2000 Tiger...with a few modifications

[Gonzo]

Just a couple of observations about my 2000.

Gratuitous pic


A little background on myself.  I started riding in 2004 (yeah I'm still a noob), put around 13K on a '90 Honda VTR250 I got for cheap and rebuilt.  Then around 5K on an '86 Honda Magna VF700c (again...on the cheap/rebuilt).  I don't have a problem wrenching on bikes...as long as I have a manual to reference.  I fell in love with the look of the Tigers when I was doing research on my first bike.  When I came across a good deal on one, I could pass it up.  You don't see too many Tigers in this area, so I was pretty suprised.

The tiger was basically the first bike that I've purchased, that I could actually ride home.  I'm just trying to figure out what the po's did, and whether I like the mods or not.

The first major mod...the engine was replaced with a Daytona 955i engine.  The po had the original 885 replaced after it threw a rod (he had just purchased it from the original owner, this was back in 2002).  The only issue with this is that the shift pattern is reversed.  It's 1 up and 5 down.  I'm used to it.

It has an off-road exhaust (it says "not for road use").  I'm not sure if it's the combination of the Daytona engine + off-road exhaust, but there's a slight throttle hesitation when I start off in 1st gear.  I've also noticed a bit of struggling below 2K rpm.  I'm used to the rev-happy VTR, so this is no big deal, I'm just not sure if this in normal for the engine.  Maybe a re-map is in order, I don't know.

It had a touring windscreen on it when I bought it, I had some pretty bad head shaking, so I went ahead and put the stock windscreen on...that took care of the shaking.

A gel-pad was embedded in the stock seat, I think it actually made the seat worse.

The last thing that the po's did, was lower the front end 3cm.  I've read on Triumphrat.net, that some people have lowered their forks, but not that much.  I'm going to set the forks back to stock this weekend, just to see the handling difference, and then go from there.  I've never ridden a Tiger before, so I have no reference, but I just think it's weird that the front end would be lowered that much.

The mods I've done to the bike since I purchased it are...
-Hepco-Becker engine guards (they've paid for themselves already :roll:)
-SW-Motech center stand
-Touring windscreen replaced with stock
-Airhawk seat cushion (cuz I'm a wuss)

Future Mods (as $$ allow)
-Progressive springs in front + thicker oil
-Whatever bash plate I can find that fits
-Replace the leaky stock luggage with tougher aftermarket boxes.

I might get a tune-boy to play with the mapping, I'm not sure yet.  I can live with it for now.

Any comments or questions from those with more experience is always appreciated, without riding a Tiger before, I have no reference for this bike.

Peace,
Bob

[WIDGIN]

Cool shift pattern.  That's a roadracing style pattern (helps to prevent trapping your toes under the lever when accelerating out of a sharp left corner).

Regarding the hesitation:  My '05 has no stumble with off-road pipe and seems to pull cleanly from any rpm.  However,  I imagine the Daytona engine is ported more for high end and lacks some low end grunt compared to standard Tiger engine. Below 2,000 rpm seems awfully close to "lugging" the engine territory.  You may want to drop down a tooth on your countersprocket or feather the clutch more for low speed stuff.

[Gonzo]

Cool shift pattern.  That's a roadracing style pattern (helps to prevent trapping your toes under the lever when accelerating out of a sharp left corner).

Regarding the hesitation:  My '05 has no stumble with off-road pipe and seems to pull cleanly from any rpm.  However,  I imagine the Daytona engine is ported more for high end and lacks some low end grunt compared to standard Tiger engine. Below 2,000 rpm seems awfully close to "lugging" the engine territory.  You may want to drop down a tooth on your countersprocket or feather the clutch more for low speed stuff.

I'm thinking the stumble has got to be a mapping issue, I called the stealership that did the engine swap, but they didn't have any accurate records as far as which mapping they did after the change...that kinda makes me wonder.  When I roll on the throttle after a stop, it'll be about a second of slow acceleration, then BOOM a burst of acceleration that I have to deal with, sometimes right in mid-lean.  I've been feathering the clutch to compensate, and that works fine.  I Haven't sync'ed the throttle bodies yet, I'm not sure if that could cause the issue or not, this is my first experience with a fuel-injected bike (however, since I've re-built the Magna's V-4 carbs, I figure I can handle anything this bike throws at me...seriously, they were a huge pain in the ass).

Don't get me wrong, I really love the Tiger, I just want to make sure it's running at the best it can be.  If this is just an issue with the Daytona motor, then so be it...the bike IS really fast.  I'll just compensate like I'm doing now, and figure it out as I go along.  If I can fix it to run better at lower RPM's then that would just be a plus, in my book.

Thanks for the feedback.

Peace,
Bob

[Bruincounselor]

I've also noticed a bit of struggling below 2K rpm.

SNIP
 Future Mods (as $$ allow)
-Progressive springs in front + thicker oil
-Whatever bash plate I can find that fits
-Replace the leaky stock luggage with tougher aftermarket boxes.

Lugs under 2k - Check - Seems normal to me. I keep it above 3K all the time. I think the dealer tune computer can tell you what tune you're running.

I strongly recommend Race Tech cart. emulators instead of springs. A few bucks more - but this really solved my issues. Know that you'll want to fix the rear sponge after upgrading the front.

Happy Trails makes great bags. Sell your stockers on E-bay or here to pay for them. Some of us have even broken even in the swap...

Have fun.
Bruin.

[blacktiger]

I might get a tune-boy to play with the mapping,

That may be the way to go but first I'd book it in for a service to get the valve clearances checked and the throttle bodies balanced. They could both put the running out. While it's there get them to check what tune is in the ECU. The off-road can requires a different map. Couple that with it being a Daytona engine is why you may be needing a Tuneboy or Power Commander.
Have fun and enjoy your Tigger.