Riding impressions since adding some mods

[ssevy]

I finally had time to finish my 95 Tiger, which has been sitting for about a month waiting patiently. I bought her in early summer with 17,000 miles on her, and only put about 100 miles on her just to get acquainted with the stock set-up. My other bike is a 99 Legend, and I have done lots of mods to that one, just finishing my suspension upgrades with a new Penske rear shock. I actually returned from a 2500 mile trip on the Legend this past Monday, so I was anxious to ride the Tiger to see how they compare?
First, here are the mods I did on the Tiger:
1- New Moose ATV bars per Mustang's suggestion.
2- New grips, also per Mustang's suggestion.
3- Mustang's wide foot peg kit.
4- New Shinko tires.
5- New Motobatt battery.
6- LED dash lights and LED integrated triple flashing tail light bulbs.
7- New Galfer dual brake lines on the front, as the Moose bars needed more hose length.
8- Flushed all the hydraulics (all three looked like mud inside).
9- Powerbronze windscreen.

Purchased, and/or yet to do:
1- Nology coils and plug wires.
2- Valve check.

Okay, now for a ride comparison. Tonight my short shakedown ride turned into a 270 mile round trip because I was enjoying it so much! This was a mix of freeway, rural blacktop, and dirt as well. Freeway speeds got up to an indicated 85 MPH, but since most of the riding was after dark (I left my house at 6:30 PM and just got back at 2:00 AM) on rural roads with lots of whitetail deer potential, 60 - 65 MPH was the most common speed. I noticed I was turning about 4000 - 4500 RPMs at these speeds, and I am guessing the PO left the sprockets stock? As for the mods, the Moose bars and the lowered pegs really improved the comfort for me. The grips were also a big improvement. The Powerbronze screen sent clean air right to the top of my head, and this was great when it rained tonight.
I had filled my Legend bars with expanding foam insulation, and I do notice the Tiger has more vibes. Because of the Ricor Intiminators and progressive springs in the Legend front end, and the Penske in the rear, the Legend is much more taut feeling, and the tires stick to the road like glue.
The Tiger is like a big St. Bernard puppy, just loafing along effortlessly at 4000 RPMs, and the soft front end soaks up bumps well. The rear shock needs replacing, as it bottoms out hard on the bumpy stuff. Likewise, the soft front end allows lots of brake dive, something the intiminators corrected on the Legend. I'll eventually do something with the forks, but not sure just what at this point.
The throttle on the Tiger is easy to regulate, and the Mikunis seem to be getting better with more use. Since I had not started the bike in a month, it was a real pig about firing, and I needed to use the enricher and crack the throttle as I cranked to get it to fire. It didn't flood, but acted like it was getting no fuel at all. Once it did fire, it settled into a perfectly smooth idle, and then ran beautifully all evening.
Believe it or not, the stock seat was tolerable. I have a very tender arse, and by the end of any ride my hip joints and hamstrings are in agony. Tonight was no worse than I feel on my $600 Rocky Meyer seat on my Legend. Probably do a Corbin at some point though, as this seat is torn.
The Shinko tires really changed the handling from the old Metzelers that were on there. The bike now feels like it is falling into a turn, and just thinking about turning is all the input you need. It isn't unstable, and is fine running straight, but in the tighter turns, the left-right-left transitions felt like no handlebar input was needed at all. Even on the wet roads, the Shinkos really stuck well in the turns, although I wasn't pushing them hard since both they and the bike are new to me.
I have always noticed the increase in buffeting when riding into cooler/denser air on the Legend, as that is a naked bike. Tonight I noticed that crosswinds toss the Tiger around like a cork, and the fairing and powerbronze screen give the wind more purchase. When it began raining, the fairing kept me pretty protected though.
The two areas which I really need to devote some time are dirt riding and slow speed maneuvers. I have no dirt experience, and riding some loose dirt roads tonight after dark really made me think about what a top heavy girl she is. Likewise, slow speed turns are tougher, especially since I can't flat foot it. Lots to learn here in these areas for me.
The double head lights were awesome tonight. Really as bright as a car on high. Low beams not so much, but that may be an aiming issue.
Overall, a great bike for long distance touring, and well worth the $2500 I paid.

[Bixxer Bob]

270 mile in the dark, the rain and for fun??? Respect  you and the Tiger clearly deserve each other.

[ssevy]

Thanks! Yeah, I really feel like this bike was just waiting for the right owner to come along and appreciate it. Truly my dream bike, in all seriousness.

[rf9rider]

Nice to see a good review.

As for the front end diving, a good cheap fix is to insert some spacers in the top of the forks, if you start with some about an inch long, then shorten/lengthen them to suit your taste.

Heavier fork oil will help out a  little too.

Or if moneys not an issue, perhaps some progressive springs to stiffen it up a little.

[ssevy]

Thanks for the input. I think the intiminator valves would do wonders for this bike, as they have no effect on the bumpy road movement of the forks, but only close off under deceleration. My Legend used to dive as well, and now you can grab a fistful of front with the rear, and the entire bike remains level and just settles right into stopping with no diving. Really makes for safer and more predictable stops. Dirt and gravel roads are about as radical as I will ever get on this bike, and I really wanted it to travel out west, where so many great roads are still dirt, but dirt in good condition. This just eats up the miles in such a relaxed manner that it will be perfect for long distance touring, and when I retire next June, I expect to roll the miles on it pretty steadily. The steamer has always been my favorite looking bike, and it has the same triple as my Legend (which is so addictive), and now some serious saddle time has confirmed that my expectations were all spot on.

[Sin_Tiger]

Well done that man  try cleaning the inside of the lense and the reflector, can make a huge difference, then some Osram night breakers, if you really want the max then upgrading the power supply is the last thing to get the most you can out of the stock units.

[lukeman]

What handle bars did you put on? You've piqued my interest.