I am going to look at a 99 techno 250,matey wants £650 ono,looks tidy in the picture,what do i look out for ,i dont have a lot to spend as i just want a trials bike for weekend fun in the chalk pit.Is there any problems that they suffered from ,are the motors tough?.I dont want to end up with a heap that needs heaps of money spending on it .I really want a montesa 315 r but cant find anything,close to where i live on the isle of wight.So any advice lads would be great .

All best Ian.

At £650 unless there is something seriously wrong with it I'd buy it. They are good ,reliable bikes and very capable. nothing much goes wrong and parts are easy enough to get hold of.

on the other hand £650 usually buys a pile of crap !!

best to save up and buy newer,if you can.

i had one and liked it. pretty sturdy things take quite a lot of abuse, heavy by todays standards make sure the swinging arm bearings,linkage arent worn, spokes are tight and its not rattling and it should be ok

Yes i think i will take a look ,the chap needs the cash ,he will go to £550,If its not bad might be worth a go,are the water pumps a weak point?

I'd go for it at £550. Check the oil window and coolant for oil/water

I owned a couple, it may have just been me but the subframes are prone to snapping where they bolt into the main frame, give it a wobble about see it aint too loose ie broken. They are a pain to weld and can break again.

Generally pretty sound solid and still serviceable. try and listen past the enevitable ancilliary rattles (levers foot rests etc) and try to listen for any rumbles from the bottom end and rattles from the top.

There will be play in various bearings but I wouldnt worry about any of them too much, wheel bearings etc are cheap enough, suspension bearing kits a different matter but then again is it worth refreshing the full linkage on a 500 quid play bike - perhaps not.

Any used off road bike of any age is a gamble as you will know but 550 on one of these is as safe as any I would say...

Just remember there are loads of easy jobs that you can undertake when your tinkering time is free but you can soon be into a few hundred quid if you start thinking chain, sprockets, tyres pads, cable, hose ,...I guess what I am saying is check its been mechanically maintained and forget about the cosmetics. You dont want to buy it to immediatley throw money at it.

Good luck hope it is a good 'un

Thanks very much for the advice ,i am a car mechanic by trade so can do any mechanical jobs,just wanted some idea if they might be worth buying.

Thanks all ian