General question about the whole carb/airbox removal process

[Jomama]

So I'm tearing into my Steamer for the first time. A 1996 with 25k...  Original owner did lots of good maintenance on it, some upgrades, etc, and had it till about 23k...  So unfortunatly, I never met him, I bought from 2nd owner who didn't know bikes.

I got some nology coils to install, and wanted to see what the whole disassemble entailed..  Started looking at what else I should tackle while I'm in there.  I'm pretty mechanically inclined, but I've mostly worked on Land Cruisers, not bikes, and I have zero experience in the whole carb adjustment & syncing process.

So I got to look in the Airbox yesterday after removing everything that far.  Original Owner put a K&N in there.  It looks to have a good 1/16th-1/8 inch of crap caked to it.

So to get at the filter, I gotta remove the carbs.  

My question is do the carbs then require a readjustment/synchronizing?  Or can they be removed without messing that up?

The reality is the bike runs really well, but I liked the what I read on the forums about the improvement with the nology install..  Now I want to do the preventative stuff I should since I'm in there, but am concerned I will mess up the carbs and I lack the equipment and knowledge to re-synch them..



I am happy the tank removal was much easier than I expected  :D

[Mustang]

you can pull the carbs and then simply reinstall . You won't alter anything . They come out the right side easier and go back in easier from the right side
WD 40 is your friend when shoving the carbs back in , hose the rubber boots down with it on the engine and airbox ,
when removing the carbs unhook the choke cable at the carbs themselves and unhook the throttle cable from the twist grip , trust me it's much easier that way . while you have the carbs out look and see if the original filter is still inserted in the 'T' where the fuel line connects , if it is pull it out with a pair of needle nose pliers and clean it and reinstall ..

The triumph airbox can be separated and remove the filter for cleaning . when you put the clean filter back in use silicone sealer on the filter flange or they like to suck dust .

Or you can buy a new filter from triumph which comes in a brand spankin new airbox .
Personally I prefer the triumph filter over a K&N.  everyone has their own opinions on these , but if it can flow 50% more air as claimed it can flow more dust too . Don't forget to hook the oil breather pipe back to the airbox before you shove the carbs back in .

When you put your fairing  panels back on put a dab of grease on the bolts and only tighten them hand tight , this will prevent them from seizing and then just spinning the captive nuts in the gas tank .

[Jomama]

Thanks stang,

Got it all out last night..  Far easier than I expected again (reinstall will be interesting)

I notice I am missing a little rubber "nipple cover" on the top of one of the carb's (it had a piece of electrical tape on it, came off).. One has a short piece of hose plugged up on it, another has what looks to be the appropriate rubber cover.

Are these nipples for syncing?  And am I right in assuming I need to find a new cover/plug for the one that the tape came off of?


I also notice that I am down by the Alt now, would it be a good idea to confirm I do not have any DAR issues?  I have no reason to think I do, but since I'm there....

I'm kinda amazed my bike was running as well as it was with the air filter having as much gunk on it as it did...

[Mustang]

yep those are the vacuum ports for setting the synch on the carbs . The one you have with a pc of hose on it was probably being used to run a scott chain oiler at some point in the bikes life.

Bike bandit or your dealer can get you the original rubber caps to plug them up with . It wouldn't be a bad idea as any vacuum leak will make it run pretty bad .

if you pull the three torx bolts that hold the alternator in , you should be able to pull it straight out , it's a tight fit cuz it has an oring seal . Then you can inspect the cush drive rubbers for wear and also on the enginge side if you can pull the drive out towards you thru the alternator hole , DON"T DO IT that will be the sure sign that the bolts are sheared on the alt. drive .
if you   pull the drive out far enough you will drop parts inside the case and need to split the engine , not a good thing to do


the best way to check the alt drive on the clutch side is to pull the clutch cover and look see if the bolt is still there on the alt drive .
It is the bolt in the  12 o'clock position right behind the clutch hub gear
(see pic)

[Jomama]

Ok just to clarify..  since I am not familiar where all these things are located on the engine..


I can check, being careful, if I have potentially have the DAR by removing the Alt from the L-side of the bike, and fiddle with that bolt but not remove it if it does appear to be free.

If it does appear I have a issue, the actual repair is done from the other side of the motor (R-side)?

So this whole issue (DAR) is about the head of that bolt shearing?  So if its fine, I should not be able to move it from the other side (L-side)?  And any movement "out" from the L-side would indicate it has been sheared?

