cleanorbust

Lots of 247s must have been rebuilt over the years, not an insurmountable problem. Looks quite a good one, though a pity it's lost it's original mudguards, which were an almost indestructible plastic. My one, which I bought new in 1979 (for £730!) and was reunited with a couple of years ago, has tubular loops welded on the frame as standard to protect the front/underside of the engine - hard to see if these are present on the bike in the pictures.

No, thankfully.

See my reply to the duplicate post on TC.

I've got that model of Montesa and also an SWM. In honesty I enjoy riding the Mont as it's still a decent bike in twinshock trials. You can get all the consumables you'll need from Inmotion, though this model, the 247c, was 237cc rather than 247cc so getting a piston could be awkward if you need one. However, old 247 barrels are pretty common on eBay so you could always fit one and get a piston for it from Inmotion (they do rebore sizes as well) . If you ever need to split the cases you could be in for some fun as the crankshaft pinion (and gearbox sprocket) is a taper fit which can be a swine to remove. £1100 sounds pretty decent for a sound example. .

I recently picked up this little gem from my local secondhand bookshop. Thinking I had at last found the answer to decades of struggling in the sections, a kind of pre video age forerunner to Ryan Young's benchmark productions, my anticipation was sorely demolished on opening the book. Not a mention of clutch control, counterweighting or splat technique. Instead, a somewhat heavy emphasis on the use of lemon juice, ammonia and scouring pads. Not my thing at all. Considering it cost me 25 pence I feel cheated. It's going back in the morning.

Top foreign riders taking part in the SSDT? Different times, I'm afraid. And, from their point of view, almost a different sport.

Yep, you sure would and rightly so. Not missing the point, I think we've all got where you're coming from. Cheers.

Sure, I never expected to change your attitude. Nobody could! Enjoyed the banter though.

Thanks. Just the reasoned and insightful answer I was expecting. Have fun. Preferably in a different sport.

I know a farmer who lives a few miles from me. Nice chap, hard worker. He owns a house, a car and a couple of horses. Strangely I don't think of these as things I can just go and use whenever and however I like. Why should I think differently about his land? Just asking.

Yes, and in the SSDT barring disasters is an essential part of the art of winning it.

Probably true. But that has to be done by the sport representing itself properly and respectfully. Indiscriminate riding on private land is a great way to get us banned from using it forever, as many clubs who have lost the use of land for this reason can confirm. Any sort of attempted mass revolution involving us taking to our bikes to assert our supposed rights over land which belongs to someone else but which we think should be ours to use as we want would just be seen as a bunch of louts causing a nuisance. That's how it works.

Tend to agree. There are so many aspects beyond cleaning sections that the SSDT winner needs to put together to net the win, and Dougie has mastered them all. For me, on mental toughness alone he starts with an advantage over the rest of the field which he tends to drive home as the week wears on. This happened last year, has anything changed in the last twelve months to make it different now?

Could be it's the septic tank which makes the science interesting.

Haha, no chance of that! Breagh's a good guy, always has been since I remember him getting involved in trials. Does loads for the sport as you know. Have a great Scottish.

Oh, I'm always giving out health warnings. Just ignore it. Take care.

Why wait till the weekend to behave like a tw*t? Oh, hang on - sorry, you haven't. If I was in the Fort William area next week I'd keep the heed doon if I were you Stuart.

Nah, sadly he actually believes it!

Corrected your spelling for you.

Not on a motorbike you don't.

If this is indeed classed as common land there is by legal definition a right to roam, and an unequivocal prohibition on the use of motor vehicles. Sadly that isn't changed by custom and practice over the years, even when such activity has been generally accepted.

Not so. That's why the SSDT has to obtain permission to use every square mile of off-road land the trial uses, year after year. Every yard of the route belongs to someone, none of it is owned by the general public en masse.

In the eyes of the law, the landowner, the SSDT committee and anyone else whose opinion matters, trespass is trespass. Doubt whether telling a landowner to get over it will get very far in keeping our sport alive.

Doesn't make it OK.

Providing of course they have the necessary permissions to do so, and gain their enjoyment legally without causing a nuisance.