road legal trial bikes

[salty21]

been googling most of the afternoon but doesnt seem to be much info on it.

Basically i want to get a trial bike for messing about on, doing a bit of greenlaning and maybe attends a few club meetings if i take to it well. looking for a beta rev 250 or similar. thing is i only have a bike license so it would need to be road legal to get to any lanes or play areas. I am aware they are probably crap on the road but its a price i am willing to pay. From what i've read they will still do 40 mph comfortably on standard gearing so still quicker than a moped

I could get a daytime m.o.t but would much prefer the option of riding after hours, especially on these short winter days.

From what i can tell most trial bikes have cooling fans for the radiator, which tells me the bike does actually have some kind of generator, but does it make enough to power proper high/low type lighting to pass an m.o.t?.
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04 NSR 125(sold) ---- 03 CBR 600rr(sold) ----90 pan euro ST1100 '' ----02 CG 125
94 CB400 Super Four ---- 2000 VTR SP1 (sold) ---- 08 ninja p8f(sold, meh) ----05 CBR600rr

[bladerunner]

Any further than a mile gets very tedious on a trials bike and they don't like reving in top at 40mph+ for more than a few seconds. They ain't much fun for greenlaning either with no seat etc....your probs best off looking at an enduro bike if your wanting lights and at least some road usability...granted not as good for trials comps....but you can still get over a lot of things when needed!
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Current bikes...cbr929, KDX200's, Rd125lc mk2, RGV250's

[salty21]

I've recently had a gasgas ec300 and a crf450 for green laning..I did want to get another enduro but i have always preferred the technical side and dont get much enjoyment from trying to go fast so figured a modified trials bike would be a pretty fun and different way to go. Also i always stand up when offroad so dont need a seat for that...If i did decide i wanted a seat though you can get long range kits for the beta rev. Its a seat that is also a 4 litre fuel tank

https://www.trialsnuts.com/images/betaseat.jpg


I may well end up with another enduro but thought this would atleast be worth looking into as i think i would enjoy it more.

Also, used trial bikes tend to be much better looked after than used enduro/mx bikes and cheaper too.
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04 NSR 125(sold) ---- 03 CBR 600rr(sold) ----90 pan euro ST1100 '' ----02 CG 125
94 CB400 Super Four ---- 2000 VTR SP1 (sold) ---- 08 ninja p8f(sold, meh) ----05 CBR600rr

[bladerunner]

Maybe a 250 4t might slow it down a bit! Last trials bike I had was an old school aprillia 280 climber....it was horrendous for anything apart from trials riding!

The beta looks a good idea....having a seat and nearly a gallon size fuel range hehe
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Current bikes...cbr929, KDX200's, Rd125lc mk2, RGV250's

[G]

You should be able to have a basic light. You could always just stick a battery on that you charge before the ride.

Long range kits are quite rare - I'd still like one for my Rev3, but not really at full price .

Remember that a trials gear lever is well far forward, so you take your foot off the peg to change gear.
I wouldn't really choose one for laning - and I'd definitely go for the seat.

You're welcome to have a play on my Rev3, but I leant it to Paddy so it's currently in Kent, which is less useful!

Also consider something like a Pampera - it's a low seat height and a trials motor, but a bit higher gearing, normal gear level and a seat that is usable.

[P.]

I'd stick to an enduro rather than trials on the road... never ridden a trials on the road

[salty21]

i live right nextdoor to the peak district and know most of the lanes. I can link quite a few together at a time so road riding would only be a small part of the day. a lot of the greenlanes round here are steep with big boulders and rocks and can be extremely hard work in places on enduro bikes so a trials bike should be more usefull there.

I know an enduro bike is far better suited for a lot of green lanes. but like i say i want to try a bit of technical trials stuff aswell which an enduro bike is not so good at unless your at graham jarvis level .

I suppose the best option is to have a go on one to get an idea of how unsuitable it will be. not really something you can book a test ride on at your local bike shop though
____________________
04 NSR 125(sold) ---- 03 CBR 600rr(sold) ----90 pan euro ST1100 '' ----02 CG 125
94 CB400 Super Four ---- 2000 VTR SP1 (sold) ---- 08 ninja p8f(sold, meh) ----05 CBR600rr

[G]

You might be surprised how easy a trials bike makes a lot of stuff - there was stuff I'd have to have been pretty brave to do with a run up on an enduro bikes, while a trials bike I'd be stopped at the bottom, open the throttle and not really offer any more input bar leaning forward for the bike to just 'go up' - so you may find yourself having to go for the 'proper' trials stuff to justify it.

[P.]

Echo G, I'm a pussy when it comes to doing stuff, even to the point of finding an alternative route down a hill because I don't like the steepness That is just walking

I've seen many people go up and down this specific part of an offroading place I go to, both trials bikes and enduros. I can only do it on the trials, its effortless. I've seen plenty of people fall on their enduros but no one on a trials. I've also been over fairly big bits of fallen trees that an enduro may go over, but not at my skill level.

In short, its great fun, I really enjoy it but for the road I'd want something else. For you, being fairly close to an off road locale.. it might be a worthwhile purchase.

[stevo as b4]

I've always liked trials bikes, had a TY175 years ago and a Fantic 305 for a while too. I always wanted one of those late Yamaha TYZ250's which I believe are very similar to early Scorpa's and have the same engine.

These days though, I'm a lot more impressed when I see people doing technical stuff and even clubman trials event's on enduro bikes or trail bikes.

Someone who is very good and probably a skilled trials rider can even make a tricky uphill tree root covered section look easy even on something like a Honda XL600R, which is a real bus compared to trials bikes, but it must be so satisfying and make you feel like a total boss to sail round a trials course on such a beast.

What I'd really like a trial's bike for these days is for it's engine, and Id like to fit a 250-300cc trials engine into something like a Blown up Mito etc for something different.

[salty21]

trials engines dont make that much power, nowhere near as much as an equivalent cc enduro engine.
A 250 gasgas trials engine makes around 20 bhp, where as the gasgas ec250 enduro makes about 50 bhp. which is quite a big difference.

The upside for the trials is it will not need rebuilding anywhere near as much as the enduro and given the gear ratio and super low weight 20bhp should be more than plenty.

Apart from it being terrible on the road, the trials seems to win in jst about every way. especially with a few mods like the seat/tank thing and maybe a change of sprockets to raise the cruising speed a bit..

one thing i never understood and the main reason for most of my green lane wipeouts was the very tall seat on enduro bikes.. on big rocky sections where stabilisers are deployed(legs) , half the time you cant even reach the ground.. why are enduro seats so high up?
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04 NSR 125(sold) ---- 03 CBR 600rr(sold) ----90 pan euro ST1100 '' ----02 CG 125
94 CB400 Super Four ---- 2000 VTR SP1 (sold) ---- 08 ninja p8f(sold, meh) ----05 CBR600rr

[G]

The trick is to not need to put your feet down!... a bit like Trials, too .

Problem with a low seat and high ground clearance is that it leaves you in a cramped position that isn't great for 'aggressive' riding.

Bikes like the Pampera and newer ones like the KTM freeride are bridging the gap giving a lower seat height and more trials-like attributes to enduro bikes.