|  | Topic : Mechanical review |  |
| | | Sightglass | | Set |  | | Reg. Date | : | 14/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 3 | | Location | : | Cape Coral, Florida, United States |
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| | Posted : 14 May 2009 - 01:02 Post title : Mechanical review | | | Hey folks, My name is Pete, and I'm a Triumph tech in SW Florida. I've been with Triumph for a bit over 4 years now. I'm also a BMW, and Ducati certifyed tech. I just did the model training for the Tbird, and was requested by a member on another forum to post my little review here.
I will say right now, I will never claim to have all the answers, but will do my best to get them when questions are asked. I'm also very involved with a club, The Brit Iron Rebels, so I don't spend much time on other forums. That being said, anybody is welcome to contact me via email if their lookin for help or a question.
sightglass@gmail.com
Once again, it looks llike Triumph engineers have a winner with the 1600 twin that will power the Tbird. This is no Bonnie engine on steroids, and has some nice design features
Starting with the gear box, the new six speed box has straight cut first and sixth gear sets. Second through fifth are conical cut to reduce noise. Between the new gear designs and the belt drive, it makes for a fairly quiet drive line.
They have moved to a hydraulic cam chain tensioner for reasons of quiet operation, and now have an idler gear in the bottom end to run the cam chain, giving a quieter top end. Because of the mass of the engine (800cc per cyl) they have added compression releases to the exhaust cam for quicker cranking giving it easier starting and less abuse to the battery.
They are running a duel spark for a strong flame front, and emission reasons. As with all the curent Triumph engines, it has secondary air injection, but there's a bit of a twist. With the Euro 3 standards in place, the engine runs so clean, the SAI is non operational. Future virsions of the bike may not have SAI at all, dependant on 30K testing their in the middle of right now.
You might say, how can they release the bike prior to the testing..... They havent. The testing for the standard configured bikes have all been done, and passed. The testing is for the engines that have the big bore kit installed. In another first for the company, triumph will offer a factory big bore kit. The kit will bring the bike up from 85HP to 100, and from 108 to 115 torque. The parts, which will be pistons, pins, liners, cam shafts, gaskets, bolts, and performance air filter will retail for around 900 USD. It will not be a factory install set up, and they estimate the cost to the customer willl be around 2K parts and labor as a dealer upgrade. If the SAI is needed, a quick remap, and the bike will be ready to rip.
The clutch is the biggest Triumph has used to date, even larger then the one used in the Rocket. They had gone to a ratchet type clutch lifter / accuator for an outstandingly smooth pull. Tey are running a 40 amp charging system, so adding all the stuff people love to put on their bikes will be no issue.
It's a 270 firing crank, and I was taken back by the mass of the crank on the sucker. It's friggin huge. Some have said that you cant hear the bike with a full face on. They must be friggin deaf. I'd have to say, it's one of the best sounding stock exhaust systems Truimph has come out with. No, it's not loud and agressive sounding, but your not going to sound like your on an angry sewing machine either. AS of now, we were told that there are around 100 acessories for the bike. There isn't much in the way of pricing available right now. TNA pushed England to release the bike three months sooner then they wanted, as not to miss prime riding season in the US, so lots of the details aren't finished. We're not expecting repair manuals till at least a mont after the bikes come in. Not to worry, if you tech knows the engine managment system of the Triumph line from 07 and up, they will be able to handle the Tbird
All in all, they did a great job with this engine. I also have to give props on the overall package. While they made it a bit hard for the techs to do some of the work on it because of how well they hid dam near everything, I'm not worried about it.
The world wide press gig started yesterday in Spain, so you should be seeing lots about the bike any time now. While I won't be running out to get one being it's not my style of riding, I expect to see lots of used America, and Speedmasters on the market by mid summer.
Cheers !
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| | | Bedouin | | Jupiter | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 18/10/2008 | | Posts | : | 1,066 | | Location | : | Athens, Greece |
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| | Posted : 14 May 2009 - 01:33 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | Thank you Pete.
Your special knowledge and preceding write-up is much appreciated.
A very valuable contribution regarding the upcoming bike, especially on this site/forum.
Given the design features etc. you have described, it would seem the wait for this machine will be well worth it.
Again, thank you.
| Blessed are those eyes that have seen more roads than any man! (Homer).
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| | | weatherman | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 19/02/2009 | | Posts | : | 232 | | Location | : | Vista, Ca, United States |
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| | Posted : 14 May 2009 - 05:43 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | Thanks much Pete,
I really appreciate the write up and your valuable time spent.
I'm now even more excited about the arrival of my pre-orderd Black Thunderbird here in Ca and look forward to reporting on it in June.
