dan

Sorry... for some reason I didn't get email updates from this topic and missed the replies for a week or so. Must have forgotten to check the box I guess. Thanks for all the advice. Was meaning to give this a go over the weekend and show you the results but my local paint mixer was closed and Halfords plastic primer all states "for non-flexible plastics". I don't think trials mudguards count as that, especially not when connected to my bike! As for why I'm painting it and not buying... well largely because as far as I'm aware you can't get Gas Gas front mudguards in black. It's also quite nice to have a bit more of a hand in personalising your bike than just shelling out cash for new bits

You may find some clubs will be picky about open ended grips as they leave the handlebars quite exposed which can be dangerous in a crash. Grab some bar ends or some closed end grips and you'll be fine.

I'm looking to paint my front mudguard soon. I know I need to use the right sort of paint in order for it not to peel and crack at the first sight of a pressure washer or when I bend my mudguard during a crash, but I don't know what sort of paint that is. Can anyone recommend me a suitable paint for this application? I'd also appreciate any advice you can give that will help ensure a lasting finish.

As far as I'm aware the only 'realistic' trials game (as opposed to the fun but cartoon like ones available online) that's been produced is MotoRacer 3 (only available for Windows PCs as far as I'm aware). I've got a copy of this and it's actually quite good, if a little frustrating. All indoors unfortunately, but fun for the occasional play. I'd love to hear of any other games that I've not come across, but I'm not sure they exist.

Indeed. What exactly would be the point of enforcing a move to 4 stroke only if 2 strokes are able to comply with emissions regs? As far as I'm aware emissions was the only reason for moving to 4 stroke in the first place, so surely it's more sensible to implement blanket emission limits regardless of engine type. If there are other limits that it's felt are needed (noise perhaps?) then these should also be implemented across the board, without restricting what bike can be entered as long as it complies with the limits. As far as I can see the 4 stroke only thing was/is a bit of an arbitrary imposition that doesn't really make much sense to me.

Phwoar! I like that. Any idea where the front mudguard and light came from? The mudguard doesn't look like it's just been painted, and the light looks a lot smaller than standard, more like the Jitsie Carbon light (maybe it is that, it doesn't look like cf though). Shame about the green top yoke though... looks really out of place. edit Just re-read your post. Do you mean the mudguard may be available soon as well as the front pipe?

Wow, you have such a way with words. I really don't think abuse and threats (with serious intentions or not) are appropriate. If you're not able to debate your point without resorting to such things then it's clear how much weight your argument carries!

Haha! Sorry if it comes across like that... I guess I'm probably quite keen to talk about it, and it's one of the few things I feel like I can talk about competently. Didn't think I'd read like that though! I'll watch what I say from now on

I guess it may depend upon the year and set-up. I've only ridden one Pro 200 which is an '04 with a flywheel weight added and that thing can still pick up very quickly. It never feels like too much power, but it does feel (and sound) quite racy, so I assume without the flywheel weight it would be a bit of an animal. Compared to an earlier (as in not 2007) 250 I imagine it would be softer as they were equally racey bikes, but I still wouldn't consider them soft in their own right. As I said, it may differ for different years and set-ups though, my experience of the little bikes is a bit limited.

It's a diary and not just about Trials, but you could pick up a Motorcycle Diary from here? Lots of excellent biking pictures included.

The 200 is anything but smooth power (assumably the same for the 125 as well). In order to compensate for the smaller displacement these bikes really rev and can be quite a handful! Although they are very fun to ride, they can inspire a 'flat out attack' style of riding that may not best suit you. If you want something smooth you're probably best looking at a softened 250 - this will normally involve fitting a flywheel weight, carb spacer and a possibly a few other mods in order to smooth out the power delivery (many of the pro models are set up for use on the dry Spanish rocks so pick up pretty quickly). Although a 2007 250 will offer relatively smooth power from stock this will be a little out of your price range. I'm not sure what the 300s are like, I think some models are quite soft in delivery, but they definitely pull like crazy, so may be a little too much power really. Depending on how smooth you mean by smooth it might be worth considering a different make of bike, rapid power delivery is pretty much an inbuilt characteristic of Gassers and while this can be smoothed out they're always going to be quite 'poppy' engines, it's just the way the bikes are designed and the way most of us like them. From my experience non-racing model Scorpa SY250s offer very smooth power, but it could also be worth looking at 4 strokes (Scorpa or otherwise) as they should be smoother than any 2 stroke available.

Looking really nice. You want to look into getting some gold clutch and engine casing bolts as well - I've swapped out the ones on my '07 gasser for gold and for a relatively small outlay (less than a tenner) it makes the whole bike look a lot nicer. It's all in the detail! You can see some pictures of my bike over here: http://delusional.org.uk/gallery/07gasgas Unfortunately you can't make out the bolts too well in most of the pictures (rubbish camera), but I think you can get an idea of how they look in the first picture. Get over to http://www.hyperbolt.com, I had a really pleasant experience buying from them (and they're half the price of other similar sites I came across). That's really nice! Super special looking bike that is.

Student. I'm studying English with Creative Writing down here in Cornwall (I know, I was surprised I could do a degree down here as well). I've not always been a bum though, I used to work in Software Development for a fairly reputable firm in Soho.

Hmm, my apologies. It seems that a lot of the things I had in mind were actually formed by the Liberal Party earlier in the 20th century. Although the NHS was the early Labour Party. I should probably spend more time checking my facts when I post, but for minor points like the one above I often don't bother. The 'good things' I had in mind can generally be covered under the umbrella of the welfare state (welfare payments, NHS, etc), although I'm also of the opinion that a lot of the post-war nationalisation was a good thing - particularly so today when I dislike seeing public services in the hands of private, profit driven, corporations.

"What did the Romans ever do for us?"