andye

I'll be on this:

I'll be there, I haven't ridden at Nash Mills before. I'm also riding at Cambridge Matchless on Saturday. See you there! Andy

After a lot of searching this website last night on how to bleed the clutch on my Gas Gas, I was ready for another outing today! Had a superb trial at Glendon, the middle route had just the right level of difficulty for me in my fourth trial. There was an accident at the beginning of the day, hopefully the chap is feeling much better by now. 10 very well put together sections, I dropped a couple of fives including one crash. Most of the sections involved steep banking with tight turns at the top but there were also a couple with rocky bits and steps which I enjoyed very much. The people there were the friendliest bunch I've seen at a trial yet, and everyone was hot and sweaty riding around in the 32 degree heat... Whew. I've got tanned arms but bright white hands from wearing gloves! As if all that wasn't good enough, a great barbeque with drinks at the end of the day with the trophy presentation. My next trial will be Puckeridge with Milton Buzzard this weekend - hopefully both days, I hope it's as enjoyable as today's was. Cheers Andy Eccles, #40 today.

Certainly looks clean on the outside!! The engine sounds good too. I've been in the garage stripping it down since Top Gear finished though (about 3 hours) and there are a few jobs to be done: Replace chain and sprockets Replace Wheel bearings in both wheels Replace Needle bearings in swingarm links Replace nut and bolt between fuel tank and frame Replace left side fork seal I'm hoping to get the bearings in the morning (fingers crossed my local industrial place will have good quality bearings for the wheels and swingarm) and then I'll give everything else a quick clean up and wait for the fork seals to arrive by post. Also need to get hold of a helmet and some boots before Sunday.... Compared to the old Aprilia Climber 240 I had, which was a '91, this bike feels so much lighter. I can lift it up onto the workmate on my own, which I could never do with the Climber without giving myself a hernia! It also seems to have a lot less rolling resistance during a quick ride earlier, and requires a lot less effort to get the front wheel off the ground. Basically there aren't many things which are similar!! One problem I have got though, is that the front brake disc is loose on some little floating bobbin type things. I presume a small degree of float is by design, but I suspect these bobbins are actually the wrong size since you can roll the bike forwards an inch with the front brake on - the disc is locked, but the hub still rolls for around 3-4 degrees.... I will investigate replacing the bobbin thingies since the disc looks fine.

Thanks for the advice guys, I've been to buy my bike today. Here it is, a 2001 GG TXT 280. I need a few bits for it so I've got some shopping to do, but all being well I'll be at a trial on Sunday, possibly near Reading with Basingstoke MCC. Cheers!! Andy

Nigel- that's brilliant news! But a quick Google of that phone number says it's Ashwell Tennis Club! Is the number right? A nearby shop would be great, otherwise almost everything will be mail-order. Jack- Cool, hope to get together sometime at/after a trial in a couple of weeks!!

Hi all, I live in Hertfordshire, near Stevenage. I went to watch a trial with Kingsbury and Kenton MCC the other day at Matthews Brickyard near Berkhamsted, and I've been to Nash Mills before with Berkhamsted MC. Just wondering what other trials and clubs there are in the area, I pick up TMX occasionally and will do so more often once I've bought my bike, but thought I'd ask here too! Cheers! Andy

Thanks very much for the input guys - are there any issues I should be aware of with regard to availability of parts? Presumably anything from the biggest brands (Gas/Mont/Beta)will not cause me any problems with getting hold of spares! Cheers! Andy

Cheers for the pointers so far guys. It's good to hear some comments. Of course I may end up choosing whichever bike I like the most, or the one which seems to be available in the best state for

Hi everyone. I'm Andy. Last time I rode in trials was about 1995, I had an Aprilia Climber - what a reliability nightmare that thing was. Parts were hard to get, and expensive. I've had a break for the last ten years (Although I've wandered along to watch the odd trial near home, and have done quite a bit of trail riding on a Suzuki DRZ400) but I want to get back into trials again! I don't want to spend mega bucks on a bike at first, in case I end up not using it much, so have a budget of around