anyone into trails bikes? - of the motor kind

[Andy R]

Andy. I know where you are coming from, but of course trail bikes can be very capable machines, but there is a certain prejudice about them amongst the biking fraternity due to all the posers buying them after all the Luke Skywalker and the other chap who used to do something else hype.

They tend to be bloated, but you can fettle them out of most of that. They are great long haul machines.

Ah yes, but you're talking about the GS series Beemers, which is what I would have if I ever wanted to do any long distance touring. I'd never choose something like that for riding real off-road stuff, apart from fast fire roads, though - they'd spit me off into the dirt and trample me to a pulp (although there is a guy round here who rides a BMW HP2 Enduro, but 375lbs for a dirt bike? C'mon... :roll: )

No, I was thinking more of the 125cc Honda/Yamaha enduro look-alike bikes that neither handle well enough, are light enough for their capacity or have enough guts to be useful off-road tools.
For my kind of trail riding (both here and in Greece) I'd choose a trials bike over anything else, but then although I've owned enduro bikes I'm more of a trials man at heart I suppose.

 

[Grannygrinder]

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My personal favourite is the Honda CRM 250, what a hoot

 

[highlandsflyer]

I have had a few of the BMWs over the years, I keep the Funduro because it is a fantastic all round bike. It is a carb model so everything on it is easily worked on, you can strip it and rebuild it in a day.

It is a very capable bike for just about anything you can walk through. Doesn't like to go over bumps though.

You would never use a bike like this from a vehicle or if you live on the trails, but if you want to go for a three hundred mile burn and pop up a few forest trails or down the odd beach it is fine.

Happy to sit at seventy on the way home too, and can go round corners at speed, so it is not really comparable to a 'proper' trail bike.

Anyway, I just spent half an hour spinning around in the snow in a car park on a very unlikely bike, and had plenty of fun. Long wheel base, low centre of gravity and very low seat + snow and tarmac + wide space = FUN!

 

[sgw]

I haven't done any real trials riding for many years. Without entering competitions or having access to private land to ride on it has become increasingly difficult to find good places to ride.

If I were to consider doing it now I would be looking out for a late 60's one. Even they would offer performance way in excess of most amatures ability. When the "modern" era started with the emergence of Bultaco as the dominant manufacturer, old British trial bikes became available at affordable prices. Although top end exotica with magnesium components and factory tuned engines were always expensive Anzani, Cotton, Graves Fanny Barnett, Villiers and loads of others could be found for peanuts.

I expect that they have all become too precious by now though. Worth too much as collectors items to be used as intended. You could probably still get a decent Bantam or Tiger Cub for a reasonable price though.

 

[kaiser]

Fanny Barnett really?

 

[Andy R]

I expect that they have all become too precious by now though. Worth too much as collectors items to be used as intended. You could probably still get a decent Bantam or Tiger Cub for a reasonable price though.

I don't know - there are some "heavily breathed on" Bantams and Tiger Cubs ridden in classic trials and I don't think that even a rough one would be that cheap now.

A Puch engined 175cc Greeves Pathfinder would be a nice find though, very advanced for their day (6 speed box) and they were a good T&O trials bike as they could fly cross-country. I wish I still had mine anyway....

 

[sgw]

I don't know - there are some "heavily breathed on" Bantams and Tiger Cubs ridden in classic trials and I don't think that even a rough one would be that cheap now.

I admit that I am way out of touch with classic bike prices. My last bike was a mint, original 1965 Triumph T120 that I paid £375 for, ran for 10 years and sold for £1000! Wonder what that would be worth now?

 

[mikee]

i had a miller honda tl 180 ,hi-boy frame ,weighted fly wheel hilman imp
piston , great little bike ,swapped it for an it 465 ,big mistake
i currently have a 67 247 cota languishing in another garage and an old
cubby ,might dig one of them out sometime if this 2stroke mojo keeps
growing

 

[Andy R]

i had a miller honda tl 180 ,hi-boy frame ,weighted fly wheel hilman imp
piston , great little bike ,swapped it for an it 465 ,big mistake

Yes, I had one of those too - first re-sleeved to 180cc (with a CB750 piston) and then stroked to 230cc, with an XL 125 head and carb.
Like you, I added flywheel weight plus an external oil cooler.
Air forks too

 

[mikee]

that would have been a grunty wee beast andy

a mate of mine had a tlr 250 ,HRC built thing gorgeous but
had a plated bore which caused no end of bother so he got it sleeved
by some french bloke ,no sure what piston was in it but it made a hell
of a difference , now where's that montesa ?