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Dear All, Just successfully registered my Frontera 370. I used Dave Renham at In Motion / Bultaco UK Ltd for a dating certificate, the DVLA were fine about it so he is OK to use. The alternative, the VMCC wanted £120 for their certificate. Regards Paul C

Dear All, Thanks for your input. The ULO box has a set of rechargeable batteries in it. LEDs are voltage sensetive and 6v LEDs have different circuitry with them compared to 12v ones, which can actyually operate from 9v to 32v. LEDs can also work with ac but are best specified to do so. I have an Elextrex twin plug ignition system which i am pretty sure has a 12v ac output, if not i can add a coil to it and then i'll hide their regulator/rectifier in an empty ULO box and then i'm off. interestingly the wiring diagram i have in my drivers handbook doesn#t seem to show the ULO box. Perhaps it was a late addition. Regards Paul C

Dear All, Just getting to the end of my Frontera 370 restoration, after 9 years! i'm about to start on the electrics. does anyone know anything about the box of tricks they used to have under the tank. mine had a ULO EBL 801 which was obviously knackered but it seems they were 6 volt. As i'd actually like to see where i am going i'm planning on going to 12 volts and LEDs front and back. Has anyone done any 12 v conversions on theirs? Paul Cundy sherpa 199b 340, Frontera 370, Range Rover P38, E-type S3 V12 OTS and Noble M12 race car.

Dear Bondy, do a search of the forum and you'll find loads of info. My Frontera had this unit as an upgrade; EBL ULO 801, it is 6V, has a dry cell battery so it dims less at tickover, a regulator to so you don't blow bulbs at high revs and a built in indicator function. buy it here http://www.kreidlerparts.com/scripts/part_detail.asp?id=346 and also google it, you'll find wiring diagrams out there as well. Regards Paul C

There's a wealth of data on these older systems if you search for Femsa or Motoplat; http://www.motelek.net/motoplat/licht/alu_6v19_20_5w.png unfortunately you'll have to translate from the german. On my other PC I have some already searched stuff but here's a starter. Regards Paul C

Dear Poster, This may help but you will need to run through the pages and translate from the german. To get around the blowing bulbs (too much electricity at high revs) and dimming lights when idling fit one of these ULO EBL boxes. They are contemporary and my Frontera had one. It has a small battery to keep the lights bright and a regulator to protect the bulbs, also has a blinker built in. I've seen them advertised on e-bay as well. Should be all you needs in one box. hope it helps. Regards Paul C http://www.herculesig.de/ULO_d.html http://www.kreidlertreff-giessen.de/Ulo%20Box%20801%2000%20Montageanleitung.pdf http://www.kreidlerparts.com/scripts/part_detail.asp?id=346

Yep, I've seen this asserted before but Why? Regards Paul C

Well if it helps - and it probably doesn't, I have a variety of two strokes, chainsaws x 2, earth auger x 1, hedge trimmer x 1, and two Bultaco's. I run them all on the Stihl two stroke oil because its easiest to get for me. The bikes run on 50:1 with little smoke and no obvgious signs of problems. Regards paul C

Dear Both, Thank you very much, very helpfull. I've had replacement stainless steel bushes made up to fit eh new brass bushes but it seems the originals I used as models for the replacements were a bit worn. I'll have to space out the gap with stainless washers. At the moment I have at least 5-10mm of play despite the spindle bveing done up really tight. Regards Paul C

Dear Anyone, I am rebuilding my Frontera 370cc model 215 MK11. Am at the stage of putting the swing arm back in. The swing arm spindle has on it not only the swing arm but also the rear engine mount. I notice that when the rear engine mount is in place on the swing arm spindle there is a space on either side of it; i.e. the rear engine mount can move to the left or the right on the swing arm spindle. Is that right? It seems to me that the back end of the engine ought ot be fixed and not prone to lateral movement no matter how small so have I missed out something when I am putting it all back together? I've noted all the stuff I took of but can't find any spacers or washers. So have I missed out on some spacers so there is no lateral movement of the engine mount? Regards Paukl C

Nice tip! thanks, allways thought about that but never been clever enough to work out how to compensate. Just shows how usefull this forum is. Paul C

As I understand it you watch the strobe move round the flywheel, as the revs rise it will move round until it reaches a maximum advance and then as the revs rise furtehr to flat out it will move back again. you need to adjust the revs so that it is at the peak maximum advance (which will not be flat out) and then set the stator so that the strobe is on the 22' BTDC mark. Then when idling the strobe should be around teh 10' mark. It sounds as if you are pretty close anyway. Regards Paul C

Dear All, OK just spoken to them again and with the wisdom from the replies above and clarity having googled the theory of ignition advance timing here is the answer. The electrex system advances the timing by 12-13' up to approx 3,000 rpm BUT beyond approx 4,000 rpm it then retards it slightly. So the advance curve has a peak. The system is supposed to be set with the strobe indicating spark at 22-23' BTDC at the peak of the advance curve, i.e. about 3,500 rpm. When its set like that the timing will be retarded at idle to about 10' BTDC which makes it easier to start and less likely to break your ankle. So the way to do it is to get it running, watch the advance reach maximum on the strobe as the engine speed increases and then set it to the 22' BTDC with the advance at the peak of the curve. Hope that helps clear it all up. Regards Paul Cundy

Depends, my Sherpa it was only the stator and ignition only. The Frontera kit has a new flywheel as well as the stator and I asked them to put a lighting coil on it as well which they did. Speak to Peter, basically they can build one to your spec. the kits are beautifully machined, finished and packed and mine both arived in days and everything fitted straight out of the box, its just the instructiosn I can't sort out!

