This Webpage contains some information and experiences on modifying Honda TL125 and related Trials Motorcycles. None of it breaks new ground nor is exactly rocket science. What worked for me may not work for you, so please don’t hold me responsible for damage or injury! I realise that by writing this I'll lay myself open to being shot down in flames! I don't profess to know all there is to know about the subject, but all the subsequent info has been gleaned from experience. I would welcome sensible discussion on the subject, but remember that I'm a web-publishing virgin, so be gentle with me!
Feel free to e-mail me, Mark Worsfold, at worsfold@globalnet.co.uk with feedback and comments on the subject.
I'm still learning how to drive this thing so the website will be extended in due course.
The Number 1.
(Sorry, no picture yet)
Background
My first TL came as an rolling basketcase back in 1996. Most of it was damaged, wrong, incorrectly assembled or just missing. What was there came from a 1976 model year TL125S. The engine and frame numbers were close enough together to make it evident that they left the factory as one unit. The back wheel came from a Suzuki, there was no exhaust, sidepanels, front mudguard, stand or kickstart and no electrics at all. The front wheel also seemed to only have about 30 spokes left! I have to ask myself why I bought it, but it was cheap, so need I say more.
Most of the parts that were needed to complete the thing were bought secondhand from small ads in TMX. The only exhaust system that I could find was a Sammy Miller type, as was the front mudguard and stays, and a complete rear wheel, brake and various other parts including a spare frame came from a chap in Lancashire. Sidepanels proved impossible to find, and I think they still are. To save time, I ordered half a dozen new spokes from Honda, but when they arrived, they were the wrong length. It seems that the wheel had been rebuilt in the past with a different lacing pattern so the other 30 spokes had to be replaced as well. The budget had been well and truly blown! Then I stripped the engine....
What a horror!! Anything and everything that could be physically fitted wrongly, had been. The shift forks were bent, the kickstart ratchet was missing, the clutch plates in the wrong order, rings upsidedown, valve timing out and the timing set to fire on the exhaust stroke. The head gasket had been made from a piece of copper-clad printed circuit board material. The list went on and on. It reminded me of a training school engine; how many faults can you find in this engine? With everything back together and running, I looked forward to using the bike in anger for the first time off-road.
The TL125 has always been a sweet looking off-roader to my eyes, but it seemed to be very much a sheep in sheeps clothes. It has very little suspension movement and really doesn’t have enough power for those big hills. I had hoped it to be kind of updated Tiger Cub, but it fell far short of my expectations. In standard form, it's great for gentle playing off-road or for popping to the shops, but for serious use..... If it had just a bit more power and perhaps a couple of inches more travel and ground clearance. Then I hit upon the idea of a TL based Special.
You are visitor number
For more info on the TL125, try Japi's TL125 Home page at http://www.avana.net/~japi/TL125/
