Events before sprag failure?

[Mustang]

A tip I received from 95tiger over on triumphrat... to aid in the removal and installation of the engine loosen the swingarm.

The triumph manual clearly states to loosen the swingarm bolts . I have seen bikes that the engine would not budge a fraction of an inch even with all the bolts out , as soon as you loosen the swingarm bolt it falls on the ground  :shock: be ready for it . I use a m/c lift to catch the engine !Use the same lift to stick her back in .

[Dr. Mordo]

Steammoto. I have looked at the picts and was somewhat disencouraged. It's definately more complicated than I imagined. Nice to have all the picts though. They may come in handy. Thanks for sharing.

You can do it.  Also note that a whole row of pics is him needlessly disassembling the clutch.

[steammoto]

Prepare a work space with ample room, maintain organization and documentation of parts, etc. removed, this will make life after installing the new sprag so much more pleasant upon the rebuild. As far as the overall complexity of this exercise, it is very doable(I did it and I am by no means a wrencher). Again patience is key, take your time, if you feel frustration coming on for whatever reason(bad day, frozen bolt) walk away.

[harre]

Update on the sprag repair.
I've removed the engine from the frame. It took some time, and I would not recommend doing it by yourself, unless you have a firm floor jack, mine was far to wiggly. Fortunately I secured the engie with ropes around a "traverse" before loosing all bolts. One important point is to support the rear wheel before loosening the engine bolts. The engine did not drop until I did that. Haynes says this clearly, I just missed it.
Earlier this winter I visited a Suzuki dealer on my way home from the Tiger garage, luckily there was an English mechanic who had many years of experience of the early triples. This guy have now looked at the engine and carbs, and says that there was some debris in the carbs, especially the in #1 carb. Moreover, he also measured the valve clearances, and on cyl #3. the intake clearance was only 0.04, clearly out of specifications. I may have an issue here with the company that did the valve adjustment, since I haven't used the bike after the adjustment. What can I expect if the valve is this tight?
The engine was only running on cyl #2. Maybe the answer is clogging of carb #1 coupled with too tight intake valve on #3 ?

I will let the mechanic do the sprag job. He has the experience and I have not. I am also considering to let him do a re-jetting (keihin), I recall reading some thread about this. Hopefully I can afford the job. I'm unemployed right now, but who isn't? With some luck I can get a refund from the first company who did a shitty job servicing my Tiger. I so happy that I have found an alternative to those guys.

[Dr. Mordo]

Well, I hope those are the problems.  I certainly think they could be; junk in the carbs is bad and I was amazed how much the character of my bike changed when I adjusted my valves last summer.

It's probly smart to have him do the sprag.  You've already done most of the work by pulling the engine, so it shouldn't cost too much.  I highly recommend buying or borrowing a motorcycle lift; it's a much safer way to lift the engine.

[Mustang]

Update on the sprag repair.
 This guy have now looked at the engine and carbs, and says that there was some debris in the carbs, especially the in #1 carb. Moreover, he also measured the valve clearances, and on cyl #3. the intake clearance was only 0.04, clearly out of specifications. I may have an issue here with the company that did the valve adjustment, since I haven't used the bike after the adjustment. What can I expect if the valve is this tight?
The engine was only running on cyl #2. Maybe the answer is clogging of carb #1 coupled with too tight intake valve on #3 ?

.

.04 is really tight
yes a tight intake will make for hard starting and loss of cylinder firing , and when ithe engine warms up it will usually go to  zero clearance and actually holding the valve open . Gummed up carbs will also drop a cylinder .and a dirty air filter will make a triple not want to start and not idle good at all .

[harre]

Engine actually was running good for a short while after cooling down, but started to hesitate after a few minutes when engine was warmed up as suggested. Carbs were also drained (by the company) before I tested. Air filter was pretty dirty, but ther was no improvement with a new one (K&N).

By the way. I asked the mother ship for a new sprag but Triumph Sweden said that 40000 km (25K miles) is an accepted interval for a sprag change. I've got no response yet for my somewhat bitter reply to that.

Next step: write (angry) letter to local Triumph workshop.

[John Stenhouse]

Make sure you send a copy of the letter to Triumph UK, always good to tell the factory if the dealers standards slip

[harre]

That was a good idea. Will do.

[coachgeo]

That was a good idea. Will do.

update or has jobless lack of income cut into the plans?

[harre]

I wrote to Triumph. One week later the local workshop phoned me and complained that I have contacted Triumph behind their back. He said that they could offer new shims, and that's all. I'm not satisfied with that. I want a refund for the whole valve job at least. I'm currently filing a complaint to the consumer rights organization. The answer will take a few weeks I guess. Writing to Triumph did not help my case, and I did not even get a written reply. Those guys need to work on their customer relations. The good news is that the Tiger engine is repaired now, I will pick it up next week. The marriage to the frame will have to wait since the frame is behind a wall of snow right now. I have full confidence in this other workshop (Suzuki) since the mech has worked with these Tigers back in the 90's. He has put in new sprag, adjusted the valves and cleaned the carbs. All for $680. Not cheap, but at least I have found a workshop that can service my bike instead of the Triumph guys. I am still unemployed though, so I'l have to cut down on other expenses. I'll be very happy when I hear the roar of the Tiger again. It will be worth the money.

[aeronca]

brother harre, hows the bike comming along?

[harre]

It's slowly coming together now. I have ordered a set of Tourances (back and front), these will be delivered from Reifenversand, Germany next week ($310). Last week I got a new chain, sprockets and chain tool from triumph-online, UK ($207). I am changing from 18 to 19 teeth of the ront sprocket. This should calm the Tiger a bit on the long runs.
Engine is now in place in the frame with the help from a friend. This was still a bit tricky. One thing that helped was to use ratchet tie down straps to lift the rear wheel. This makes it easy to adjust the position of the engine mounting lugs that are affected by the position of the swingarm. I have also bought some extra goodies: Pro Taper ATV Mid handlebars. A short shifter, so I can toss the SLOPPY linkage. To small extra lights to be attached where the horns are now. I'll post picts when I have mounted these things. I have also thought about re-routing the electrical wiring and fuse box that is now hidden under the luggage rack (what were they thinking?).
To make things even more inspiring, last week my brother traded his Honda VFR800 for a Girly (2003), and is now sending me pics of him exploring the many gravel roads back home in Arjeplog in northern Sweden. So, the Tiger is slowly coming alive, but I haven't started her yet. Maybe in one or two more weeks if everything goes smoothly. One thing that remains is to find a good luggage rack. I like the Five Stars Givi rack I have seen on some European Steamers, but I have never seen them on Ebay (UK, Germany). I will check my brothers Givi racks (PL725) and see how much re-building that will be necessary.
I'll keep you posted.

[aeronca]

glad to hear to bike is comming along. good job 8)

[harre]

I just came home after a trip to Norway with my brother (955i) and a buddy (1150GS). Bike runs really good. Lowest fuel consumption ever but still pretty good throttle response. Tried the 955i, and it felt a little lighter, with a smooth engine. That bike has a smarter and more purposeful design, but my Steamer had a crisper throttle response and looks rugged. So I'm still happy. What can be better than to ride with your buddies? The Steamer is now tested and found to be better than before! It has the same maximum distance as the GS with a 30 litre tank. Our friendship is restored.