Gary
| If there's a T-bird in the garage then your either sick, broke or missing the time of your life.
Get out and ride that Bird.
The Tbird arrived June 26, 2009 - Speedy was traded in June for a 2012 Bonnie T100.
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| | | Sightglass | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 14/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 3 | | Location | : | Cape Coral, Florida, United States |
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| | Posted : 15 May 2009 - 02:05 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | The latest questions I've gotten is about the big bore kit. It seems that on one of the Triumph sites, where you design your bike, you can have the kit factory installed.
As far as I know, it's not that way for the US market. It wouldn't be the first time Triumph has done something special for the UK market.
I will be contacting Triumph tomorrow during the day to get a solid answer, and will update.
| | Post edited by Sightglass on 15 May 2009 - 02:08 |
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| | | Sightglass | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 14/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 3 | | Location | : | Cape Coral, Florida, United States |
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| | Posted : 15 May 2009 - 22:14 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | OK, there is no factory installed big bore. Apparently, some people just don't read what's right there in front of them.
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| | | strappydoo | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 10/09/2009 | | Posts | : | 11 | | Location | : | SILVER SPRINGS, nevada, United States |
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| | Posted : 12 Sep 2009 - 01:45 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | thanz for the great info, pete.
one can never have too much information.
itz good to know that you are on this site.
could you tell me if the speedo pickup is on one of the wheels or computer generated or on the tranny?
enquiring mindz want to know.
stanz...
stv
| BE JUST AND FEAR NOT,
4 WE R ALL HOSERS IN THE WONDERFUL LAND OF HOSERDOM.
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| | | STEVEG | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 11/07/2009 | | Posts | : | 54 | | Location | : | Danville, CA., United States |
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| | Posted : 12 Sep 2009 - 02:25 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | Hey Thanks for taking the time Pete. Glad your here.
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| | | daz | | Zeus | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 12/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 7,686 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 12 Sep 2009 - 02:49 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | Wow, he posted this months ago. How the %$#@ did i miss it? Anyways, good stuff, thanks ! Just confirms what we who have them that triumph really did a heck of an engineering job on it.
| 2010 Blue/White Thunderbird, "Brutus". 1700 kit, short tors, gutted cat, UNI filter, filter seal off, custom tune. Brutus in his native habitat: Link
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| | | Kurt | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 26/09/2009 | | Posts | : | 5 | | Location | : | Austria |
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| | Posted : 26 Sep 2009 - 17:19 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | Fantastic writeup.
Thank you.
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| | | x675rider | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 22/09/2009 | | Posts | : | 21 | | Location | : | New Zealand |
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| | Posted : 26 Sep 2009 - 22:15 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Kurt) | |
| | | Barber | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 19/09/2009 | | Posts | : | 18 | | Location | : | Italy |
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| | Posted : 29 Sep 2009 - 04:40 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: x675rider) | | | Very interesting. Many thanks.
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| | | ezrider3 | | Chaac | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 21/01/2010 | | Posts | : | 505 | | Location | : | Maryland, United States |
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| | Posted : 08 May 2010 - 19:57 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | | What type of lifter system does this new engine have? Is it still the shimms in the bucket/lifter type that are a pain to adjust?
Thanks
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| | | TraderVic | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 02/02/2010 | | Posts | : | 274 | | Location | : | Manahawkin, NJ, United States |
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| | Posted : 08 May 2010 - 21:31 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: ezrider3) | | |
ezrider3 wrote:
What type of lifter system does this new engine have? Is it still the shimms in the bucket/lifter type that are a pain to adjust?
Thanks |
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Yes.
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| | | daz | | Zeus | | | | Reg. Date | : | 12/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 7,686 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 09 May 2010 - 05:57 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: ezrider3) | | | And i might add that shim and bucket are much more profitable for the dealers.
| 2010 Blue/White Thunderbird, "Brutus". 1700 kit, short tors, gutted cat, UNI filter, filter seal off, custom tune. Brutus in his native habitat: Link
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| | | Birdy68 | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 16/07/2009 | | Posts | : | 3,352 | | Location | : | Bad Zurzach, Aargau, Switzerland |
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| | Posted : 10 May 2010 - 14:14 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: ezrider3) | | |
ezrider3 wrote:
What type of lifter system does this new engine have? Is it still the shimms in the bucket/lifter type that are a pain to adjust?
Thanks |
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As both Vic and Daz confirmed - yes, bucket & shim:
| Birdy68
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Leave the pork pies for now - get the sausage rolls while they're hot!
