bullylover

Hi Netley. That looks correct. It is a bit hard to see but if all the selectors line up and it changes gear and gets all the gears then it is correct. As I said before there is a washer on top of the large kickstart gear. The one next to the crankcase. The M199`s and the 199A`s also had one on the clutch shaft on top that top gear as well but the 159`s don`t so I`m not sure it the 191`s also have that one. Graham.

Hi Netley. To reassemble the engine you will find it a lot easier to remove the neutral stop which is the 19mm bolt on the left hand case with the spring loaded rounded thing on the end of it. It also makes everything a lot easier if all the gears are in the left hand case and not the right hand one where they are now. Use a few dabs of grease on the centre gasket and have it on the right hand case. They usually go back together really easy. Don`t forget the small washer on top of the kickstart gear. Graham.

Hi dabber. Why not just buy a plain blue plastic one off that well known Bultaco parts supplier in England. They are cheap and look reasonably good just no decals. I had one on mine for ages. Graham.

I don`t really know much about the Ossa`s but I think it would have an Amal carb on it so I think the large screw you are refering too is the idle screw and the small one is the air screw. It also sounds as if the timing is wrong. That would cause the backfiring and the not reving so put the new points and condenser in it and time it as well. I thought all the Ossa trials bikes had a CDI ignition in them. I know all the MAR`s did. Graham.

Hi Mark. I have a 199 crank in having a new bigend put in it now. I bought an Italpart piston and a bigend kit from that well known English shop and the 30mm small end bearing does not use spacers on it and the bloke doing the work emailed me today and said the conrod really needed 1mm thrust washers on it instead of the .5mm ones supplied. So the answer is yes. Graham.

I have put Apico footpegs on my three Sherpas with bought modern mounts. I move the brackets back and down about half an inch and with the lower modern footpegs this works great. It improves the whole feel of the bike as well as lowering the centre of gravity. It is a worthwhile modification. Graham.

One other mod that works very well is to put longer shock absorbers on it. Standard is 340mm so go to 360mm or I have put some 395mm ones on my M199. I have not tried that one as yet, still waiting on some engine parts to be done. The steel or cast liners in the hubs is a great modification. That is one of the things I`m waiting for. Graham.

I think it might be a little bit too wide. A WM2 is 1.85 inches and a WM1 which is what you want is 1.65 inches. Just try it and see if it fits in there. Graham.

One thing which always works on the backing plate screws is an impact driver. This will always loosen them. Just make sure the bit is the right size for the screw and long enough to not hit anything else. Graham.

The short has to be happening either from the wires going up to the terminal or in the ignition itself. So you will have to strip it all down and look for a short. Old wires do become very brittle on the outsides so that is always something to look for. The main spot to look is either the wire from the points to the condenser or the wire from the primary coil. Just have a really good look and it will be easy to see. Good luck. Graham.

Contact Talon as they will make a sprocket to suit you. Or try that famous Bultaco shop in England. Or just use that auction site, the famous one.

I have three Sherpa`s now a M199B, M199 and a M159 and I am using an OKO on the two 199`s and a Bing on the 159. The OKO`s are cheap and they seem easy to set up. One other good thing is using a Domino throttle the cable is the same size as for a Domino to a Bing. Graham.

Just a thought but has anyone tried Barnett in the US. I have been using their plates in my Sherpa`s and find them great. Graham.

Get in contact with Steve Goode. He has a lot of parts and if he does not have them he will know who does. Graham.

I have found on my Sherpa`s that EBC shoes seem to feel the hardest out of the two brands still available today. They just feel harder at the lever. They won`t ever feel like disc brakes though. Also put a new Venhil cable on it. That will improve things a lot. Graham.

The twin spark plugs were used on the open class Pursangs and the Astros and maybe the Fronteras. They had a B9ES in the front hole and a B8ES in the rear hole. I think that is the only bikes that idea was on. On your Alpina I`d say the extra plug hole was for a decompressor which was a hot item to have in that era. Just get a single plug system for yours as the twin plugs on an Alpina would not do anything anyway. It also gives you a spare plug already installed if yours ever dies while trail riding. Graham. Ps I have been using the Bultaco UK CDI for a couple of years now and it`s brilliant.

Hi Mark. There is a lot of difference in the two heads. The 151 head has 4 barrel studs with 2 head bolts sitting front and rear whereas the 159 head has the 4 barrel studs and 4 head bolts. I think the liner on the 159 is also larger as you can bore a 159 out to take an 85mm piston where the 151 head you can only go to around 84mm. I own both and I know you can`t put a 159 barrel onto a 151 engine without a lot of work. Graham.

All the M199A`s that I have seen here in Australia have had the drain plug in the side of the engine case close to that case nut in the middle. All the earlier ones had one like yours. I think that T2- thing is how much clearance the piston needs. In thousands of an inch. I`m not sure on that one though. Graham.

Hi Chappo. Nice buy. It looks like a M198A. The bash plate is a standard one with some wings welded on. I`d leave the bash plate as it is and just pull it off when you need to get inside it. As you can see the standard bashplate left the cases a bit exposed in rocky areas. Graham.

No it is the earlier ones that have the liner above the barrel. My M151 engine is like that. I have a M199 apart at the moment and it has a copper gasket the same as a M199A.

Hi Mark. I don`t think there is a difference. There might be minor porting differences but it is only very minor. They both used the same exhausts and carbs with the same jetting and the same airfilter and the same ignition timing. Graham.

I just read the Caswells Australian web page and it has a warning that the epoxy petrol tank sealer won`t bond to polyethylene plastic which is what the Bultaco modern fuel tanks are made out of I think. Anyone know for sure what they are made from? Graham.

I have found the the IRC tubed tyres stay on the Akront rims okay but you have to run higher pressures in them as the sidewalls are so soft. I found the older Dunlop tubeless come away from the bead and I just use tubeless Michelins which come away at 4 PSI but they will stay put using higher pressures. I gave up caring and just use Michelins as they do have the best grip and the best feel. I run the rear at 3.5 to 4 PSI and if the tyre wants to wobble around I just let it do so. I run two rim locks which helps. Graham.

That is interesting Greg. My 199B is 14773B and it was the first one and only one over here in Australia for a long time. It was privately imported from England in about 1982 I think. A mates one is 13441B so it is much earlier than mine. So going by your numbers mine is a very late one. Graham.

The last piston I bought was for the 151 engine I have in my 199B. I bought a Wiseco from Bultaco Classic in the USA. I think Bultaco Australia still has some Mahle pistons. The ones from In Motion are probably fine too. There is another place that has some but I haven`t heard from him in a while and he isn`t answering the phone lately so I`m not sure about him. Graham.