers Sam