mcman56

I use Simple Green on everything. "has a mildly alkaline pH of 8.5 to 9.5." Can that corrode anodize? I have not seen this on other bikes.

There is some kind of white residue primarily on the front wheel of my 2018. It looks sort of like mineral deposits from where water dried. Detergent, Isopropyl alcohol and acetone do not remove it. A carnauba cleaner wax removes some but is way too much work for old hands. The rag with cleaner turns black so maybe it is some kind of oxidation. Is there an easy way to remove it?

Here is a bad picture of the rear brake on a 2001 Rev3. If I recall correctly it did not match the front caliper. It did work very very well.

I had that issue with a vintage bike. It looked like it unseated in the area of the rim weld. The weld did not look that bad but I took a file and smoothed it out as much as I could. That eliminated the issue.

If the bores are oval, you can have them machined to take modern Teflon coated bushings, or bronze. But, it would be much easier to find a replacement.

Is the difference just he tank and seat? I would like the trials model in most any condition. If you remove the seat and install the trails tank is then the same as the trails model? Are the tanks available?

I would like to give a Scorpa TY125 trials a try but they are very difficult to find in the US. Is it easy to convert the long ride version? There are a few of them. What are the differences?

Sewing machine could be a good description of the soft powerband. That can be an advantage for novices or those of us with low skill sets. Has anyone ever tried a non vacuum carb on one? I had a Tiger 800 that actually sounded like a sewing machine at highway speeds

I have not been on a 260 but currently ride a Beta 300 4t and a 2018 Montesa 300. I find the Beta much easier to ride. The Montesa has much quicker engine response and initially can be a real handful to ride. It took me a long time to get comfortable on it and I still greatly prefer the Beta. I have been told that many people prefer the 260 for that reason. I did have a Beta 300 2t in the past and it had smooth power delivery in the lower rpm range. However, it really took off after the middle of the rpm range. If it was that upper rpm surge you did not like, you may really like the Beta 4t. The power curve feels quite flat and even fluffy on top compared to the 2t. You can be much less precise with the throttle. NOTE: I have the standard muffler. I have heard that the factory muffler or an aftermarket muffler can really enhance the power. The tech fork on the Montesa is quite nice and it has a much better rear brake than the Beta.

You can start by cleaning the carburetor and making sure it is seated in the manifold properly. If a 2009 has the hot start button, check for leaks.

I find that Forma has the same wide fit as Gaerne but are much stiffer. Once broken in Gaerne boots feel like bedroom slippers. The Forma soles are much more durable and do not get chewed up by the foot pegs either. They are slightly taller if that makes a difference. I tried on Alpinstars but the fit was way too narrow.

If it is like mine, it can be serviced but needs a valve installed so it can be refilled with nitrogen. You also have to measure or search to find the proper oil volume. I have changed the oil and valving but have not had to buy parts. Possibly here: https://www.ktechsuspensionusa.com/

I did do some parts chasing Some TL parts are shared with the XLs. I was able to get intake valves here. https://www.xlintperformance.com/ IMD was selling piston kits on ebay. They were very nicely made. The machinist who bored the cylinder thought they had the original Honda molds. Gaskets came from ebay. A China copy petcock from ebay worked after installing Honda OEM seals. A China copy 22mm carb worked well after increasing the slide cut away. It was well made and accepted OEM Keihin jets but needed the bowl seal replaced. It seems like China o-rings do not like US gas or maybe just California gas. I think All Balls sold a steering bearing kit and fork seals. These guys had the transmission output shaft that the seal runs on. https://www.davidsilverspares.com/ These guys have some general Honda stuff. https://4into1.com/?srsltid=AfmBOoqk_OxNHRz3n01ZkipB_bpjTyDPO1CO1xnau5oSRcIMlS0ChZAQ The main bearings are or were no longer available. They use some kind of custom bearing with a larger OD than anything available. Be sure they need to be replaced before pulling them off. I didn't. All Balls listed a kit but they were just a standard bearing. There are solutions but none are easy or cheap. I replaced the ignition advance mechanism with used parts from ebay. IIRC, they were from an XL125 but looked the same. As mentioned, CMSL has some things too. I could not find an intake manifold so ended up having to machine one.

At 69, I agree that tall bars make things easier on old backs. The TL250 is a heavy beast. I had one and it weighed 250 lbs without gas. It was also a bit short of ground clearance compared to other bikes. It did have a very nice fork. I find that the TY175 is the easiest bike to ride by far. It is maybe 60 or 70 pounds lighter than a TL250, not a whole lot more than a 4rt. It kicks easy, starts easy and turns very tight. Power is slow and very easy to control yet it easily lifts the front wheel to go over things. For a mid 70s 175, It is quite surprising what kind of hills it will go up in 3rd gear. It is not as capable as a modern bike but easier to ride because you are not constantly working the clutch and brakes. Even with modern shocks, its primarly weakness is suspension. When going up a rocky creek bed like they seem to do all of the time in the UK, you feel like a ball in a pin ball machine. But, that may be true of most twin shocks. If you don't do a lot of that, you may really like one. If you are set on a 4 stroke, a Honda Reflex is also much easier to ride than a TL250.