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more info at Fuelly.com
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| | | cosmic | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 07/07/2012 | | Posts | : | 209 | | Location | : | Bangladesh |
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| | Posted : 27 Jul 2012 - 17:21 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Birdy68) | | | Hi Pete,
Can you advise where I can find information on 1700cam spec,s & ECU ?
Love the bike, Did the engine design come from Mack or Kenworth, They are heavy duty + ! & all the stainless bolts, very nice. My only gripe is the oil filler, Why not cast a boss on there so it doesn,t fill up with road debris ?
Thanks Ian.
| Gunmetal silver,Fournale shocks,Custom 7" headlight,Billet Driving light mounts,Custom Reverse Cone Megaphones No cat, Convertible pillion seat/ backrest, Custom quick release sisi bar,Billet quick-release saddle bag mounts.Front guard extension,Magnetic drain plug.Billet LED mirrors,Custom number plate mount,Custom LED rear indicators. 1700cams only.
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| | | DizzE | | Thor | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 12/07/2010 | | Posts | : | 3,141 | | Location | : | Sunnyvale, CA, United States |
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| | Posted : 27 Jul 2012 - 21:08 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: Sightglass) | | |
Sightglass wrote:
OK, there is no factory installed big bore. Apparently, some people just don't read what's right there in front of them. |
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You mean, "not any more." I have one. They ran off some in '09, before the kit and gave it Phantom Red Haze paint job.
There is a 1700 cam spec posted, by mad_angler. It's in the Performance Section, from Fall of '10, I think.
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| | | DizzE | | Thor | | | | Reg. Date | : | 12/07/2010 | | Posts | : | 3,141 | | Location | : | Sunnyvale, CA, United States |
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| | Posted : 27 Jul 2012 - 21:12 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: cosmic) | | |
cosmic wrote:
Hi Pete,
Can you advise where I can find information on 1700cam spec,s & ECU ?
Love the bike, Did the engine design come from Mack or Kenworth, They are heavy duty + ! & all the stainless bolts, very nice. My only gripe is the oil filler, Why not cast a boss on there so it doesn,t fill up with road debris ?
Thanks Ian. |
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No spec for the ECU. And we didn't have to bust one up, luckily, but I know how to do that.
TuneBoy rewrites the EEPROMs with their own code. And TuneECU just reads and edits.
It has a CAN bus, but still talks ODBII through the diag port.
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| | | theSandyBear | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 09/10/2012 | | Posts | : | 20 | | Location | : | Dubai, United Arab Emirates |
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| | Posted : 09 Nov 2012 - 16:46 Post title : Re: Mechanical review | | | The write up was great, but is there anything like these Victory videos available for the modern Triumph parallell twins?
Link 
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| | | gdp | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 13/03/2013 | | Posts | : | 136 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 01 Sep 2013 - 22:29 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: theSandyBear)....countershaft sprockets | | | ....Hey Pete: Is there any availability of T bird. 1600 countershaft sprockets with one more tooth?...I'm running a smaller diameter rear tire (205/45/17 Altimax HP runflat).... and my speedo is about 10% fast....My thought is that a sprocket with one tooth will get me 3-4% closer to real speed.....Thanks....If I have to have one custom-machined, can you steer me toward any photos, and/or dimensional specs......Funny though, with this lower overall gearing, it not only feels stronger,(as you would expect), but its acual top speed seems to be more.....Thanks for any info you can share ....gdp
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| | | daz | | Zeus | | | | Reg. Date | : | 12/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 7,686 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 01 Sep 2013 - 22:52 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: gdp) | | | Look at Pete's stats......he posted this 4 years ago and hasn't been here since. So you won't be getting an answer from him. As for the pulley, so far no one has found anything to replace them with of a different size. that doesn't mean there is none, but even if there was note that the bird's pulleys have a unique and new coating that makes them last up to 5 times as long developed exclusively for the Tbird. Anything you find won't. But there could be a "regular" one somewhere if you don't mind that. No one so far has found oine tho and nbot sure how many have looked. But it has been mentioned in the past.
gdp wrote:
....Hey Pete: Is there any availability of T bird. 1600 countershaft sprockets with one more tooth?...I'm running a smaller diameter rear tire (205/45/17 Altimax HP runflat).... and my speedo is about 10% fast....My thought is that a sprocket with one tooth will get me 3-4% closer to real speed.....Thanks....If I have to have one custom-machined, can you steer me toward any photos, and/or dimensional specs......Funny though, with this lower overall gearing, it not only feels stronger,(as you would expect), but its acual top speed seems to be more.....Thanks for any info you can share ....gdp |
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| 2010 Blue/White Thunderbird, "Brutus". 1700 kit, short tors, gutted cat, UNI filter, filter seal off, custom tune. Brutus in his native habitat: Link
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| | | gdp | | Set | | | Reg. Date | : | 13/03/2013 | | Posts | : | 136 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 02 Sep 2013 - 21:49 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: daz) | | | ...Thanks...Actually, now that I'm getting accustomed to the (overall shorter) gearing....it's not bad......speedo is definitely in error though......
