jon v8

Just to add to the advice given, the standard ignition on all Yamaha TY's with points is very good quality and extremely reliable when set up properly. For the little effort it is to make it work properly I don't think the cost of electronic ignition is worth it. Yes, the 175's may benefit from the extra power available at the top end, but 250's make enough power for the bulk of riders. Personal choice and only my opinion. Only once in the last 15 years of using Ty250's have I had a problem with the ignition, my fault for using a dirty old set of points that I didn't bother to check when I built an engine out of 3 boxes of bits, using only a couple of new gaskets and circlips. The moving point was tight on the pivot and tightened up when the engine got warm. Cleaned out and greased, its not missed a beat since.

I would also be suspicious of the spark itself, as already said modern plugs don't work very well when fouled. My 350 AJS when running on a Lucas racing mag,(Which was in good condition) would go through a couple of plugs a year, I could always tell when the performance was dropping off. When I changed it to a BTH electronic mag I could run the same plug all year without even cleaning it. The BTH mag clearly had a stronger spark which could cope with a dirty plug. I proved it using an inductive pick up and viewing the spark trace on a laptop based oscilloscope. The Lucas spark was less accurate and weaker. Then when the condensor started to fail I could make the spark trace disappear by applying 100psi of workshop air to the plug. If you have access to this kind of kit it would be good to compare the HT trace of your bike to a similar one that doesn't eat plugs.

Money spent on the mag and carb will be the two areas I'd go for first. The Amal Premier carbs are great, a decent carb and spark then the rest is fiddling. Do you know if its got trials ratio's in the gearbox ? A set of Mick Ash gears in the box also is a huge benefit if its still on a road cluster.

I can't be sure, but the frame looks very like the one I had a few years back. That one was made by the late Alan Brown from Bristol. Having a Monobloc carb on it shows it as being a good few years old too. Thats going to be a big heavy handfull... I gave up on mine and sold it,my little,(By comparison) rigid 350 AJS is much easier to ride,steers better,has softer,more controllable power. Just more difficult on big rocks or steps etc. HT5's are nice bikes, but in most cases the 500 engine is too much,and unless they are very trick they can be heavy and hard work.

I think mine is on 12/53 too, but its at work so I can't check till tomorrow. The one I'm using at the moment is a D model, but the engine is more than overdue a rebore and piston. (The A model is more snappy from memory) Saying that it still goes very well and does not hesitate in picking up the front wheel in second, although third does take a bit more of a pull on the bars... I run a slow throttle too. This bike is currently only used for club trials and playing in the woods, but I never get the feeling that it needs more power. What I do like about it is its ability to run down to absolutely nothing then pick back up again without complaint. At the trial I rode on Sunday I made it do this several times where slipping the clutch would have been very risky in terms of losing traction. It just did what I asked of it and found grip on slippery mud and tree roots,not even a finger hovering over the clutch...

By coincidence I have just fitted a shortened cover to my TY250, only to save the completely undamaged original. They are expensive now and hard to find, the one I have fitted was badly cracked, but JB Weld has done a brilliant repair. If you are worried about chain damage it might be worth making a case saver similar to this only which quickly popped up on a search. The one in the pic is for a later Mono engine, but you get the idea.

I'm happy with a 428 chain on my current 250, but the one I'll build as a Majesty is on a 520 setup. The 428 is lighter, remember Sammy Miller went for a small chain to cut down on weight...

The Otter frame is one thing,made later than the engine which was originally fitted into a BSA frame. Not sure if you can date an Otter frame,has it got any numbers on it ? The engine can be dated from the factory dispatch records, the BSA owners club can help with that. You might find this interesting; http://www.bsaotter.com/2020_a_new_decade.html

Which events are these then ?

I use these for all my old bangers from here; https://bvm-moto.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=770&search=kil I guess similar products are easy to source in the US ?

Just been chatting to my brother,he is living in Southern Portugal now, he does bikes too. He has done a couple of trips from there down into Morocco on his Honda Africa. There are plenty of ex-pats down there he knows who organise regular trips into North Africa,they know what you do and don't need etc. I'm going to send my DT250mx down to Portugal to use as my local trial bike. Just need to make a long range tank for it, 80 miles to empty isn't enough. Plenty of opportunities for trail riding on his doorstep,all legal and no hassle.

