240 Shock Springs Plus Backup Bike Question

[htrdoug]

While refilling the stock Marzocchi shocks on my 240 I put a spring into my press with a bathroom scale and compressed it 4 inches,I was surprised in only showed 200lbs on the scale,I woulda thought with the forward mounted shocks on 240's the spring rate would've been higher(They do have 1.5 inches of preload in the softest position) I figure them to be 50lbs/in springs,which is the rate I see offered for standard vintage style shocks mounted in the standard vintage position.Just interesting to me I guess(my first trials bike,learning as I go!)Awhile back I spoke with Lewisport about the Rockshocks,Adrian didn't have Fantic setup info at the time,told him I'd measure my spring rate when I gotta chance.

BTW,I don't think my shocks were leaking at the shaft,shafts look great,I believe it was from the o-ring on the outside of the sealhead,tightened the eff outa the nuts,we'll see if they'll keep the oil on the inside now(if they make it through one more year end trial event that'd be great)

Also I'm trying to decide if I should buy a backup vintage bike or get a somewhat modern second bike,would practicing on a modern trials bike pick up my skills quicker? I seem to wear down from the heavy clutch and brake action of the Fantic rather than the actual riding of the bike,If I could work on my balance and technique on a modern I think when I got back on the 240 I could adapt quickly.But I also have a line on a KT250,way cheap,I haven't went to see it yet,I intend on riding vintage class at Trials Inc.events next year and a backup vintage bike might prevent me from missing events god forbid my Fantic goes down for any reason(Fantic is likely more reliable than a junk kawasaki,but it'd be nice to have a backup when traveling to events)

[htrdoug]

Just pulled my carb off and checked the jetting,44 pilot jet 268needle jet,50 slide 80 main jet! this thing is way fat just off Idle,I can make it go lean with the mixture screw but it still blubbers as soon as I crack the throttle open,no wonder she cleans out on top though!

Screw it,ordered OKO from ClassicTrial,hope he ships out quick,gotta trial next weekend,and now that I know it's got that 80 main jet it'll bug the crap outta me even though I've been riding it for months like that.

[axulsuv]

So did it work ? And did you have fun riding ?

Glenn

[htrdoug]

Yep,Ryan Young loaned me a 60 slide to use and with your 98 main she ran much better,just a little burble at tip-in,but much cleaner and more blatt from 1/4 throttle on up,can't wait until the oko gets here.If I were keeping the Dellorto I'd go to a 42 pilot and possible drill out the Idle air bleed(If that applies to Dellortos )

Weather was GREAT! and Newark,Ohio is a wonderful venue,I rode pretty poorly on my first loop but with some turning tips from Jim Zuroske I did much better the remainder of the day,I really need to warm up a bit rather than just riding the loop cold,but I was messing with the carb rather than inspecting the sections in the morning.

So did it work ? And did you have fun riding ?

Glenn

[htrdoug]

My "New Yuppie Fashion Trend" just arrived from Classictrial,I'll be waiting until later this week to install it,hopefully will get a spin on it next weekend while the memory of the last tuning of the Dellorto is fresh in my mind.(Gave the 60 slide back to Ryan right after the trial)