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| | | daz | | Zeus | | | | Reg. Date | : | 12/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 7,686 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 02 Sep 2013 - 23:45 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: gdp) | | | This bike is anything BUT gear'd short. It may FEEL like that to you for any number of reasons, but the bike is gear'd such that the theoretical top speed in 6th is about 180 MPH, so even 5th would be 165 ! You must agree thats not exactly short gearing.
| 2010 Blue/White Thunderbird, "Brutus". 1700 kit, short tors, gutted cat, UNI filter, filter seal off, custom tune. Brutus in his native habitat: Link
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| | | john2321 | | Set | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 16/01/2016 | | Posts | : | 10 | | Location | : | north east, United Kingdom |
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| | Posted : 22 Jan 2016 - 23:05 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: cosmic) | | | hi pete, wondering if you can advise me about raising the front of my t bird so i can remove the front wheel. as i dont have a lift would it be ok to use a chain hoist with lifting straps around the top of the forks. i wouldnt be lifting the rear wheel of the floor, just raise the front enough to take the wheel off , plus i would be using tie down straps on the rear to help stabalise the bike. in your expert opinion would this be ok to do. many thanks john
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| | | GerPa | | Jupiter | |  | | Reg. Date | : | 10/12/2011 | | Posts | : | 1,919 | | Location | : | Mackay, Central Queensland, Australia |
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| | Posted : 23 Jan 2016 - 12:11 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: john2321) | | | Yes.Just be carefull.
|  May-2011-1600, 20306 Tune, Mustang Vintage Solo Seat, Meerkat Cat Bypass, + Meerkat Modified Short TORS  ,K&N Air Cleaner,K&N Oil Filter, JBQ lifting system, Gold Plug Magnetic Sump Plug,Dart Fly screen, Rivco Risers, GiPro Gear Indicator, Breakaway Cruise Control, Avon ISO Grips, Scorpion Western Low Handlebars, Kury Switchblade Pegs, Garmin Zumo390LM,Michelin RC2 on Front RC 3 on ,Modified Rear Drive Pulley Hub Bearings (Mat1600/Alex4 Modification) Front Susp: Std & 7.5W Oil /126mm Air Gap & Rear:Hagon Nitro's with 26Kg/cm Springs + Lots of other "Bling" stuff.
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| | | daz | | Zeus | | | | Reg. Date | : | 12/05/2009 | | Posts | : | 7,686 | | Location | : | United States |
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| | Posted : 23 Jan 2016 - 14:19 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: john2321) | | | Pete posted this in 2009 and did 3 posts then left so you won't be hearing from him. As to the lift, you really should get one if you intend on working on it yourself. The front you could do like that, the rear, i wouldn't. I suppose it's possible but it would be a nightmare that no words could describe. They're only about $50 USD.
john2321 wrote:
hi pete, wondering if you can advise me about raising the front of my t bird so i can remove the front wheel. as i dont have a lift would it be ok to use a chain hoist with lifting straps around the top of the forks. i wouldnt be lifting the rear wheel of the floor, just raise the front enough to take the wheel off , plus i would be using tie down straps on the rear to help stabalise the bike. in your expert opinion would this be ok to do. many thanks john |
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| 2010 Blue/White Thunderbird, "Brutus". 1700 kit, short tors, gutted cat, UNI filter, filter seal off, custom tune. Brutus in his native habitat: Link
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| | | john2321 | | Set | | | | Reg. Date | : | 16/01/2016 | | Posts | : | 10 | | Location | : | north east, United Kingdom |
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| | Posted : 25 Jan 2016 - 21:38 Post title : Re: Mechanical review (Re: daz) | | | thanks all for your replies, i agree that a stand would be ideal but i have no intention of working on the bike myself. i will be leaving that to people who understand modern bikes. im only taking the front wheel off as i need to remove the front mudguard. i am fitting a fenda extenda, its the new one that has been designed to be fitted with double sided stickers that are used in the automotive industry. the manufacturer advises taking the mudguard off as it must be fitted in a room with a minimum temp of 11 degrees/ as the glue will not cure under this temperature. they advise it be left in a warm enviroment for a mimimun of 12 hours. this is the only reason i am taking the wheel off.
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