Again, Thanks for the help.

[Mustang]

you got it ! :D

[nightrunner]

There are actually actually three bolts that can sheer.  Two are accessible when you pull the alternator.  The third is on the clutch side as in Mustang's pic, and by far the biggest pain.  Usually its the one on the alt itself that breaks.  The problem is that the vanes have the tiniest amount of jiggle room on the splined shaft, even after the bolt is torqued.  After thousands of miles of leading and trailing torque, the bolt can slowly tighten to the point it just sheers.  You may need a machinist to remove the broken bolt.  The factory bolt is a DIN 10.9 (equivalent to US grade 8 ) so its already pretty tough.  I found some DIN 12.9 aircraft bolts and used one of those.  The trick is to put some sort of epoxy on the spline to remove the jiggle.    It might also work to use a flat washer on that bolt (along with threadlocker) and not a lock washer.

Also be very careful not to pinch that O-ring on the alternator.  It will leak oil.

As Mustang said the carbs are easy to remove/install once the rubber boots have been coated with something slippery.   I like wheel bearing grease though; never have to reapply it.   I've also found that you can work on the carbs easily with removing the throttle cable.   Just rig up something to support them on the right side of the bike.    No need to fight with the throttle cable.

As Mustang said, the carbs are removed as a set and it will not affect the synchronization.  Still its not a bad idea to check it once in a while and it does not require tear down.  You can buy an electronic sync tool for $100-$150 or you can rig up a clear tube with water or oil in it and a valve to act as a dampener.  There are a number of threads on this at Advrider.    One carb has no adjusting screw and that is your reference carb.  You compare the differential vacuum from the other carbs to that one.   Don't bother with the mercury carb sticks.  There is no reason to have a stick on each cylinder since each carb is set individually to match the reference carb.

And you can hit most any auto parts store and get some vacuum caps.  Shuld be cheaper than TR dealer.

Are the rubber washers on the fairing screws dried and cracked.  You can buy alomost exactly the same size in a bag of a hundred from McMaster Carr.   TR dealer will burn you on those too.

OK, I'm done going off topic.  Good luck with it.

[Jomama]

Thanks again, I got it all apart, the K&N actually cleaned up pretty well and is drying now.  

Going to pull the Alt to check those bolts and then will start to put it back together this weekend.  

Leaving the throttle cable on the carbs and detaching it from the twist grip was a great trick.


I notice in a few of the "airbox threads" posters mention some type of pre-filter on the left-half, at the intake.  Not the aftermarket/modified ones either, but I've read mention of some pre-screen on the OEM setup...  Is that only on certain years?  Cause I got nothing like that... its just a open length of plastic 2" tube off the box, left side is open, right side is capped..

[Jomama]

Are the rubber washers on the fairing screws dried and cracked.  You can buy alomost exactly the same size in a bag of a hundred from McMaster Carr.   TR dealer will burn you on those too.

Actually yes, and some where just non-existent, and I was missing the bolt/washer combo in one hole on each side, on the part of the fairing below the gas tank.

Do you know the size washer I should get from McMaster?  I'm guessing its one of these but don't have any old ones here to check against http://www.mcmaster.com/#rubber-washers/=1dxb7i

[nightrunner]

I couldn't find the package or I would have just sent you a set.  But in measuring them I'm fairly certain the ones I'm using are #90133A040, 0.093" thick, 0.290" ID, and 11/16" OD.  Looks like around $13 for a bag of 100.  They fit over the screw shank a little tighter than stock.  They do not fall off when the screws are removed.  And you'll have a few spares.  :D

[Jomama]

So I got it down to this.






And its rock solid no play at all?  The head of the bolt says 10.9

Do I want to grease the cush drive rubbers at all?  I notice some goop underneath them.

[Mustang]

So I got it down to this.






And its rock solid no play at all?  The head of the bolt says 10.9

Do I want to grease the cush drive rubbers at all?  I notice some goop underneath them.

nope just button it back up , you'll be fine

[offtheback]

The goop is probably some type of adhesive (silicone?) to keep those little buggers in place at the factory.  I wondered the same when I was working on mine..  It is a bit of a hassle to get the vanes of the alternator to line up with the little cush bumpers, while they are trying to fall out.  Good to hear you did not have DAR, bit of a pain but not a big deal to fix.

Congrats and enjoy your ride.