New member with TDS

[dreverl]

Hi All,

I thought I better say hello...

After adding the 9th classic bike to my garage, I've finally got a trials bike, its time to get muddy.

I've just bought a '61 trials 'beast' and I'm sorting a few things out with it so I can start trialing. I've had a look around the forum and it's got a huge amount of info on it, it's just finding it. I've been chatting to Brian Thompson and found out that my wheel offset is wrong so I'm trying to fix that now.

I do have some questions and I'd be surprised if they haven't been covered in this forum but can't seem to find them. Can anyone point me in the direction of threads relating to:

- Why does my rear chain rub on the swing arm area? Is this wrong or should I have a guide of some sort?

- Assuming I'd like to keep the original front forks (the straight ones before the 'bananas'), how do I make sure I've got them working as well as they can?

- What rear shocks do people recommend?

I know some of these questions are personal preference but at the moment I know nothing about this so I'm open to read about it.

Assuming I sort all this out, I might see you at a trial soon.

Cheers
Andrew

[scott151]

Tds

Hi Andrew,

Welcome aboard....

The chain rubbing on the swingarm could be due to 1 or 3 things..

1, incorrect rear sprocket, ie to small, causing the chain to run lower to the swingarm.

2, rear units to long, thus pushing the swingarm down causing the chain to rub.

3, front sprocket to small, same again..

It's probably a mixture of all three

As to rear units, lots of good ones around, i would personally not recommend going over 13" due to above, also they look odd with the back end jacked up.. Originally they had 12" units.. Njb shocks are about the cheapest available but not the best, I'd recommend falcons as they can make them any length you want and they look period.. I'm not into alloy shocks myself, halons are good aswell I'm told.

As to the front forks, a lot is said to be how the bike stands... If the metalastic bushes are heavily worn the bike will be droopy looking, if the look ok, and feel ok? I'd say leave well alone..

Hope this helps?

Regards

Scott

[Brian Catt]

As for rear shocks, you are close to Rock Shocks, so that might be a good move.

[Andy Z]

The betors which sammy miller sells are great, not quite as good as falcons, but half the price!

[scott151]

Betors

Betors are good as Andy z says.. I have a set on my hawkstone... The only problem with them is they are either 340mm or 360mm and you cannot rebuild them like the falcons/rockshocks...

The rockshocks are brilliant, I have a set on my francis Barnett, but they look abit modern... But they are light..

Scott

[big paul]

Tds

Hi Andrew.
I,ve got a 61 tds which is pretty much standard. I,m only down the road in Brackley, if you want to check it out PM me . Paul .

[dreverl]

Newbie on TCS/TDS

Hi Everyone,

Thanks very much for all your help. Its good to hear some of the options.

I've had a look at some of the suggestions for the chain question. I have NJB shocks, they are 13" long, the sprocket is a 60 tooth one (that's a lot isn't it?)

Does all that add up? I suppose when you're on the bike it'll sit down a bit but this photo is with me on the bike and its still rubbing.

Thanks for the shock options, Ill have a look around. What spring rates do people use?

Cheers
Andrew

[dreverl]

New member with TDS

Hi Marcelle,

It's rubbing on the lower part of the frame (lower chain), yes I was told that the foot rests were updated. I'm not sure what I have on the front, I don't have any receipts for it (previous owner got engine rebuilt) so I assume its 'standard' (whats that?) but I'll have to check.

OK, its good to know what you think. As I say I'm new to trials and don't want to be artificially hampered due to something silly I've missed on the bike.

I've found a few things around the bike that weren't quite right which I've corrected (wheel alignment and carb setup for example) so just want to make sure its as good as it can be as a starting point.

Do you think its worth going to IRC tires or should I just use MT43's until I get good enough to 'use' them properly?

Thanks for your help
Andrew

[dreverl]

Hi Marcelle,

Yes, it is an IRC that the guy that built the bike 'found lying around' when he assembled the bike. Its got a fair few cuts/slices in it and it looks a bit old. As I mentioned above, the offsets are wrong front and rear so I was wondering if I should put some new rubber on while I'm doing it? And if so, MT43s or IRCs...

Cheers
Andrew

[dreverl]

Hi,

Yeah, it was rubbing before and after I played around with the wheels. It didnt really make it better or worse.

OK, I didn't have any accurate way of doing the alignment so it was by eye (it was miles off) so that sounds like it'll be OK for trials.

Cheers
Andrew

[hoveactually]

I had same problem with my TDS - the chain (lower run) rubbing on the crossbar below the swingarm - my solution is shown in the attached photo - a tensioner!
I run 13T front & 62T rear sprockets - excellent for trial use (if only the gremlins would let me finish a trial!) but no good if you have some road use in mind. With a 55T rear (better for road use) the top run touches the swingarm. Maybe with a 15T front this wont happen?

[dreverl]

Nice looking bike!!

Yes that does look like the same issue as mine, I think Ill look at doing something similar.

Cheers

[Dick F]

new member with tds

Just a couple of things on this post that may help, on my Anglian and TFS i run a chain tensioner , but most of us fit it close to the swing arm as the chain rotation helps better and being at the rear as Andy shows on his will catch up on obstacles, if you are going to to do a lot of road use the Pirelli tyres are a better bet, than an ISR but i have used an ISR for about 3 years and it lasted quite well, and that wasin long distance Sammy Miller type events, I have found that for value for money Gas Betor units last ok and Villiers Services do them for around £70 a pair, Falcon shocks have to be re gassed and are very expensive in the first place, Rock Shocks are easy to adjust but also expensive, NJB shocks ale also ok if you are going to use it on the road more that in competition.

Just make sure the length is correct as you dont want to be sliding up over the Tank !!!

[hoveactually]

Dick is right about the best place to fix the tensioner. I didn't want to drill holes in my lovely new paintwork at this stage. No doubt after the 1st snag I will overcome my love for the shiny bits.
Andy

[John Pattinson]

Chain Tensioner

Bultaco fitted their chain tensioner on the brake anchor bolt, facing forward for a while but they had smaller rear sprocket. But it was never much of a problem.
John P.