Its often easier to fix up a dirtbike than it is to learn to ride well off road on one that you can't easily touch the floor with both feet. Its almost certainly more fun too.
i follow this bunch. it's amazing what they can do with these bikes, almost as much as you can with a trials bike (3) Zona Enduro | Facebook
So.... I got to see the Gas Gas but wasn't impressed by the seller tbh. The guy wasn't there when I arrived at the unmarked industrial unit, and his assistant wasn't much assistance as he knew nothing about the bike, so me, my boy and the hound went off to get a bite to eat. Came back an hour later to deal with the head honcho, who in WhatsApp messages a few days ago had assured me the bike was "all there" and had gone through a 100 point check, yet he didn't even know how to turn the lights on or how to get the speedo to work (NB: in the same WhatsApp messaging he'd told me the bike didn't have a speedo!). I even had to tell him when the MOT was due to expire. Plus, I couldn't test ride it as he said he didn't have insurance. He had obviously barely looked at the bike since he got it, he said, from another dealer who had taken it in as a PX and moved it on. Also needs a new rear tyre, the chain isn't in great nick and there's that fault with the speedo. Thankfully it wasn't a totally wasted journey as it gave me chance to try out the seat height (not bad - I could get the balls of my feet down but I wouldn't want to go any higher) plus I'd combined it with collecting the aforementioned boy from Uni en route. Unfortunately I didn't get to see the Husqy as by that time I was running late due to the delay, and the seller needed to go to bed after working a 16 hour shift in a hospital. I wasn't that bothered tbh due to the seat height issue. Re: Seat height. I would have preferred the GG to be an inch lower and according to the internet the Husqy is 1.5” taller, so if I get the Husqy I’d want to take 2.5” out of it. How feasible is that? I presume you can shave the seat but probably not by that amount and so some would need to come out of the suspension. Would that compromise ground clearance too much? I was looking on the Bay of E earlier and was contemplating getting a late 70s/early 80s Yamaha DT250 as they have a nice low seat height and my first ever bike was a DT125, so it would be a bit of a mid-life crisis nostalgia trip. But I realised it would probably turn out to be utterly awful as the 1976 model I owned in 1987 was an absolute nail even then, so God only knows what state these bikes would be in after a further 30 years of abuse
The dealer sounds more like a clueless bloke that buys and sells without any real idea. Luckily for him you have taught him about the light switches! The nostalgia route? An old blue smoke can be a fun project. I immediately replaced the wiring loom, and fully rebuilt the top end of the engine to eliminate the reliability issues -about £300 plus my time. Sprockets, chain & brake shoes £130, all cables £20. The rest is just cosmetics so the cost is dependant on how far you want to go.
You are giving me food for thought now, as a vintage bike also probably avoids a fair bit of the “all the gear and no idea” issues that will no doubt crop up when I rock up in the woods dressed like a Jackson Pollock painting on a machine emblazoned with day glo GoPro and Red Bull stickers which I can’t ride for toffee. I’ll also look like less of a hooligan when I ride it locally because every time we have boys on crossers passing through, the village WhatsApp group lights up with messages from all the Karens for miles around calling for plod to rain down fire and fury upon their chavvy heads So maybe an old style bike for me and a modern style 125 for my boy, then once I’ve got the hang of it I’ll get something more funky for myself
Not trying to be funny Jez, but your not going to take that off-road are you ? Can't see that being thrashed and crashed in some woods or on a track somewhere.
If you get a project bike, my advice would be to get one which does run even if its a bit beat up and complete with all parts in place . Fixing these bikes is mostly a "take of broken part and replace with new" no real tuning apart from the carb. Having the old broken part shows you what you need. Everything you replace is 30 years old so probably needed doing anyway. These guys have most parts, but they are not always the cheapest. Their service is quick though. https://www.cmsnl.com/ They do have all the parts schematics though so you can look up and see exactly how it fits together and the parts numbers you need.
Yes that why I bought it. I plan to ride it green laning rather than on Moto X tracks. Roll on springtime.
lowering kits are easily available Zed. at 6ft. my 2008 CRF seems a tad high for what im using it for. fine on the road, the forest and the track when it reopens. but we do a few slower trialy bits where it is deffo off putting
If I got a twin shock I definitely wouldn’t want a project as I’ve already got two unfinished ones on the go at the moment. I don’t want something like an OCD nut and bolt restoration either because apart from the prices people ask, I’d be worried about wrecking it. I’d be happy with something a little scruffy but which is immediately usable. Unfortunately though, a quick shufty on eBay suggests that they’re either old jalopies that need a ground up strip and rebuild, or they’re imports which don’t have uk papers, or they’re concours £10k labours of love.
I'd keep looking, it took me a while to find one too. There will be a whole bunch of them appear in March when the sellers know there is demand.
I think I might have to shelve that idea as I want something immediately to use over the Xmas hols and the rest of the winter.
I think you're probably right! Though set an alert on eBay, within 30 miles -one just might appear? Once CV19 is resolved these guys might be worth a look? https://www.trf.org.uk/where-to-ride/
I’m short in leg so got a low seat on my husky -te310- it makes a reasonable difference compared to the standard seat. Assume most manufacturers have them available? One of my mates is a proper short arse and rebuilt a 300cc 2 stroke gas gas including low seat and lowered suspension. He had no problems finding parts back then. From memory I think there were a reasonable amount were interchangeable between the years. But don’t necessarily take my word for it! Btw nice 2013 4t husky on eBay -£ 500 more than one of the others you were looking at and comes with a few used and what appears to be some new spares.... https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Husqvarn...-/124478346272?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292
It looks great but I’ve set my heart on a 2 stroke. Even more so after hearing the music and breathing in the sweet scent of the GG yesterday I’m just about to open discussions with a guy selling a very keenly priced bike that I won’t reveal at the mo in case any anonymous lurkers shark in. The auction info is well-written and very detailed (as opposed to the usual 3 lines of incoherent text speak) which sets out the huge amount of maintenance and work (including recent rebuild) he’s done. GTG. He’s just WhatsApped me...
i would still sit yer ass on 250cc 4st. the power difference and delivery between the DR and CRF is incredible.
Right. I was semi-tiptoe/balls of feet on the GG but according to the internet this model bike is 0.5” higher so I will need to lower it. Aside from shaping or replacing the seat pad, what is involved, particularly with the rear of the bike. The bike is a great price and the seller seems sound but I don’t want to buy something that is going to sap my confidence when I try to ride it or which will sit in the workshop for weeks while I try to find the time to buy and replace the shock linkage or whatever. Nor for that matter do I want to mess with the geometry so much that handling is adversely affected. If the answer depends on what make/model then I’m happy to PM. Thanks.
I’ll recommend a day spent here for you and your lad. https://www.trials-school.co.uk/ These have a low seat height for a green liner/enduro bike https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Gas-Gas-...883092?hash=item2f4e76fa54:g:JwIAAOSwsI1frqlq
The trials school looks great and I definitely will do something like that but there are no dates on the website and all the others I’ve looked at have closed now until March. I’ve sent an email to ask. That Pampera is in my watch list already
