sherpa325

I forgot to mention I also rode montesa's as well, 348, nice bike - shorter than the equivalent bultaco, less bottom end power, felt lighter, not quite as stable as a Bully but a good bike, couldn't pull second gear as easily as it was a 305 349 too long, too tall[red first series] plenty of power- full 349, not as predictable as the bully off the bottom,steered slower than the bully 349 'white wonder' montesa got it right here, wheelbase fixed up, just a real nice bike. Italjet, tested the 'all green' ones, found them to be just OK, felt heavy. nothing special- never competed on one. Italjet, competed on a 350 Piuma in 1983/84- Great bike totally different to the green ones, much lighter, more power, better everywhere. Good clutch, lighter flywheel, alloy axles, completely different. lighter frame, marzocchi forks and triple clamps, fantasic handling. Just felt like the old bully with some improvements. The only problem was the mono yamaha had just turned up.

OK here we go, rode all these in competition and these are my recollections, M92 series1 - nice and stable, longish wheelbase, slow steering, motor very torquey [fantastic bike for its time] M92 series 2- same as above, but diagonal tubes running from swinging arm pivot rubbed on ankles, preferred series 1 M125 Great bike - lighter, more power[27mm carbie] shorter wheelbase, steeper steering head- brought it into line with the miller frames M159 Great bike - better everywhere, motor had wider range of power [28mm carbie] longer travel rear suspension, loved it M183 same as above but a slightly longer swinging arm is fitted to increase stability and control on larger steps never owned a M183 but fitted the longer swinging arm to my 159 M191 Great bike , just happy to get on a new bike as my 159 was well and truly worn out, same as 183 M190 250, shorter frame-wheelbase, lower headstock/handlebar, more ground clearance- tried and tried to like this frame, even fitted my 325 engine, but never really liked the handling, always preferred the stability, steering and riding position of the 325 frame. M199 Really liked the handling of this bike but struggled to get it to run as good as the earlier 325's, later found out the small airbox was the problem. Also the bike didn't look a patch on the earlier bikes, I can remember getting it out of the crate and being so disappointed to see all the alloy painted black and three different shades of red- guards, airbox and tank all different! Ended up on a 348 cota for a year as a result. M199A Certainly better than the 199 as an overall package but the fact that the motor was lifted up in the frame reducing stability makes the 199 the better handler in my opinion- I just find the 199A a little more nervous than the 199, but would have a 199A every day of the week over the 199 M199B Only ridden a borrowed one of these in competition,basically the same as the 199A with a slightly less aggressive engine, very similar though, maybe just personal tuning setup. I do have a 199 frame in the shed, so one day the plan is to put the running gear off one of my 199A's into the 199 frame, modified to Comerford specs Cheers Greg

Hi, well done finding this rare bike. If you are going to restore it to original condition the triple clamp fitted to the bike is off a later model and is a much better design. The original top clamp is a bit of a pain as the handlebars are secured by two u bolts which are difficult to adjust. The footpegs should bolt onto the bike through the swinging arm pivot bolt and an additional bolt underneath and are non folding, more photos would be great. Cheers Greg PS San Antonio is the name of Paco Bulto's property where a lot of the development work was carried out- Bultaco trials were held there also for sponsored riders/dealers.

Yep that flywheel looks standard for the early 325 models, don't be fooled by the flywheel nut looking like an afterthought that doesn't go all the way on - that's what they did at the factory. Cheers Greg

Is it possible that this situation has been brought to a head to secure some of the Euro bail out money to wipe off some of the bank debts. I don't pretend to understand how this system or process works, but maybe GasGas is eligible for some of this package?

