Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/771894
36 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com 36 T il Rid T ilRid the exhaust note sounded as good as it gets for an old Penton. It was not noisy at all, evdence that some-one had recently packed the original chrome silencer with fi berglass. The big bonus was zero piston slap. For those not familiar, the air-cooled Penton/KTM's had nothing bet- ween the cooling fi ns to keep the ringing sound in check. Sloppy top-ends on old KTM motors can really ring and make a horrible racket. This one sounded ght, as if it were new. A er a quick rip through the gears around the parking lot, there was no doubt that this was another ght, rela vely low-use bike — my thoughts on that later. We soon exchanged cash with zero nego a ons. A rule of thumb that I live by: when someone off ers you a gi — and this Penton was a gi for the price — pay the man what he's asking. As with many deals of this nature, the seller's no fool and is very aware of the actual value. First order of business was to give the Penton a thorough cleaning since it had seen a bit of use over the last season. A er a deep cleaning, it really started to pop. As with any used bike, before really ringing its neck, it's best to check the condi on of the air fi lter and give the tranny a drink of fresh Spectro Golden Gear. In this case, there was really no need as it was enthusiast-owned. The next order of business was to mix up a batch of fresh fuel. For those unfamiliar with Pentons, the tank is made of fi berglass. Unfortunately, ethanol fuel is death to fi berglass tanks and will so en the polyester resin and eat through a tank in short order. My personal choice for vintage bike fuel is Avgas, 100 Low-Lead. Since we've got a small air strip not far from Trail Rider headquarters,