Crasher goes North

This summer I am taking my Tiger on what I hope will be an epic adventure. It has been a long time dream of mine to ride a motorcycle to the Nordkapp, at the northern tip of Norway. It is just one of those places I have always wanted to visit, after reading about it during my early twenties. There is nothing much there, and it has turned into a tourist trap due to people wanting to travel to this rocky cliff top at the top of Europe. It is a long way from my home in the UK, and getting there involves riding lots of miles through the stunning Scandinavian county side. So, this adds another element to the trip. 

The initial idea came about during a conversation with my friend Greg. He lives in Norway, and regularly attends the AF1 Forum Caponord camping weekends in Wales. Once the suggestion of a trip to the Nordkapp was mentioned, I was the first to sign up. The Aprilia Caponord was named after the Nordkapp, so several other owners started to show interest in the trip. While I no longer have my Caponord, I am always made welcome by the guys and girls from the forum who I keep in touch with.

I applied for my leave from work a year in advance, as I would need longer than the standard two week break to complete the trip. It took a while for my bosses to agree, but once this was granted the planning could really begin.

This planning will come to fruition in a couple of weeks time, when I catch my ferry to Sweden and begin the trip. I will post a ride report, and hopefully a series of short films and blogs about the trip when I return towards the end of August. I can't wait.

Time for a new pair of tyres........again.

A few months ago I fitted a pair of Michelin Anakee 3 tyres. They replaced the awful Pirelli Scorpion Trail tyres the bike came fitted with from new.

The Anakee 3's have been great tyres. They grip well in all conditions, coping well with wet roads, and giving confidence inspiring levels of grip in the dry. However, they are very noisy tyres. They sound like an old Landrover on knobbly tyres roaring down the road.

But, having covered just over 2000 miles the handling is beginning to suffer. Having checked the tyres, I have discovered that they are just starting to square off. The front tyre feels like the worse of the two. The tyres still have plenty of tread on them. 5mm on the front, and 7mm on the rear. I am being picky. But, I can feel the difference from when they were new. With my big trip coming up soon, it was time for a new pair of tyres. I will refit the Anakee 3's when I return, to see how long they last.

As, I am going on a big trip that may involve some gravel roads I looked for a tyre that could cope with both tarmac and a bit of hard packed gravel. The Anakee 3's are a 90% tarmac/ 10% off road tyre. Another set of these would probably cope with the riding I have in mind. I am just a little disappointed with the wear rate.

Looking at all my options most of the tyres available, most of the tyres available for modern adventure bikes seem to be tarmac biased. The tyre manufactures know their market as most owners never stray from the black stuff.

I looked at the new Continental TKC70 tyres. These are a 70/30 tyre. However, they do not produce a 90/90VR21 suitable for the Tiger yet. It is due out later in the year. Another tyre that has got good ratings at the lauch was Dunlop's new Trailsmart tyre. These are an update of the TR91 tyres which have been around for a few years. They are a road based tyre, but they have a deep tread. I am familiar with the Roadsmart tyres that the Trailsmart are based on, as I use them at work.

I ordered a set online and fitted them earlier this week. They are nice and easy to fit. The silica rich compound should make them quite grippy and long lasting. They were easier to fit than the Anakee 3's. I just hope they work ok on my trip.

 

 

 

They look good on the bike. The front seems to have a much rounder profile. The Anakee 3 always felt very square in comparison. Hopefully I will get the chance to try them out in the next few days.

Time for some new brake pads

I recently took my bike back to my supplying Triumph dealer for it's 6000 mile/ annual service. My bike is now a year old and needed a service on date rather than mileage. I had done 4736 miles at the time of service.

The bike was ushered away into the workshop while I waited, drinking coffee and catching up on some emails on my phone.

A couple of hours later the bike was brought out to the front of the shop, and the bill for the service was explained to me. On the bill was a charge for brake fluid, which the mechanic had topped up. When I questioned why this had been done, the slightly flummoxed service receptionist explained that it was part of the Triumph service schedule. The Triumph service schedule mentions to check brake fluid levels, not adjust them. The reason for this will be explained in a moment.

After a brief explanation of why I thought this should not of been done, this part of the charges was removed from my bill. I paid the rest and went on my way. Yet again I have had a  technical problem with a dealer. ( I should explain at this point that I am a highly trained motorcycle technician with over 20 years experience. I only take my bike to the dealer for warranty reasons).

