Dragging the Tiger out of the swamp

[Taff]

the tiger in question is my 2013 800xc, I've owned this bike from new and it has been my daily transport / commuter, doing a smidge over 60k miles in the process. It's been serviced by 'MuddySump' in accordance with the service schedule, give or take a thousand miles here or there.

but.....I've not been very good at finding time to pamper the bike, more like treating it as most people treat a car. Chucking a bucket of cold water over it occasionally, spraying some ACF on it most years and keeping the brake calipers moving freely, that's about it.

When the 'Rona hit and we started working from home, I parked it up in the garage and other than a brief spell of going into the office everyday for a couple of months a year ago, it hasn't really moved. It has actually done about 300 miles in 2021.

I ventured in to the garage this morning and I could barely move the bike because the brakes are binding, there's fur growing all over it and it is actually looking pretty shit tbh, so it's time to chuck a little bit of cash and time at it to freshen it up and get it looking acceptable again. This is absolutely not a strip & refurb project, this is do enough to make the cosmetics better.
I have to keep in mind that I could be recalled to the office at any time so I need to be able to get it back on the road within a weekend's work

this is what I'm starting with

I've already taken the screen off and this is the mounting plate

[Taff]

other than the cosmetics, there's a few mechanical bits that I'm going to replace while I'm at it, wheel bearings, brake disks (which I bought a year ago before dumping the bike in the garage) and the clutch cable because it's pretty heavy and I was having trouble with my left hand when filtering & slipping the clutch.

The rubbing down and re-painting stuff has started today






I've arranged to borrow a bike ramp off a neighbour so I'll be able to get the bike up in the air a bit to do the engine and stuff later this week

[weeksy]

Ouch. That needs a bit of love sir.

Enjoying this thread already

[the_priest]

Oooh, another, lets get this Triumph on the road looking a bit better thread! Excellent!

Can I recommend some Harpic X10 for the downpipes? Taipan swears by and at this stuff and to be honest, it works very well!

Looking forward to seeing many more posts. Hope it all goes smoothly.

[Taff]

Oooh, another, lets get this Triumph on the road looking a bit better thread! Excellent!

Can I recommend some Harpic X10 for the downpipes? Taipan swears by and at this stuff and to be honest, it works very well!

Looking forward to seeing many more posts. Hope it all goes smoothly.

It was your thread that inspired me to post this, doing a threat like this not the sort of thing I normally do tbh but I think it's worth it because I'll be able to look back at the starting point and see the difference.

Harpic, top tip, I'll get on it

[the_priest]

I just know that Weeksy is on a different level to the rest of us. Mine is not so much about cosmetics as about running properly. I will get to making it pretty in time, but I needed to make it worth riding first!

[weeksy]

I just know that Weeksy is on a different level to the rest of us. Mine is not so much about cosmetics as about running properly. I will get to making it pretty in time, but I needed to make it worth riding first!

Nah mate, you're doing a brilliant job with fantastic attention to detail.

[Taff]

this morning started off with a quick bit of pottering before going out to train the dog for a couple of hours

the metalwork that supports the top box had to come off to get the rear grab handles off, so they got a rubdown, treatment with rust killer stuff and primed






when I got back from training I though I'd start to give some attention to the wheels, but after cutting my finger open on a razor sharp shard of metal, I found that the rim is corroded to fuck and cracking between the spoke holes






it's better to find this now than when it lets go on the motorway

I suppose I'll need to find a replacement wheel or find someone that can build a new rim onto this hub ???????

[weeksy]

Oh wow, that's pretty dramatic!!!! Any other bikes wheels that may fit? I suspect aftermarket may be crazy money

[Taff]

Oh wow, that's pretty dramatic!!!! Any other bikes wheels that may fit? I suspect aftermarket may be crazy money

I'm looking into it now, but there's not much coming up tbh.

There's a good chance that the 'roadie' version alloy wheel might fit, I'm sure they have the same size tyres and I can't imagine for a minute that the swingarm / fixings are going to be different.

there is a wheel in ebay for £225

[Druid]

Have a look at Central Wheel Components

[Taff]

Have a look at Central Wheel Components

Excellent, thanks for the link.

I've just messaged one place for a quote and I'll message these as well. If a new rim comes in at circa £150 then I'll be happy with that

[Jody]

Where are you, I have a mate on Facebook who does wheel builds...
https://www.facebook.com/southwaleswheelbuilding

[Taff]

Where are you, I have a mate on Facebook who does wheel builds...
https://www.facebook.com/southwaleswheelbuilding

Excellent, about an hour from Bridgend, I'll give him a ring in a minute.

[Bigyin]

Good thread and good luck with the outcome

Mate had an old 1st Gen Tiger and the wheels on his were rotted to fuck as well all round the spokes after a winters use. Hope its not eye watering to resolve

[Taff]

I've had a few quotes from a variety of companies that rebuild the wheel with a new rim, and they all seem to come in at about the £300 mark including postage etc, which I don't think is too bad and is definitely the route I'd be taking if I was trying to get a pristine bike at the end of this, but I'm not so the cheaper option it is

complete wheel on ebay including tyre, disk, cush drive etc £235

but it's not all sweet. From what I can gather there's 2 standards of wheel from the early bikes.
Ones like mine which have stainless spokes and bad rim corrosion problems, and ones with chromed spokes that don't have such bad rim corrosion problems but the spokes tarnish. The ebay one has tarnished spokes which is not brilliant but not the end of the world either.

[weeksy]

I'd put safety over aesthetics in this case.

[Taff]

I'd put safety over aesthetics in this case.

Tarnished spokes isn't going to lead to them failing. They would need to turn brown and rusty before corrosion compromises their strength.


The postie has been, wheel bearing kits for front and rear wheels

[weeksy]

I'd put safety over aesthetics in this case.

Tarnished spokes isn't going to lead to them failing. They would need to turn brown and rusty before corrosion compromises their strength.


The postie has been, wheel bearing kits for front and rear wheels

I was agreeing with your choice ?

[Taff]

I'd put safety over aesthetics in this case.

Tarnished spokes isn't going to lead to them failing. They would need to turn brown and rusty before corrosion compromises their strength.


The postie has been, wheel bearing kits for front and rear wheels

I was agreeing with your choice ?

Sorry, misread, I thought you were suggesting that the tarnished spokes were a structural problem. Riding on the old wheel is an absolute no go. It's fucked.