Hello all!
It has been a while. The Tiger is still lurking around although I have hardly ridden her. Currently a friend with a garage has offered to handle the long overdue maintenance task. While he is at it, the rest of the bike will also be inspected.
Fortunately it looks like the bike is mechanically in good condition, it just needs some love, fresh fluids and a chain to keep her at bay.
When she comes back, I intend and hope to ride a lot more and this is where I would like to ask you for some advice. There is so much information and products available that it is easy to get lost in the options. I am looking for some parts and upgrades to make the ride even more comfortable. What do you suggest?
- Higher windshield.The current shield is leading the wind right underneath my helmet, causing quite some noise.
- Daylight lights. I am always surprised how much those lights help. They also make the bike look a bit wider which helps with the intimidating factor.
- Top case. Driving with a backpack is so-so. It would be nice to have something to put my gear in. One of those aluminum boxes would be great but are expensive. A Givi might be another option, but do they all fit?
- Phone / Navigation connectors. No matter how charming it is to find the way with a map and memory, it would be nice to actually get somewhere in time.
- Volt meter
Those items should get me sorted for now. I am sure there are other things worthwhile and handy but they are for a later time.
Thanks in advance!
edit: Forgot one more thing; a cover. Since she will be outside most of the time, a good cover would be great. Most of them tend to disintegrate after about a year of daily use, quite a shame if you need to replace them every year. Especially since they do tend to cost a good amount of money,
What do you use to store the bike?
I experimented with the screen to see what I could do regarding the wind/buffeting on my Girly when I first got her.
I got hold of a small screen spoiler from eBay, which was around £15. also got hold of a 'Touring' screen which was a couple of inches taller than the standard.
For each screen configuration, I took the Girly out around a 6 mile ride, along the same roads and the same day, so the weather was, at least similar for each ride. First up was the standard screen. Next, the standard screen with the spoiler. This was quite good at reducing buffeting and wind noise.
Then I tried the 'Touring' screen. This was marginally better than the standard screen on its own but not as good as the standard screen with the spoiler. I then added the spoiler, which seemed to make no difference to the wind, but even with my height at a modest 177cm (5'10) I found the top of the screen distracting and in my eyeline.
I then pinched an idea, possibly from this very forum and added 10mm spacers between the bottom of the screen and the nosecone with 15mm spacers at the top. Basically I used a piece of rigid hose, and 4 longer bolts to replace the screen bolts. I found this as good as the standard screen with the aerofoil. I then added the aerofoil to the screen with the spacers. Best result yet and to this day is the configuration I've stuck with.
The theory behind raising the screen off the nosecone with spacers is that it allows a stream of air to pass between the nosecone and the inside of the screen, which acts in a similar way to a wing, the air pressure on the inside of the screen is slightly lower than outside so it seems to stabilise the airflow. Unlike the standard setup which causes a lot of turbulence.
I noticed that some later Tigers, can't remember if it was the 1050 or 800 use spacers for much the same reason, although never having ridden one, I couldn't say whether it works - I only know it seems to work for my Girly & me.
As far as top boxes go, mine originally had a Kappa box (made by Givi I believe, but a cheaper version) & had a conversion plate fitted to my luggage rack, so I know they exist. I probably still have an old conversion plate somewhere as I tend to hang on to these things, having more than one bike, in case I need it.
Can't help with the other things really, as I have a Garmin Satnav which is hardwired and links to both my phone and Bluetooth headset. Prior to that, I just used Google Maps on my phone, linked to my Bluetooth headset. My phone stayed in my pocket as I didn't really need to see a map, just hear the instructions. You could use a Quadlock for a phone and I'm sure if you haven't already got a power socket (don't know whether Steamers have one or not), you can get a USB one from eBay to power a phone.
I've seen bikes with volt meters fitted and you can get USB power sockets with an in-built volt meter, but I don't have any experience of them. As long as it's wired to a switched live (like my Garmin mount) so it is powered off when the ignition is off, I can't see it would be a problem.
Windscreen Options
There are only two commonly available that I know of:-
Short Flip - Available from Powerbronze, Dreamscreenuk (ebay), both UK makes and possibly other makers / suppliers. Works well enough just to raise the airflow towards helmet top but don't expect any protection from rain.
Long / Wide "Touring" Flip - Available only from Powerbronze to the best of my knowledge. Diverts air even more and does provide a very small amount of rain protection but it can vibrate under certain conditions being largely unsupported.
I have seen photos of a few home made arrangements by adapting other screens, some look more effective than others but can't comment on how effective they might be. Screens, like bar risers etc. are very personal things and results vary depending on what shape you are and even which helmet you use, so I can't recommend any one over another.
One thing I would recommend is fitting a tank bag, over the years and many bikes I've always found a reduction in turbulence when I have a tank bag fitted, the bigger the better. My theory is that by filling much of the volume behind the cowl / screen there is less free air / low pressure volume to be influenced by the air spilling over and around the screen, similar to the effect of raising the screen to allow air to flow under it. I have no technical evidence to support that theory, so make of it what you will.
