For that reason I don't think the Mk 8 360 should be allowed. A lot of years have passed so I'm a tad rusty on the details but I remember that the porting arrangement is much improved on the Mk8 and I believe the crankshaft flywheel weight is quite different.
The 360 however is a different situation as it features many different engine internals when compared to the Mk7. I agree with this on the 250 version of the bike as they are mechanically identical except for some minor details and the previously mentioned left/right gear change position. Today, with the exception of Peter Lawson in WA and one or two other anal retentive officials, most people turn a blind eye to the Mk8 250 as long as the Mk7 swingarm is used or the Mk8 version is retro modified back to Mk 7 specs. That's allowed as long as the correct number cases are still used. Many Bultaco riders converted their Mk 7 right foot change bikes over to left foot change using Mk8 parts. At a national level, Mk8s were not permitted at all. Depending on the importance of the race meeting, many organisers turned a blind eye to MK8 Bultacos fitted with MK7 swingarms basing their decision on the assumption that the only difference between the models is the back suspension and the placement of the gear lever.
However, after much consultation with Bultaco experts all over the world we acepted the fact that the Mk8 is actually the factory designated 1975 model, no matter when it was purchased. The main bone of contention was that the Mk8 was released in 1974, as many an owner and even Kevin Fraser, the big NSW dealer of the time argued. This particular model caused more drama in the early days of VMX than any other bike.
#BULTACO PURSANG RACE BIKE PLUS#
Most Pursangs were 250cc machines but 125, 250, 360 and 370cc displacements were available over the span of the model’s production, plus a works 400.
By the mid-1970’s the traditional “unbreakable plastic” fenders became factory stock.įrom the beginning, piston-port timed engines, by 1979 the Pursang Mk XII had adopted reed valves like most of its competition. This proved to be very fragile stuff so was often replaced by Preston Petty’s aftermarket parts. Noted for their unique style among collectors, Model 48 and Model 68 Pursangs, aka “Box-Tails,” also on display here at the Museum, made use of fiberglass for major body components.
#BULTACO PURSANG RACE BIKE PRO#
Jim Pomeroy, champion motocrosser, made the name Pursang famous with his wins in AMA Pro Motocross, but also in the Spanish Motocross GP in 1973. He not only became the first American to win a Gran Prix on a Spanish bike, but also the youngest rider to win a World Championship Motocross Grand Prix and the first rider to win this type of event in his debut race! Bultaco made the best of it and in 1975, the 360cc “Pomeroy Replica” was in the Bultaco line-up.