Dear Copemec, Thanks, so the electrex unit is set to simulate the static timing when at idle but advances when reved. That's what I will do. I have a TDC dial gauge so yes I can measure that and yes I know where to screw it....... Dear Triple X thanks also, thats exactly what I did when I set the Electrex unit up on my 340 Sherpa, bloody laboriuos and again the instructions didn't really help. Its a steep learning curve, after I'd first done it it ran like a bloody pig and the strobe was all over teh place like saturday night fever, eventually worked out it was due to my having a 6 pole magnet flywheel when the Electrex unit is designed to be triggered by a 4 pole flywheel, try imagining how to work that one out "logically"! Eventually got it set but after I've done the Frontera I'm going to go back and apply the same logic to the Sherpa, set at idle to Electrex degrees BTDC and then allow it to advance beyond when running. It does seem that Electrex would benefit from having someone go through their instructions with a "plain english" hat on. Regards Paul C

Dear All, I'm now at the stage of putting my Frontera back together. I've got one of the Electrex electronic units and am too embarassed to ring them yet again as to how to set up the timing! I have their info sheet but I still can't work it out. The Bultaco manual says static timing should be 2.4-2.6 mm BTDC, that's static timing. The Electrex unit automatically advances above 4,000 rpm. The Electrex sheet says that 2.4mm BTDC equates to 22:30' degrees BTDC on the flywheel and suggests you use a strobe to set the engine (i.e. when running) to this. So engine running set to 2.4 mm BTDC, engine static 2.4mm BTDC. SO where's teh advance gone? DO they mean that you run the engine at 4,000 and when the strobe is indicating 22:30' BTDC that that is the equivalent of a static setting of 2.4 mm BTDC? I suppose it boils down to; is the Electrex unit set with a strobe when idling or when revving above 4,000 rpm? Apologies again if I'm being a bit dim. Regards Paul CUndy

Yep, able to do a side by side and RAL 5015 is just a shade slightly lighter than the blue on my Sherpa 340 which I believe to be original. So for me Bultaco Blue is RAL 5015. Regards Paul C

Dear John, Well that seals it. I have a Sherpa 340 199B as well as my Frontera and the "blues" are the same. Job done, forget "Ford electric blue" and just use RAL 5015. Regards Paul C

Dear All, This is more of an information call than a question. I searched the archive for posts on what RAL number Bultaco Blue is prior to powder coating my frame. I couldn't find any threads with the answer. Dave Rentham described it as Ford Electric Blue but I couldn't find a RAL number for that either. So for what its worth the coater and I agreed to spray it RAL 5015 which is the nearest blue we could see to it on the day. Hope that helps someone in the future. Paul Cundy

Dear All, Well I thought I'd share with you what I've found so far. The case for coating 2 strokes is more difficult than for four strokes because two strokes rely more on their exhaust design for correct running. In Canada high performance ski mobiles tend to be coated and expect to see a 1-2% power increase, they claim better response as well. However they may be benefitting from the protection from their extreme envoirenment? Overall there doesn't seem to be any immediate barn door power benefit nor any loss. You can also ceramic coat the piston head and combustion chambers but this leads to a degredation in power at the top end, too much heat is retained in the chamber and this reduces power. Everyone agrees that reduced heat radiation from exhausts helps. So I'll probably do it and let you know what happens. Regards Paul C

Dear Experts, I'm in the process of restoring a Frontera Mk11 370. I have also done a bit of car racing where ceramic coating of exhausts is done quite frequently. Its said to increase exhaust extraction but the main benefit is reducing under bonnet heat accumulation. Having burnt my inner thigh on my sherpa recently I am wondering whether to get the Frontera exahust ceramic coated. Is this often done on a two stroke? Is it beneficial? Has anyone got experience of doing it? Any thoughts welcome. Regards Paul Cundy

I've just fitted the Electrex unit to my 340 plus a mikuni carb from Bultaco UK. Brilliant, starts first or second kick every time. To find out the timing why not slip the plug turn the flywheel and note when it sparks, then compare with TDC position. I used a free internet calculator to convert 'BTDC to a circumfrential distance on the flywheel which I then marked with an indelible pen. Start it up with a strobe and bobs the danglies. Paul Cundy

Dear Stuckinthemud, Many thanks. I did in fact look over that web site but obviously didn't look hard enough. A very usefull manual which as you say has it all in black and white. Incidentaly I also made contact with the D.O.T and they were very helpfull with an advice sheet but it didn't have the crucial "how to examine" and "why they fail" columns that this web site has. Its now very clear. No lights needed. No reflector needed. Horn must be capable of continous tone Regards Paul C

Dear Woody Many thanks indeed. I shall search out my local MOT station. Regards Paul C

Dear Jim, Indeed 'tis me. Who are you and how do you know me? Hoping your second assertion is correct. Regards Paul C