October 9, 200817 yr I am going to look at a swm trials next week, the owner thinks it's a 1981 240, supposed to be all there except the seat, rear shocks, and kick lever, and in decent condition otherwise, what should I be looking for? are these good bikes? I have never rode a swm, I remember when Bernie and Martin were riding them in the 80's, I will probably buy it if the price isn't too high, how is parts availability for them? is there a model identification guide available?
October 9, 200817 yr They are good bikes , solidly built and reliable Engine spares easily available but some cycle parts can be hard to find but a good all round bike I have a 1980 320 and absolutly love it - much more fun to ride than my old 290 Shedco Have a look here at Martin Matthews website- www.motoswm.com Email martin - he will be able to answer all you need to know
October 9, 200817 yr Yes I agree, Martin is a solid contact for everything SWM & Gori for that matter. He comes highly recommended. However, the kickstart may be a problem, the lower knuckles are available but the swinging lever part is not. Martin had considered having some made provided he got a fair demand. Big John
October 9, 200817 yr From memory, the SWM uses the same knuckle as a Can-Am, but the actual pedal is cranked a different way to clear the offside footrest. Big John
October 9, 200817 yr I think I saw some SWM parts on e bay yesterday. I believe there was a seat as well as a tank.
October 14, 200817 yr Author I got the SWM, sadly the piston appears to have melted to the cylinder, it's probably beyond my financial ability to recurect at this time unless I get lucky on some engine parts, it seems a very well made bike, it bears a resemblence to my Beta TR33, is there a tie to the swm and beta '80's bikes? both made in Italy ?? here is a pic, thanks for the help & the link
October 14, 200817 yr There is a link to Aprilia though, as the design staff went there after the demise of SWM. The rotax powered aprilia twinshocks are very similar.
October 14, 200817 yr I got the SWM, sadly the piston appears to have melted to the cylinder, it's probably beyond my financial ability to recurect at this time unless I get lucky on some engine parts, it seems a very well made bike, it bears a resemblence to my Beta TR33, is there a tie to the swm and beta '80's bikes? both made in Italy ?? here is a pic, thanks for the help & the link I think I may be able to help you out with a new piston....see pm. Cheers Martin
October 20, 200817 yr Author got the cylinder off and the crank & rod are siezed, looks like a vacum leak may have leaned out the mixture and overheated the piston and rod, and it looks like it may have got moisture in the crank case, if any one locally has a line on a repairable 240 or 320 motor or parts bike, please pass it on thanks,
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