It was my brother,and yes he spent a great deal of time sorting his route, I ended up helping him in trying to get a visa for Pakistan because he couldn't pass through Iran. A nightmare of paperwork compared to taking a trials bike to France. His Landrover is seen here shortly before he told a Chinese immigration officer to F--- Off in no uncertain terms. Sometimes you have to stand your ground.It paid off, he gained entry, but was glad to leave, and has no desire to return.

You partly missed my point - The Landrover was an Australian registered vehicle, as I said the Carnet was only inspected on entering Pakistan,no other countries were interested. And why don't the ACU suggest machines being road registered rather than using a Carnet if it is required. Several years ago we were all advised to get off road bikes registered to help with returning stolen bikes - Surely this would be better advice than paying a tax which only lasts for a year ?

So if I live in Switzerland and take my trials bike into France do I need a Carnet ? Or Norway into Sweden ? My brother recently drove an Australian registered Landrover back to the UK from Oz, the only country that inspected his Carnet was Pakistan, on entering the EU none of the countries were interested in it at all. To me it smacks of scaremongering or just pure fund raising.

Looks like its been around the lawn a few times !

I have a pair of yoke from a 1974 325 if that is any help. Also a complete engine and gearbox,pair of hubs and a tank / seat unit.

You can order the RR books from here; http://www.ratiopublishing.co.uk/ Dave, ( RR ) and his wife Lisa are very good friends, his books are top notch as already stated - And I'm not just saying that cos they are great mates...

That nurse has a point,we all have our own opinion.During lockdown #1 we had literally hundreds of "new" cyclists riding up and down our lane.Virtually naked in their lycra gear only their head generally protected by a flimsy cycle helmet.(More than 4 foot away from their brain by the way many rode) Compared to the protection we have when we ride,in no other traffic or in a small group, I think many of them were in a far more risky situation. (Bit of a dig at the council because of the huge potholes in our lane...)

I don't see what the fuss is, trials can be run in a Covid safe manner,both ACU and AMCA are issuing permits outside of Lockdown - Which is all that is stopping us at the moment. During recent conversations with the AMCA it is quite clear that they want to do things properly,mainly concerning social distancing in the car park area. If the Lockdown is removed at the beginning of December we have every intention of running our next Ashwicke Classic trial on the 13th. Yes, it will be a bit different, but still a trial to ride - It could be worse,no trials is rubbish. The trials I have ridden in covid safe mode have been fine,the measures taken have been no big deal.

I would also suggest using two in the rear wheel and one in the front. It can be difficult to stop tyres moving on the rim on some bikes,my AJS rigid uses Dunlop chromed rimes and IRC rear tyres are very keen to move on them. I cut a section of a worn out tyre to use on the rim to see how well the rimlock could clamp the tyre. Some rimlocks are a waste of space,the ones I have now seem much better,but for the life of me I can't remember what make they are...

I was hoping have my DT250 over there to leave at my brothers place by now.Cov19 has put a damper on that for now... He used to live in Fuseta, but he has now bought a place just outside Moncarpacho - Monkers as they call it... I'll get it sorted out there once the travelling is easier.

Electrex World ignition can be difficult to set or check with a strobe, some strobe lamps get confused with them,my Snap On one did when I was sorting out my sons D14/4 Bantam. The boss of EW told me that strobing could be difficult with his system. It was a couple of years back now,but I seem to remember there are two firing events per rotation,so there is a spark as well near BDC. The strobe would jump between the two events,making it difficult to see what was happening. I'd be inclined to set it as per the EW instructions and see how it runs.

Does your gearbox contain the C15T gear cluster, this will make quite a difference to what gearbox and rear sprocket you need. The 18 tooth crank sprock it is a good start if you are not doing any road work.

You have effected a temporary repair,the kind to enable you to finish a trial. There is no way I would leave it like that - Something caused the float to stick,most likely will do it again. Nothing worse than a badly maintained bike playing up during a trial.

Under current circumstances most people should be able to find time for a carb strip and clean. It couldn't hurt.