veggiedog

Funny, I too have both an SY250 (2004) and a TL125 (1974). The Scorpa head rake is 5 deg steeper than the Honda. I calculated that pulling the bottom of the steering neck on the Honda back 0.7 inches will result in the rake matching the SY250, and that translates to about 5" raise at the rear axle to have a similar effect on steering geometry, so I went into the drive, perched the Honda's rear wheel on a 5" rock (handily stuck in the middle of my drive for trials practicing), and I balanced out. Very intuitive feel for balancing the bike, similar to Scorpa. I feel very compelled to pull the bottom of the steering neck back on the Honda. I plan on upgrading the rear shocks, if I go longer, or I raise the rear of the bike by relocating the bottom shock mount higher (welded tab), I can pull the neck back a little less so that the end result is still similar to the Scorpa's rake. Will I still be able to compete vintage? If I update the front forks with dampening cartridges (I have a lathe and CNC mill), will that violate the spirit of vintage competition?

Uh, I know this is an old thread, but I felt compelled to comment since I am looking to quieten up my 2004 Rev3 a bit. All the larger Betas that I have heard (maybe 5 - 10) 'pop pop' every second or so. The pop is so significant that it will produce little dust clouds behind the bike on every pop as the exhaust stream hits the ground on a dusty trail. The 280s are louder than the 250s, and the 125s don't seem to pop much at all. I cut my beta muffler in half and had a look. I welded up the inlet pipe seam (from the factory it is not air tight) to make sure no air was getting into the muffler, and I welded the muffler back together. I repacked the pipe, and all to no avail. I am confident it has something to do with the motor/exhaust design rather than a maintenance issue. My Scorpa 250 is hush quite compared to my Beta Rev3 250. I would love to see the inside of the scorpa muffler to see if I can make a change to the beta muffler to eliminate the 'pop pop' but I am unwilling to cut open my fully functional scorpa muffler, and I am not confident it will make any difference as I suspect this may be an engine design issue. I don't believe it is a rich fuel problem as most rich fuel problems will not result in exhaust popping unless outside air makes it into the exhaust through a leak of some sort: it requires fresh air to ignite the unburned fuel inside the exhaust system. Additionally, the exhaust does not smell of unburned fuel, nor does the spark plug indicate that the engine is running rich. Has anyone else had any success quietening up a Beta Rev3. And please, don't tell me your Beta Rev3 is quiet, I know better: they make a very distinctive 'pop pop' unlike the smooth sound of a GasGas or Sherco, or my Scorpa's yamaha motor.

One of the local guys here in Austin TX sent me photos of his shifter, and I'm now off to making a new shift lever tip on my mill. Thanks anyhow!!!

I lost the end of my shift lever this weekend. I can make a new one, but I was hoping to get a photo of the original since I can't remember what it looked like. I just need a closeup of the spring loaded tip: anyone with a digital camera and a Scorpa SY250??? P.S. I keep shoving my lever into my magneto cover, and I have already beat the cover back into shape and TIG welded it closed, but I often consider milling a two piece cover from billet on my CNC mill. I could mill a 2 piece cover with a simple flat outer piece made from 1/4" flat aluminum (with a small 'bump' for the crankcase nut), and the remainder of the cover milled from from a thick (1 1/2") chunk of billet to make replacing the damaged outer part easier (think derby cover if you know harleys), and I might be more motivated if there were several people interested in purchasing such a piece. Probably not initially very cheap, but cheap to repair (I would attempt to make the outer cover something anyone could make with a drill press). I could make the 'bump' for the crank screw into the outer cover so that it could be reused on a replacement cover: later, after damaging the new outer cover, the owner would simple need to cut a new outer cover from 1/4" flat stock, drill out the mounting holes, drill out the center hole for the crank nut and tap it, then screw in the nut cover and bolt on the replacement.