I have never had any trouble getting Bultaco aluminum alloy welded. Over the years I have had a fork leg welded, several cases, a fin off a head, a fin off a barrel and the last bike I purchased had been pulled apart as the lug that sits behind the countershaft sprocket [rear mounting lug for the ignition side case] had been broken off leaving a hole in the main engine case. I have used a couple of different welders over the years, it pays to do your research when choosing a welder as well. I always make it as easy as possible for the welder by making jigs if necessary and by always dressing the area to be welded, then heating it gently with an oxy torch to burn out any oil etc and then cleaning with wax and grease remover and a stainless steel wire brush. Take your time to find a competent welder. I have previously used a fellow who was making bits and pieces for turbo cars - manifolds, airboxes,etc. Currently using a guy who works in an auto radiator shop repairing radiators, he also does one off fabrications for modified cars, 4wds and bikes. These guys are very skillful and the work I have given them has been a 'piece of cake' compared to what they normally do. By the way welding the lug back on to the engine case was a lot of work for me [shaft in position in case, cases bolted together, plate on the outside to secure the lug in the correct position, prepare the weld etc, a days work for me] the guy took about five minutes to weld it back on and charged me $40. Cheers Greg

Trying to repair that gap by welding will create more problems than it solves, I would glue some sheets of various grades of emery paper as well as wet & dry to a flat surface[glass is great] and then work the case over the varying grades until it is flat. I am pretty sure there is enough clearance for the clutch. Worst case scenario you may have to make your own gasket out of thicker gasket paper to compensate, but I doubt it. Cheers Greg PS I have had all sorts of Bultaco aluminium alloy parts welded without any problems, the welders usually comment on the good quality of the alloy used.

I have tried quite a few different pegs and find the standard Hebo ones fitted to the Gas Gas to be the best in terms of abuse taken and usability. I have recently tried the S3 Hardrock pegs and have ended taking them back off as I was getting my foot caught on the allen headed screws. This happened several times, so I asked a couple of mates to have a go and they found the same thing. I may try to grind them down at a latter date to stop the problem, also tried some aluminium pegs a while back and they need sharpening at regular intervals to keep an edge. So all in all I am back to the standard Gasser pegs which require no maintenance and are basically indestructible. Cheers Greg PS beware of buying steel pegs that look like the Hebo pegs as they are about half as durable

'In Motion' sell the bracket or the complete peg & bracket. Cheers Greg

The flywheel should be rotated counterclockwise when checking the timing. To retard the timing [from 3mm to 2.75mm] the backing plate should be rotated counterclockwise. Cheers Greg

Yes, I have a 199A 325 Bultaco I compete on as well. As much as I try I cant bring myself to ride the Bulto consistently in the modern style and basically end going back to the clutch out use the throttle style of riding. The clutch is one finger, but the weight and poor brakes make it difficult for me, anyway, to ride it modern style. I know one thing however a day on the Gasser is a lot less tiring than a day on the Bulto. Cheers Greg

I didn't say it was an incident, just pointing out what happened. Fuji spent more time with the laptop than Bou and I saw him foul plug on the Saturday during the event.The factory Hondas also had a lower idle in my opinion so I would assume they have a better system than on the production bike.

I would love to have a fuel injected bike that ran like my FI cars. However the current FI bikes don't appear to offer any advantages over the carburated versions. The Montesa has a ridiculously high idle, which would stop me buying the bike, and the Ossa certainly from what I have seen doesn't start any easier, make any more power and most people seem to get them remapped? At the World round we went to two years ago we arrived at the practice area on the Thursday as the first riders started to practice. All the two stroke bikes were ridden untouched by minders or mechanics [Raga changed a clutch] however the hondas of Bou and Fuji were continually hooked up to a laptop, sent off to ride for a couple of minutes and back to the laptop and technicians again. This went on for some period of time, meantime all the carburated two strokes,GasGas ,Beta, Sherco, performed without incident. I did not see the Ossa of Oliveras at this session so cant comment on his bike.

You have answered your own question here. If you buy a 300 gasgas and put a low compression head and a flywheel weight, you get the best of both worlds - plenty of torque plus plenty of top end. I rode a standard 250 the other day hopped back on my 300 and for me there is no comparison, I have more options on the 300, I could ride the section in a higher gear than the 250 or stay in first and use the extra torque to find traction, I love it.I really could only use one gear and technique to clean the section on the 250. The bottom line is the better the rider the better the clutch work in particular, and the more power you can handle. Trials riding these days requires you to use the clutch to find grip as the throttle becomes less important than it was.

