Three kick!
By TMX Archives on 15th Mar 05
With three bikes to test - the 125, 250 and 290 - I wanted to make an early start for the dbr test of the '05 Shercos. With three bikes to test - the 125, 250 and 290 - I wanted to make an early start for the dbr test of the '05 Shercos. Unfortunately, Sutty and Sean decided an Olympic breakfast courtesy of Little Thief was more important so I was keen to get going by the time they rolled into Rathmell HQ some 45 minutes behind schedule...Trials is a pretty fashion-conscious sport and first impressions matter. So as Sutty shot off some statics before the bikes got dirty I feasted my eyes on the new Shercos. They've kept everything looking more or less the same for '05 which makes perfect sense - with the striking blue and silver colour combo plus the chrome frame they're very eye-catching. Sherco make some of the nicest looking bikes on the market and everything's well finished off and neatly tucked away.We've tested Gas Gas, Beta and Scorpa 125s now and I have to say out of all of them the Sherco's my favourite. It feels so light when you're riding it and it's ever so zippy - it pulled me everywhere.It never feels like it wants to cut out and die so it must have a good flywheel weight on it that keeps things rolling along. For a schoolboy rider this will be ideal. Kids will love the feel and the look of this.In sections I found myself in first gear for most things as it feels quite high - it's not overly high but you rarely have to use second, that's more for your little hillclimbs. In first you can shut the revs right off and it just keep gripping.You can really rev it to the maximum and it cleans out thoroughly every time - this means you can do a lot of big stuff on it. I'd feel confident doing a club trial on this myself and I weigh 12 stone. When you set off and dump the clutch in second or third it drives, it doesn't spin. It's not like a switch - too aggressive.The brakes are the same as on the 250 and 290 using AJP parts with a twin-pot on the front and a single-pot on the back. No problems at all - they work fantastic.The front forks are Paioli and the rear shock is Sachs. The front suspension works lovely and didn't bottom out - I hit a few steps quite hard with the front wheel and it never seemed to ping me off - and the back's just the same. The bike gives you confidence - it's that light between your legs it makes you feel like you can do anything.The Shercos have a couple of little changes this year. The engines are in a matt grey finish that looks really well and the banana-shape swingarm looks trick and is supposed to help the bike grip.The 250cc Sherco's ideal for schoolboys moving up from a 125. I prefer this to the 290 - it's a little bit zippier. There are not a major amount of changes this year, it's more a case of little tweaks here and there - things like the nice, wide footpegs.The power delivery is really good - going up big rocks in second and third it pulls brilliantly and the suspension's exactly the same as on the 125. It works great.This bike gave me the biggest amount of confidence. I feel like I could go and ride this in a British championship round and do well on it. It revs cleanly throughout and I found I was using first gear for most of the sections.The Shercos have the steeringhead angle absolutely cock-on. With the no-stop rule you want to let your riding flow without worrying about the front end tucking under and this is easy to do - as long as you've got your technique right it'll go anywhere and the way it finds grip is just amazing.For a few years now the 290cc machine has been classed as Sherco's world championship bike - it's got so much power. I jumped on it and expected it to rip my arms off but as soon as you start it up you can tell by the engine noise that it's different - it sounds just a little bit quieter.They've put a bigger front pipe on it and they've also put a spacer between the cylinder and the carb where the reeds are. This has really softened it off - it'll pull and pull in third and fourth gear but it's not a really aggressive power. They've done a lot of work on this and aimed it at the clubman rider. And they've scored a bullseye. It's a fantastic bike.Using the Dell'Orto carbs help them rev cleanly. Everything's finished off really nicely and this will appeal to the younger riders. Everything's tucked away but it's still easy to get to the air filter and carb.