Voltmeter
See recent Post in Farkles
Thanks Sin, the volt meter looks interesting.
For the windscreen, I might eventually end up with a screen by SeCDem. They look ok but I will have to decide on which size to get.
https://www.secdem.fr/en/catalogue-moto.php?reference=BT011HP&typerecherche=moto&marque=TRIUMPH&modele=900%20TIGER&annee=1995/1997
One more question; when putting the bike back together, we noticed that a bolt of the front forks was hitting the little frame tubings when steering all the way to the left. You won't be using this position much, except when doing a u-turn, and even then, it requires just a small bit of effort to push it through. However, these things can bug me beyond belief and I would like to fix it. Can you just bend the small bar a bit so that it goes over the bolt? Or does it do anything else than holding up the fairings?
I would look very closely at the fairing sub frame, I'd suspect it's bent.
I haven't seen that offering before but I have seen home made jobs very similar. Those screens look suspiciously like they are from T300 Trophy / Sprints, I'll have a look at the ones I have and see how well they could be adapted, a used one would be a lot cheaper.
It certainly seems like it is bent. The bike has been dropped several times now (car backing out the driveway and rolling of the center stand on a sloped parking spot) and I think that on one of those occasions it might have landed on its nose.
The questions is, can I safely reshape it by hitting it with a hammer so the bolt can move freely underneath or do I need to replace the subframe with a straight one?
Not sure what year yours is, but earlier models only had a single tube in the centre of the fairing subframe, and it was common for it to shear, allowing the fairing to drop.
Mine had it, and I eased a long 8mm bolt, with no head down the tube, and it was fine for years.
Spot on Phil.
As long as you can't find any cracks you'll probably get away with judicious pressure :augie I'd suggest clamping a straight edge across the front and doing some measuring to figure out which way you need to bend it. The bends will probably be in the areas near the welded joints if you can't see anything in the straight parts. I'd suggest using a lever of some sort rather than :cp allows you a bit more gradual control of what's going :nod and this advice comes from someone who really enjoys hitting things with hammers :icon_lol:
I tracked down a replacement small screen manufactured here in OZ. $85Au plus freight.
Cheap if you convert it to pommie currencey or Euros ;)
Would be great if you can add a link ;)
I will take a look at the tubing. Good to know that it can be bend as needed without compromising the handling.
If you need any dimensions, post a pic with which ones you need.
Hello all,
Been riding quite a bit lately. The bike holds well and it is a pleasure to drive again. However, it is thirsty! I am averaging 1:12 (liter per km). This seems a lot. How are your steamers doing?
Any tips on how to improve the gas usage?
If I understand you correctly that is 12 km/litre ? (33.9 Miles per UK Gal)
Yes that is high unless you are riding in town all the time.
I would expect to get between 45 - 50 UK mpg (15.9 - 17.7 km/litre) with mixed roads riding.
First check you have no leaks, nothing coming from the overflow pipes on the carburettors.
Check none of your brakes are binding, stop after a run and see if the wheels spin free and / or check the discs for heat. Make sure you are not unknowingly resting your foot on the rear brake pedal (easy to do).
Check what gearing you have, normally 18 teeth drive sprocket and 45 teeth on the wheel sprocket.
Only after you are sure of the above should you think about carb checks / adjustment.
Yes, that is what I am saying and I found it high as well. Even though I usually commute on the bike (11KM one way trip) through mostly urban environment, it is still higher than expected.
The sprockets are still standard. I do have a replacement set laying around for when the next oil change is due. This will also be the standard size.
Resting my foot on the break pedal is something I have stopped doing right after I started my lessons. The brake disc in the back was warm after my last trip, but not hot. Warm is to be expected since I do tend to use the rear brake more often (but for less power) than the front brake. Especially when riding up to the traffic lights.
There is also no leakage coming out of the pipes.
I did a carburetor sync about 2-3 weeks ago, changed two shims to reach the valve spec again and the wheels are running free. The spark plugs were also changed and none of them looked especially black. There are also no pops coming from the exhausts.
Carbs can be a pain to deal with and I am feeling some hesitation to start messing around with the mixture screws. I am doing some more freeway riding this tank and will let you know how that went. This weekend I will hit the 200km on the current tank which should be a nice point to fill her up again and get some easy to calculate usage stats.
Sounds like you have ruled out the simple stuff.
Although the plug condition suggests it's all OK, I'd check the choke, at least it will rule that out. Two things to check:-
1 - The choke cable is not sticking in the outer and is leaving a touch of free play at the carb end, check it again with the bars full lock both ways.
2 - All three choke valve actuator "forks" are in the grooves on all three valves, it's possible to have one miss when working on the carbs which will hold the other two open a fraction.