August 27, 20187 yr Hey all, Greying beard, rode lots of dirt bikes and some motocross over the years, not a pro by any means, just riding for fun. Always wanted to ride trials... Been reading this forum for a while trying to gain some knowledge about purchasing a used trials bike. Being in Canada, trials bikes are few and far between, and I didn't want to spend too much to get into trials at this point. I finally found an older Beta Rev3 250, 2001 for a low enough price, it was probably more used for trail riding before though but seems in reasonable condition otherwise. While I have numerous questions...lol... I will reserve those for future posts and use this as an introduction only. And YES!!! I will post the mandatory trial porn pics of my latest acquisition! Oh , and did I mention I'm on 3 acres of land and I've been doing a lot of logging lately....hmmmm, what to do with the logs....tough one! cut em' up and burn em? Thanks for having me here, I have lots to learn so will go back to reading with my mouth shut!
August 27, 20187 yr Welcome to the forum & to trials! Bike looks in remarkable condition for its age, not sure what the handling is like with that monstrous bar riser setup though!!, also chain tension seems a bit tight, all easily sorted. Enjoy your bike
August 27, 20187 yr 4 hours ago, tshock250 said: Welcome to the forum & to trials! Bike looks in remarkable condition for its age, not sure what the handling is like with that monstrous bar riser setup though!!, . Enjoy your bike The handling was just fine when the last owner tried it. https://youtu.be/gTVoFCP1BLg?t=1m6s
August 27, 20187 yr Author 3 hours ago, oni nou said: The handling was just fine when the last owner tried it. https://youtu.be/gTVoFCP1BLg?t=1m6s Fair enough! I knew something was off, couldn't put my finger on it though. So I phoned home....long distance of course... Followed the recommendation, thinking it looks better now.
August 27, 20187 yr 1 hour ago, ahh_me2 said: Fair enough! I knew something was off, couldn't put my finger on it though. So I phoned home....long distance of course... Followed the recommendation, thinking it looks better now. Now you are on a trials bike......just slacken the chain off until the top of the rubber tensioner chain slipper block has a gap between it and the underside of the rear swing arm that you can fit your first/index finger tip in and that's it.......the chain is too tight in the picture.
August 27, 20187 yr 2 hours ago, ahh_me2 said: Fair enough! I knew something was off, couldn't put my finger on it though. So I phoned home....long distance of course... Followed the recommendation, thinking it looks better now. You chopped all those trees to find a suitable bike stand!
August 28, 20187 yr Author 8 hours ago, section swept said: You chopped all those trees to find a suitable bike stand! It seems I have bike stands scattered all over the yard! Very convenient I must say.
August 28, 20187 yr Author 9 hours ago, oni nou said: Now you are on a trials bike......just slacken the chain off until the top of the rubber tensioner chain slipper block has a gap between it and the underside of the rear swing arm that you can fit your first/index finger tip in and that's it.......the chain is too tight in the picture. Yeah, I was dealing with fluids today so didn't get much chance to look at the chain. I know I'll have some questions about it though... I do know it needs some lube, not sure yet what should be used.
August 28, 20187 yr 4 hours ago, ahh_me2 said: Yeah, I was dealing with fluids today so didn't get much chance to look at the chain. I know I'll have some questions about it though... I do know it needs some lube, not sure yet what should be used. Just use any engine or gear oil on the chain, let it soak in or you could use WD40. If you use proper chain lube spray it will dry sticky and attract all of types of dirt you don’t want and end up causing more wear, that stuffs ok for clean road work but as mentioned before the runny oil is best. When you wash the bike off ( you will want to keep it looking as good as it is at the moment) you’ll wash most of the oil off and that will carry most of the dirt away too! When you’ve finished a good liberal spraying of WD40or other proprietary brand will drive out any moisture and prevent rusting of the links etc. Some people use a paint brush to apply the oil to the chain which works well, an oil can can be tedious and a bit more messy. I suspect you’ll be riding on fairly dry dusty terrain so I would carry a small aerosol of WD40 to lube the chain after a few hours running?
August 28, 20187 yr 13 hours ago, section swept said: You chopped all those trees to find a suitable bike stand! That’s either an illegal whisky ??still in the background leaning against a tree or a left over WW2 A Bomb????
August 29, 20187 yr Author The white thing is a sandblast cabinet, and the grayish bomb looking thing to the left and back is just a 100# propane tank. Uh yeah, I'd forgotten about the application of oil to the chain with a paintbrush....Thanks for the reminder!
September 14, 20187 yr My 1st post here but wd40 is not a lubricant and never was.We use it for cleaning and it is great for water and gunk removel but sucks as a lube.It is basically kerosene with bad lube properties.Chain wax works well on these bikes after a good cleaning.
September 14, 20187 yr 2 hours ago, Junglejeff said: My 1st post here but wd40 is not a lubricant and never was.We use it for cleaning and it is great for water and gunk removel but sucks as a lube.It is basically kerosene with bad lube properties.Chain wax works well on these bikes after a good cleaning. WD now make a chain lube ? https://wd40.co.uk/specialist-motorbike/chain-lube/ Edited September 14, 20187 yr by b40rt
September 14, 20187 yr 5 hours ago, Junglejeff said: My 1st post here but wd40 is not a lubricant and never was.We use it for cleaning and it is great for water and gunk removel but sucks as a lube.It is basically kerosene with bad lube properties.Chain wax works well on these bikes after a good cleaning. You better tell the manufacturers of WD-40 as they state on their tins that It lubricates metal ........I find that it does a fairly good job of lubricating door hinges in my house.....but of course its not for use in gearboxes.
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