Flatslides on Twinshocks

[Tee-Why]

Must be real hard to find a decent twin shock trials bike in the UK these days, maybe they are all bastardized, when you now can take the trouble of bastardizing a perfectly good mono?

[FM350]

Yes it is relatively difficult to find a competitive TS bike in the UK currently.........demand seems to be quite high for the more popular bikes, and I have heard of buyers parting with up to £3k for tarted up Ebay wrecks!

As to converted monoshock machines, it seems strange that there is so much concern about these, but no worries about modern day brand new Brit powered twin-shocks being ridden in the "P65" class?

Converted monoshock bikes are no more competitive than a well built original Fantic, mainly due to having had the monoshock suspension removed.

On the other hand the modern day take on "P65" is a world away from anything remotely related to original machinery, which makes it hard to understand why there is so little comment about how unfair it is to allow these to compete in the "P65" class?

[Jon V8]

Must be real hard to find a decent twin shock trials bike in the UK these days, maybe they are all bastardized, when you now can take the trouble of bastardizing a perfectly good mono?

No, its not a problem at all,two weeks ago I was offered a fresh 200 Fantic for £1850,very smart bike.You dont need anything more than that for TS stuff here,yes you can pay more,but you dont have to,there was also a reportedly tidy TLR200 going for £1500 a few weeks ago.Putting two shocks on a Yam mono is a dreadful waste in my opinion,when there are classes just for them.

[Guy53]

As I said on another site, it look light and nimble I sure would like to test ride the thing ( being such a bad rider maybe I would not see any difference between my TY TS and that monotwin ). But I would realy realy like a test ride.

Guy

[Joe Henderson]

Cor, Blimey,

I wish I hadn't stirred the nest!

All I wanted to do was thank the Denman Club for a great decision and we get all sorts climbing out of the woodwork to scratch their favourite itches!

Talking about scratching itches - Gary, you may need a wide angle lens and I trust a camera is all you will have in your hand at Denman.

There seem to be a plethora of unmolested twinshocks in Aus. Maybe the poor deprived in the UK with their fragile and unstable English Pounds should start thinking about buying them.

A few years ago I was given $1800.00 for a very rough mark one two door ford escort by an Irishman who stripped it to the bare shell on my driveway which he loaded into a container and shipped back to his brother in Eire to buid a rally replica from.

Much oil and various parts left outside the front roller door on Monday morning.

If things are really as bad in Britain, supply wise, a holiday in Aus this summer ( November - February) looks good. Bring your cash and shipping container to the Denman Club and Pacific Park.

I suspect that in reality, there are plenty of twinshock lying about in various British sheds from Land's end to John O Groats, but people think they are now worth a fortune when really they are mostly horrid old nails that are terrible now, but seemed brilliant then.

Just like the M151 325 I bought new from Sammy Miller in 1975 which was great at first then deteriorated rapidly until, after getting no joy from Sam, I could stand it no more and gave it away before my confidence completely dissapeared. (I bought an Ossa instead, which was a revelation and allowed me to finally leave the ranks of intermediate.)

With rosy tinted spectacles I now have a slightly misty-eyed recollection of the Bultaco that tells me it wasn't so bad after all. Then I have a quick ride on the 151 I bought and fixed a few years ago in a flurry of nostalgia and reality comes rushing back.

As Dave Thorpe said when I quizzed him on how he was getting on with his identical model at the Hoad trophies " Won't plonk - won't go up hills - wont rev - get shot of it quick boy! "

Old bikes - I love them!

Old arguments about twin shock rights and wrongs - I can't stand them!

Skin tight spandex riding suits - I love them in the right places - and that is not up the crack of my arse!

Regards,

Joe Henderson.

[Jon V8]

Isnt it odd how FM350's bold statements about the dire state of classic trials gets taken as gospel ? The truth is as I've said before,classic trials is going very well here in the UK.You only need look in the results in TMX each week to see how much is going on,or surf around the intraweb to see how many places there are selling bikes or parts for them.The last trial I ran two weeks ago had an entry of 91 riders,the previous one 86,with riders often travelling long distances,(For the UK anyway) to come and ride.I notice the entry list for the Dartmoor is full at 120 for this September.
Look around on Ebay or Wobbly Wills site and you will find allsorts for sale,ask at a club trial and you will get offered bikes,I brought back a 1970 MK2 247 Cota from our last trial,complete apart from tank/seat unit and muguards for £350.Poured some fuel down the carb and it fired up first kick.I would not call that expensive.
People outside the world of classic trials often see all my bikes in my workshop when they bring in their Land Rovers for repair and mention that they have an old Bultaco or Fantic,etc at home.I always ask if they ever do anything with them or if they want to sell them,99% of the time they smile and say no,they want to keep them and maybe get them going again one day,not interested in money,rather have the bike and the memory of the fun they had on them.
As for our dear English pounds being shaky - my only comment is,I'm glad we didnt join the Euro.I think other countries around us have more to worry about than we do.

[Clive.Agi Halls]

Gee I was pleased when I saw the regs for Denman regarding carbies. Have just spent lots of admittedly fun time setting up my OKO on the Fanny 200. Now it runs sweet but it still won't stop me running over markers, missing splitters, dabbing in ridiculous places,crashing over logs etc etc etc. It is nice to have the engine idling, reving out, & all that but in the end I make all the mistakes not the bike.So stop making life hard, keep the rules as simple as possible.Just want to turn up & ride till I drop then go pit race round the camp fire with a beer. These old bikes are so much fun they should be illegal. Looking forward to Denman, catch you all there.

[FM350]

Trouble with TS/P65 trials here in the UK is that there are no sensible rules or classes whatever, and this leads to the ridiculous situation where a Brit twinshock costing £10K + is allowed to run in the "P65" class, and someone with a M10 Bultaco in original condition has to ride it against highly modified Fantic's fitted with reed valve motors!

With proper rules and sensible classes (as used in most of the rest of Europe, and the US) then I would think classic competition here would attract a great deal more interest, and the costs of competing could be substantially reduced. Sadly though change is not likely to happen here, due mainly to the very vocal minority who seem to think everything is perfectly OK, and there is no need to make any sort of changes for the better.

[Clive.Agi Halls]

Yes I have to agree some rules are called for but the bare minimum would suffice.

[FM350]

I think a class which allowed any bike fitted with 2x rear shocks, drum brakes and air cooled motor, would be a very good start. This obviously wouldnt appeal to those who feel that a modified TS isnt in the "spirit", but would certainly make the sport a lot more accessible, and mean there would be no room for pointless argument.