I have a 2014 racing with a reiger and the latest linkages and it is the best rear end of any of the gassers I have owned. Mate has one with a standard ohlins and in my opinion the reiger is much better. I am pretty sure the linkages can be upgraded, check with the US importer.

Definitely replace the condensor, cheap and easy to do- a faulty one can give a nice healthy looking spark when cranking the engine over yet cause problems when the engine actually runs.

First of all make sure the points are clean, the smallest amount of grease or oil will stop them working. The best way to ensure they are clean is to pull a clean piece of paper though them after you have let them close up on the paper. A while ago I had a similar problem and it turned out to be the tapped hole on the points where the wires attach was not fully tapped through. So when I tightened it up it bottomed in the hole leaving the wires ever so slightly loose causing no end of problems. Cheers Greg

I think the technical term is wrinkling and is normally associated with sheet metal failure. As copemech suggested I would grind the area until smooth and fill with weld as there appears to be plenty of room to add a reinforcing weld Cheers Greg

If you have read all of the fantastic interviews that gasgas249uk has put up, it is pretty obvious that we are very lucky to have a core group of Spanish and to a lesser extent Italian enthusiasts who are willing to produce Trials Bikes for us to buy. Without them I doubt we would have a sport at all. They continually put their money and expertise into producing some fantastic bikes that are cutting edge in design.They have been doing this since the seventies. What we can buy from these European companies is pretty much what the top guys rode in the World Championship the previous year, I don't know of too many other sports where this happens. The bikes are lighter and the power delivery gets better and better as does the whole package. On the flip side I cant begin to get my head around how you can produce such a quality product in such limited numbers. How much bargaining power do you have when only ordering two thousand custom made ignition systems, or rear shocks, or forks, or shafts and gears for the gearboxes.I would imagine its very difficult to keep a reasonable price on the components and also provide the service that is expected with such a small production run. These are not large multi national companies with infinite resources [they are not interested in our sport] they are small companies chasing a dream with very little chance of achieving a decent financial return. I just hope they keep on doing it, all of them. PS If I had to go back to a TY mono motor I am pretty sure I wouldn't ride, definitely the worst performing trials motor I ever owned Cheers Greg

But are they low tech, heavy and reliable

I wouldn't hesitate to buy a gasgas. They are fantastic to ride and I personally have had zero problems with them. I have owned five Pro's and three of the earlier TXT series and the current bike [2014 300 Racing] is the best bike I have owned. The gasgas clutch and its large engagement range make it easier to slip than other brands, the Reiger shock transforms the rearend and the power and its delivery is more than you could ask for. You can also quite cheaply tailor the power to what you prefer/want by adding the flywheel weight and cylinder head inserts.I love the light weight and as I get older its less tiring on the body than anything else I have ridden, I also have four Bultacos. Cheers Greg

I am not sure where any of this information came from as Sammy Miller was out here in about 1970, and don't think I have heard of anyone who has bored a 250 out to 350 and by 1974 I am pretty sure he would have been riding the TL Honda.

I wasn't going to post this, but it finally got the better of me. The bike is a M151 1974/1975

I cant recall the last time I saw one of those brackets. I had both M92's series 1 & 2 -had the best time ever with the series 1 as it was the first 'good' bike I owned, also the first bike I competed on and the first bike I got a trophy on. Basically the bike I learn t to ride on and the bike that got me hooked on trials and Bultacos. Unfortunately I don't have to many photos of my old bikes, that's it in the background behind my then girlfriends Lobito

I would imagine that is a very rare bracket, my original one back in 1972 only lasted a couple of months from new, before cracking just above the fork mounts. I replaced mine with the vertical style Sammy Miller ones- oh the memories!