'69 Triumph Trophy 250

[Howser03]

Last summer I did a partial restoration of my dad's 69 Triumph Trophy 250. I did an engine overhaul with new gaskets, cleaned everything up nice and pretty, and rebuilt the carb. Well, I got the thing started finally, and it idles nicely. I have a big problem though. As soon as I give it throttle it wants to die. I can slowly add throttle and it winds up. At first I thought it was a faulty auto-advance unit. I replaced it with one with one that was in better shape than mine. I started it, same thing. I took the carb. off and soaked it, blew out the jets as good as I could, put it back on... same thing! GRRRRR nothing in the manual says anything close to the problem I am having. Anyone with vintage Triumph's or BSA's out there have any idea for me? The carb. is an AMAL 926. No idea about the size jet inside. My next course of action is to purchase a new carb. and hope that works. NEED HELP !! Thanks.

Also, this puppy leaks a ton of oil, any special sealant I can use on the engine around the gaskets to stop this.

 

[txvintage]

If it's not your carb, your sucking in air somewhere. It's probably around a seal, but it could be your center gasket for the cases.

As for the oil leak, yep it's a Brit bike. It's what they do!

BTW, extremely nice bike you have there from a golden age. Post a pic if you can!

 

[Howser03]

thanks for the response. I actually have a picture of this bike in my gallery. Not the most flattering view or photo quality, and you can see all the junk in my garage but it's the only one I have on my computer while I'm at school. The fenders are still off. I painted the fenders with the original silver line going down the middle, but the two paints weren't compatiple so it bubble up real bad... whoops... I spray painted the tank just to protect it from rust, cause I'm going to use it on the trails. As soon as I attain a title for it I'll make it look real nice and make it a classic street bike :confused: The guy who owned it before my dad (its either my uncle or dad's friend, so I gotta call them up and yell at them) butchered some parts like the forks and the ignition coil baseplate setup. The headlight is with the bike, but is a big mystery to me. I look at the components, then the wires, then the components again, but still have no freaking clue what goes to what... two shop manuals and neither of them give any information on the headlight.. :ugg: In the long run this bike is in VERY good condition with only 5,000 original miles, so I hate to bring it on the dirt... but if I get it running correctly before I get a title... I won't be able to contain myself from whisking it away through the woods :debil:

 

[Ol'89r]

Howser.

Does the bike have a battery or is it an ET (energy transfer) model. If it has a battery, be sure the battery has a full charge.

If it is an ET model, try to re-time it. ET ignitions have to be 'in phase' or in other words, the magnets on the rotor have to line up with the coils on the stator in a certain position when the points fire.

To check this, remove the bolt that holds the point cam on and place a washer in there to lock the point cam from moving on the advance unit. Start the engine and see if it will rev with the point cam locked. If it does, chances are, the ignition is going out of phase when the advance unit advances. If this turns out to be the problem, get back to me and I will tell you how to phase it in.

Moving the point plate in the advance or retard position will usually move you back into phase. Also, make sure that you have the correct advance unit in there. Puting a battery ignition advance unit in a ET engine will cause the problem that you are describing. The ET advance plate will have a smaller slot in the back than the battery model. This keeps the point cam from advancing as far.

A couple other things to check are a bad stator or condensor. The Lucas condensors are very poor quality even when new. Try wiring in a new condensor.

In regard to the oil leak, try using Permatex #599BR Ultra Grey, RTV Silicone, in place of the gaskets. (Available at your local auto parts store.) Also, check the gasket surfaces for nicks and scratches. If they are scratched up, take a piece of fine, wet or dry sand paper on a sheet of glass and surface them. You will notice that they dont use locating dowels on most of the cases, so they tend to move around a little when the engine is running. The RTV silicone allows the cases to move a little and still not leak.

Hope this helps.

Just my $ .02

 

[KWJams]

Good Tips Ol'89r

Howser03,

You can check <<--HERE-->> in the message board for the parts you may need.
It's a Yahoo Forum do you will need to register.
Half way down the page is a link for another forum which has good parts sources.
Good Luck on the rebuild.
:cool: