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Kramit, thanks for that . Like most of us , weve all been through , either owned or ridden loads of different trials bikes over the years. This Merlin is one of the best handling twinshocks ive ridden.When i got this over to the UK and rode it , it was a bonus that id handled so well...as i would have bought it anyway. The front end is so so light and great for flicking it about and picking it up without much effort over logs , roots or just changing direction. You have to watch this on sharp inclines. It grips very well as the pegs are so far back. Its also very easy to balance stationary. Ive moved the foot pegs down as far as i can get them , but ideally id like the pegs lower by another 1.5" - 2" . Failing that the bars may have to go higher. Im 6'1 - perhaps thats got something to do with it , ut it feels as though the pegs are slightly to high. Im just being fussy though

Cookie , thank for that photo.BRILLIANT. I had no idea that twinshock model made it over here to the UK. Interesting fact for 3 spoke wierdos - 1 - There is no footage onthe web of Skywalkers in action. 2- This is the only photo on the net of Skywalkers in action There must be more out there ?

The rim and spokes are alloy and are light as youd expect. The magnesium hub is very light .....there's more weight in the paint. LOL This is a favourite pic of mine Come on guys ----lets see your 3 spoked wheel Photos

I dont ride this pup enough to worry about chopping my legs off. This 1984 Merlin 350cc Gallach Replica has cast magnesium hubs with 6 cast alloy spokes per wheel. I find these unusual Spanish manufacturers really interesting. The factories made them out of passion rather than JUST for profit and broke the predicable mould. Sure they went bust but Merlin still continues in Gasgas and Mecatecno left some georgous bikes behind. Am working on a 1986 approx Mecatecno 326cc Dragonfly which is another bike with 3 spoke wheels , this time in flourescent orange with a matching frame. It should be a beut once done. Just rebuilt the engine and stripped the frame.

I guess thats a no then ....LOL

Steve Jewitt was the Mecatecno uk importer and was based on the High street in Driffield ,Northumberside. I think his father may have been named Colin. I need to ask him a few bits a pieces re the skywalker and Dragonfly bikes i have.Noone has any info on these bikes at all and i figure that Steve may be my last chance at shedding some light .Is he still involved in the biking community?. Please either post what you know or Pm me please. Also ....do any of you have any photos of Mecatecnos that you could post up. Ive trawelled the net and there are only a few . There must be some private photos taken of the bikes that need sharing. Please post them

Thats a sweet little bike. Ive never seen one of those before Duckwizard - how are you ?? I had to hand cut my skywalker decals. Its time consuming but it gets the job done.

Some of you must of encountered thie before. I need to change the rear wheel bearings of a Mecatecno Dragonfly im restoring. The trouble is that the long spacer inside the wheel that the wheel spinde slides through is fixed into both wheel bearings.It wont budge at all. Id normally tap the bearings out with a long screw driver from the opposite side of the wheel. With this wheel the screwdriver just slides through and there are no ledges to get a purchase on. Any ideas. I dont want to have to resort to picking the bearing apart . LOL

Interesting bike , ive never seen one of these before. Similar to my Gallach replica - the one in the back ground on this photo. Paxau made that as well. This ones mono. same forks,engine , wheels and braces Anyway , you going to answer us , LOL. where is the display of bike in barcelona or is it a secret LOL.

There was nothing really special about them , its just that they are so rare and never seen. Now they probably werent the best bike around , thats for sure , or maybe they were to expensive , or the company management was sh*t. The engine looks like a Montesa unit. Can anyone with Montesa knowledge confirm this or not?. Ive never seen one anyway , and would bet there's only a few in existance. Pity , id have one

A break isnt good at all. IRIS have always been at the cheap end of the market and they wear real bad but ive never had a break.I wouldnt dream of putting one on a bike that i used often. The dealer should do something about it to get your business again.

A rare and forgotten bike manufacturer. JJ Cobas. Does anyone remember seeing one or have any photos? JJ Cobas JJ Cobas Crazy JJ Cobas

Some very rare Merlin twinshock photos and 1 even rarer Lejeune Mono photo One of the Merlin trials photos ever - J Freixia -circa 84 - Loius Gallach behind - . I love the Garibaldi gear J Freixia - circa 1984 . Merlin DG350 Gallach replica Loius Gallach Louis Gallach The standard DG350 ridden by Loius Gallach Eddy Lejeune riding a 1987/8 DG350 mono

Here's some rare Mecatecno trials bike photos from the late 80's and early 90's. Melcior Estorch - Early 90's - The only picture of a Mecatecno Skywalker being ridden on the internet Rare 1988 Mecatecno 326cc ridden by Ronald Garcia - very few made Marcelino Corchs riding the rare 1988 Mecatecno 326cc Marcelino Corchs losing control - poor bike Loius Gallach riding the rare Mecatecno Dragonfly 326cc Rare Mecatecno 326cc - none in UK- Loius Gallach riding the Mecatecno Dragonfly 326cc - 1 in UK only

Ive got loads of classic photos to post from the show but have no idea how to post them. Ive had a brief look around the site but cant find any info - Any ideas?

