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Making the Steamer off road ready? Pure Dual Sport?

Started by OK Tiger, September 30, 2009, 08:19:34 AM

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OK Tiger

I have been using my 1996 Tiger (90,000+ km) mostly street but am increasingly moving onto forestry roads, bumps and gravel.  I have 'aggressive' tires and a spare set of knobbies.  What would people suggest for additional off road preparation?  Note ... I hope to take an Alaskan trip inside 12 months ...  :lol:
Not the destination but the journey...for one wonders if we ever really arrive.

1996 Triumph Tiger
1967 BSA Hornet
2011 Suzuki VStrom 650

JetdocX

Bring along a pal to help you lift it when you drop it in the sand/mud/loose rock/(insert your favorite hazard here). :lol:  :lol:  :lol:
From parts unknown.

NoShock

When did you last have your rear shock serviced. I would look into improving the suspension front and back. Emulators in front and for the rear take a look at
http://www.sasquatchrider.com/

btw http://tigertriple.com/forum/index.php/topic,6505

Stretch


OK Tiger

So, what kind of long term mileage have people heard of Steamers getting?  I have 90,000 km now and some say I should expect 200,000+ ...
Not the destination but the journey...for one wonders if we ever really arrive.

1996 Triumph Tiger
1967 BSA Hornet
2011 Suzuki VStrom 650

Sin_Tiger

I have 86,000 mls and it would have gone for a lot more had I not decided it needed some care  :roll: after the previous lack of servicing  :evil:

Now it's in intesive, must post up the pics this weekend.
I used to have long hair, took acid and went to hip joints. Now I long for hair, take antacid and need a new hip joint

Rocinante

Replacing the original exhaust with a 3-1 light weight system is a big improvement (just did this and realized I should have done years ago). The 9-10 kg you save in weight (and weight high up on the bike as well) makes the bike more controlable in low speed off roading, and easier to pick up when you drop it.

Dag
www.dagjen.no
Once upon a time through North and South America:
www.rocinantestravels.com

OK Tiger

That's a great idea ... any ideas for suppliers?

I really noticed the weight this summer on some fire roads here ... not bad at all in the rocky and hard stuff.  On the freshly graveled or sandy, however, a nightmare of nervousness.  Lot's of diving when braking ...
Not the destination but the journey...for one wonders if we ever really arrive.

1996 Triumph Tiger
1967 BSA Hornet
2011 Suzuki VStrom 650

Rocinante

Quote from: "OK Tiger"That's a great idea ... any ideas for suppliers?

I really noticed the weight this summer on some fire roads here ... not bad at all in the rocky and hard stuff.  On the freshly graveled or sandy, however, a nightmare of nervousness.  Lot's of diving when braking ...

There are few pipes made for the Steamer, but you can use a Motad Venom for the Daytona and rebuild it slightly. Patrick Rielo did this. There's a link to him earlier in the thread.

I used a light weight 3-1 system from Norman Hyde. It was made for Sprint. In the top image in the link below you can see the tube has been bent slightly and compressed a little about 10 cm behind the footpeg. That's where it was (brutally) modified to get a steeper upwards angle than it had originally.

http://tigertriple.com/forum/index.php/topic,7023
www.dagjen.no
Once upon a time through North and South America:
www.rocinantestravels.com

Colonel Nikolai

Rocinante, the mod doesn't look bad at all. I'm impressed. Did you use a mandrel to do the bend?
Mostly commuting around town on the Steamer these days.

Rocinante

Quote from: "Colonel Nikolai"Rocinante, the mod doesn't look bad at all. I'm impressed. Did you use a mandrel to do the bend?

I went to a exhaust dealer and they let me use their pipe bender. I regret a little that we did the whole bend in one spot instead of bending it little by little. The pipe walls are paper thin and compresses out of shape very easily.
But what the heck, the compression in the tube probably reduces the air flow back to stock pipes or there about, hence no need for carburettor adjustment.

That's my excuse anyway....

Dag
www.dagjen.no
Once upon a time through North and South America:
www.rocinantestravels.com

fishnbiker

Some good ideas here. You really should think about getting more engine protection. Get some wider aluminum plate rigged up to fit in front of the existing pipe style. Even if you never need to bounce it of a boulder, it keeps the mud off most of the engine.
Ken/Fishnbiker
& Felix, blue 95 Tiger, & Buzz, 08 blue Suzuki DR 650 SE, & Mini-D, 97 white Suzuki DR 350 SE

Mudhen

How about gearing...depending on how rough you're going to go, you'll certainly want to lower it down some.

Since you have a separate set of rims for off road, you could have something big on that one - I run a 53t.  Then maybe drop to 17 on the front.  OR...chop your front sprocket cover apart so you can more easily swap that out...go down to a 16 for those times when you're going off road a lot...and go up to 19 for highway work...
\'96 Steamer

Colonel Nikolai

Anyone have a link to how to split the front sprocket cover?
Mostly commuting around town on the Steamer these days.

Mustang

Quote from: "Colonel Nikolai"Anyone have a link to how to split the front sprocket cover?

http://tigertriple.com/forum/index.php/topic,5024

scroll down to about the 8 or 9th post of Patrick's .......... :thumbsup