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Montesa 4rt


Robert n
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From my post in 2017

 

Took the plunge and just got myself a 300rr (Thanks to Thunderroad for giving me support towards this)

Having ridden Montesa for just under 20 unbroken years ( ignoring my menage a trois with the Honda tlr 200) the 4rt has been my weapon of choice for nearly 10 years. and the 300rr is my 4th 4rt having had an ex Sandiford 2005, a 2008 tricked bike and a late  2015 std 260 off the late great Munch.

These bikes have taken me to a 7th SSDT finish, a couple of Scott attempts, several top 3 clubman finishes in some of S3 events, a welsh O40 championship and recently securing this years ACU Normandale Masters over 50 championship.

The above is just just trying to get my background and experience across.

I deliberately have stayed away from trying the latest 2 strokes as I find the Honda experience enjoyable but appreciate a fancy lightweight 2 stroke may or not make be a better rider but may also reduce my trials riding enjoyment.

(my recent 260 had a S3 pipe and Ohlins shock- it has had a PTB with my own map on it a times)

So to the 300rr - I had not tried one before so when I picked it up from dealer yesterday it was my first experience. On initial start up the bike feels and sound soft and deep on tick over - this is a good hint as to what is to come.

Today had a good few hours on the bike  -mainly steams and rocks and on a venue I know well on  previous bikes.

Initial feel  - not forgetting bike is brand new - and rocks seem twice the size waiting to scratch it  the 300rr feels like a nice , new soft version of the 260.

However as the bike loosened up a bit and my fear of scratching it came second to the enjoyment of riding the bike my opinion of the bike started to solidify - as a single statement  - if you are a 4rt fan its like having your favourite meal cooked by a top chef. Its the same but somehow much better .

For some reason the bike feels smaller - When I switched I found the 260 front end much lighter than the 2008. The RR feels very similar but even easier to move about (riders with Showa forks moving to a 300rr may see a bigger deference)  The front wheel does not push out as much as previous. I had 2017 footrest hangers on my 260 but the riding position seems better again.

The clutch seems superb - not sure if a change or just that its new but this along with the softer, greater grunt at the bottom of the power range makes the bike super stable on turns - especially turning into the rocky - slippery stream today -  definitely best 4rt I have ridden in this respect.

Travelling up streams the bikes does what it does best - grips and tracks well over rocks -  the softer more torgue motor really helps and allows you to ride just off the throttle -something all Monts love.

Both front and rear suspension is nice - maybe a little stiff to start with but as the day went on the bike became lighter and more responsive on the suspension but never lost its super stable feel.    

Trying the bike on some banks and turns again the extra torque allows the throttle to be backed off halfway up a bank and use the grunt to maintain grip - a plus over the 260. Both soft and quicker maps work in this situation.

The quicker map I found suited me better and similar to the Sains map but could maybe get you in to trouble if a big handful of throttle grabbed at the wrong time. The softer map caught me out once when coming out of a stream up a bank - I found I didn't have the necessary zip to carry me over a slimy slab at the top of the bank. With the quicker map the bike sailed over.    

Didn't get chance to try any big climbs but on a reasonable incline the power is smooth, controllable and non stopping. The front wheel could be picked up and carried to your hearts content  - all very controllable..

Never felt the bike was dragging me around - something i did find when my 2008 had a 280cc kit on. The front pipe is 30mm  dia and  looks a little longer - So to the 300rr -definitely all helps with that super steady bottom end.

Finished off by practising my stop allowed skills and placing the font end on the stream banks and lifting back in. I had done this exercise on the 260 recently - the 300rr felts so much more stable and balance. Think the bottom end torque, better clutch and lighter front end combined to make this much improved on the RR.

The standard shorter rear brake pedal works well with the set back footrests  - those on std 4rts will be digging out the Honda pat number .

Will advise more as and when I glean anything more from my new mount

 

Part 2

went to observer at an easy trial run by my club today. Got a  chance to play on some muddy banks and cambers at the end when sections had cut up the most.

On a couple of section around trees cambers and climbs etc the bike riders like the 260 - a little more planted and stable but grips well when riding like a normal 4rt. The softer power at the bottom end helps with the slow stuff.

One section which appears to have been one of the hardest had some deep mud and climbs and cambers and was well snotty when I got to it at the end of the trial.

The 300 was fine on this going in 2nd and 3rd but also in 4th - previous 4rts have always struggled pulling 4th unless big climbs or very deep fast bogs. The RR can be ridden in 4th almost as easily as you can ride in 3rd. 4th can be ridden of the throttle from low speed and also hang off the back across the cambers having rolled the throttle off - not sure if this is the clutch, the torque of the motor , revised internal gearing but definitely something new for the 4rt tool box.

In the mud I still favoured the full power map as I like to get the bike wound up and digging in for grip - some smoother riders may prefer the softer map. With the PTB you can always add any map that suits your style.

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