You see the hydraulic braking system is a sealed system. The only time the fluid level should be adjusted is when a fluid change is performed, or you have a leak. The fluid level in the reservoirs goes down as the pads wear and more fluid is required to fill the void behind the piston as it moves out to push the pad onto the disc. The reservoirs are made of a translucent material or have sight windows, as a visual guide to pad wear. If your fluid level is getting near the "low" mark, you need to investigate what is wrong. You take a look. There are no fluid leaks. You check the pads. They are low. You fit new ones, pushing the caliper pistons back to do so. Oh look! The fluid level has risen back to the "max" mark in the reservoir again. Simples!

But, if the mechanic tops the fluid up at service time, you lose this visual aid. You also end up with too much fluid in the system. This then has to be drained off to fit new pads. AAAAAAHHHHH!!

So, with this in mind I visually checked the rear pads when I got home. They were a bit worn, but still appeared to have plenty of material left on them. I then used the bike for a couple of weeks of commuting, and a weekend away camping in Wales.

After cleaning the bike after the Wales trip ( it rained a lot!), I discovered this. Less than a thousand miles after the service.

There is about 2mm of pad material left, so time for a change. The front pads were not quite as worn. But, as I am going on my big summer trip I thought it would be best to change all three sets, as I don't want any avoidable problems while away.

Although I like to have the odd spirited ride, these days I am a bit of a steady rider. I do find that I get through brake pads, particularly rear pads on these kind of adventure bikes. It must be something to do with weight distribution, or the style of riding.

Not wanting to give my inept dealer any more of my hard earned cash, I shopped around for new pads. If the dealer had mentioned the pad wear at the service, I would of probably asked him to fit some. But, he didn't so missed out on the business.

Having used them before, and being impressed, I chose a set of Galfer sintered pads from Calsport. As a bonus, they were also on offer with 30% off.

I cleaned up the calipers and greased the sliding pins. The calipers were good to go. I checked the brake fluid levels too. I had to remove 40ml from the rear reservoir, so that I could push the piston back! I then popped the pads in to complete the job. I will see how long this set lasts.

Next another new set of tyres.........

Puig Touring Screen

One of the problems I have with Tiger is a certain amount of screen buffeting. I have tried a variety of screens and screen modifications. But, none of which have eliminated the problem completely.

In one of my previous posts, I modified the Triumph touring screen by adding a MRA spoiler from an old screen. This worked quite well at certain speeds. But, on longer trips at motorway speeds the screen flexed too much and the buffeting returned.

A friend of mine had recently fitted a Puig touring screen to his Tiger and was raving about how good it was. I like the looks of the new screen. And, also noticed that it had additional braces either side. Could this be the screen for me? It certainly looked like it.

I shopped around for the best deal and eventually found a bargain at www.bs-motorparts.de. The screen was delivered within 48 hours from Germany.

What's in the box?

 

The screen came very well packaged from BS-Motorparts

 

 

When I unpacked the screen I was pleasantly surprised that it was already assembled, and ready to bolt on as a direct replacement for the existing screen.

 

What came in the box. Here you can see the screen, fitting kit, the spoiler, and a comprehensive instruction booklet. Being a man, I ignored the last item!

 

Here you can see the difference between the standard Triumph screen on the right, and the Puig Touring screen on the left. You will also notice that I ordered the Puig screen in the light tint option.

 

The Puig screen fitted in just a few minutes. It uses the standard Triumph mounting screws and hardware for the brackets and the lower screen holes. I then fitted the spoiler section. This was again a simple exercise, involving a few screws.

 

All of the holes for the brackets and screws are pre-drilled. The spoiler brackets are the same and will fit either side.

 

 

And here is the screen all fitted. The adjustment mechanism is simple to use, and offers a good range of movement. Combined with the additional adjustment available from the spoiler, I seem to be able to find a good setting for most speeds.

 

The screen braces, with them holding the screen much higher than the Triumph items, prevent the screen from flexing so much at motorway speeds. This makes the buffeting much more tolerable to the point that I hardly notice it anymore. It has taken a bit of experimentation to get a setting that I like. But, for now I am happy. I have a long trip planned this summer, and this screen will certainly help with covering big miles with ease.