Im presuming that youve had this bike for a while and that when you first bought it it wasnt displaying these symptoms.Im also presuming your using a good 2 stroke oil at 50 to 1. Every 2 stroke bike puffs out a bit of white smoke , but if its excessive and the bike is running unevenly and also showing low back pressure .......it might be a sign of your crank cae seals leaking. This would allow oil from the gear box into the crank . This would be sucked up to the combustion chamber and burnt. This leak would decrease your crank compression and would effect the running also. The lack of popping from the exhaust , may be a sign of worn piston and rings and poor compression. In summary , if your running it on good oil at 50 to 1 at the mo , youve got to split the engine. Best of luck

Sherco are in the process of preparing legal action are they ARE THEY JOKING. Honda and Suzuki engines have been copied identically by the Chinese for years and if the mightly Japanese companies had no luck in stopping it .......then Sherco certainly wont. They'll have to ride this out like Gas Gas did with the Grey imports Lets wait and see what these Xispa's are like. You get what you pay for comes to mind.It's probable that the quality will be crap.

Ride in some Hare and Hounds or Enduro events . You'll soon see , it beats trials hands down. Trials riders are only trials riders because they havent discovered Enduro.

For all you DIY's out there , i'm sure youll understand this strange request. I need about a 2 metre sq sheet of plain black rubber which is about 3mm thick . Any ideas where i can get this from. Ive already tried the obvious Ebay and one seller there doesnt respond to emails !! cheers

The bottom line is , you must act yourself , do not wait for the Police they will take too long - fact. Think - It takes 5 minutes to get through and for the Police 999 operator to take your details , get the job on the computer and then allocate it to a Police unit and then an average of at least 10 minutes for them to get to you at your home. Another fact is that , unless you come across to the Police operator as 100 percent certain that someone is breaking in , they will down grade your job , from grade 1 to grade 2. Police have 15 minutes to get to grade 1's and 1 hour to get to grade 2's , meaning a Police officer wont even know about your problem for sometimes 50 minutes. The public are scared of the law , with no reason . The cases that are highlighted in the likes of the Sun and the Mirror where Mr innocent gets locked up for looking after his property are BULL , they just give you one side of the story to get you wound up - and many of us fall for it. REMEMBER -you can use reasonable force to protect your property or your person , meaning if he's breaking into your home then you can use resonable force to stop him by punching him , grabbing him , hitting him with a piece of wood , if you or your property is at risk. Its reasonable to shoot terrorists and its reasonable to drag someone to the floor and overwhelm them if they are breaking into your home. Just dont go over the top and hit him if he's giving himself up or when he's on the ground and you've got him detained. Contrary to popular belief the Police are not out to get you , but they are out to get criminals.If what you've done is reasonable in the circumstances then noone will have any problem. So , go grab them and give old bill a good arrest and something for them talk about over their donut !

Thank you for responding. What a great link . Ive contacted Saftek and they are getting me a price for 2 metres 25mm width 4mm. Im planning on attaching it myself. Although linings do have a hard time , the height of the material should mean theres not a lot of twisting force on it and therefore theres more chance of it staying put. A mate of mine who rides nationals and gets good results cuts his own brake pads out of lining and sticks them on himself. Ill have to ensure the lining sticks down evenly.I'll find out what glue he used. Cheers again

There is no chance of me getting new shoes for my Merlin so i'm going to have to reline them. The most cost effective solution is for me to reline them. Does anyone know where i can get 4mm lining from and whats the best glue available to Joe Blogs to stick it on. Cheers

It sounds as though you know what your doing. All ill add, is to set the float at the right height . If i remember rightly the idle screw works opposite to normal , in that you screw it in to weaken and out to enrich.Set everything up how it was and go from there. The worn parts may not have had such an effect on things as you thought.Keep an eye on you plug. Good luck.

It took me ages to get those bits of dirt in his eyes and get him to hold still

I Guess these are the upside down Piolli (or similar spelling) forks. If so send me a personal message with your email address and ill email you the parts sheet detailing the components and order fitted.