Continuing - So what did you do to your bike today...?

[Hooli]

Cheers Grog, I hope so too as I can't afford to replace it for ages!

I did another 100 miles today without really going anywhere, just toddling between cafes with a few mates, it's still not leaking which is a good sign.

[Will14]

Hi Hooli, how are you finding the riding position & general ride compared to the 14?

Cheers

Pete

[gsxbarmy]

Went for a blast around Essex and Suffolk yesterday with Stoli and Chop (and Nigel - who never owned a 14) - up to Walkers Snack Shack (just past Bury St Edmunds), then a nice twisty cross country run to Sizewell Tea before returning home

So left to right - My R1250GS, then Nigel, then Chop on his Triumph T120 Bonneville, then Stoli on his Honda Africa Twin

[Kiwifruit]

Good to see lads out and about. Looks like a great day. 

[KiwiCol]

Looks a great day for a ride Dave.  Why is Chop putting a tea cosy on his head?  did he loose a bet or something?

[Hooli]

Hi Hooli, how are you finding the riding position & general ride compared to the 14?

Cheers

Pete

More weight on your arms obviously so not as relaxing. Low speed stuff around car parks is a bit of a pain turning right, too much lock & once my hand is in the tank cut out I can't turn my wrist to blip the throttle if needed.

At speed it's smoother & more composed, but I suspect the rear shocks on my 14 are utterly knackered considering how far they've gone. I'm still getting used to having to push a bit harder on the bars to turn due to less leverage, but that's totally me not the bike. It's got BT-021 on the front, so I doubt that's helping either. It feels a lot better than they ever did on 14s so I suspect it'll be great on decent tyres.

Wind protection is strange & oddly makes me colder as leaning forwards means the wind gets down the top of my jacket a lot more, I suspect that'll be very welcome in the summer. It's also made the biggest difference to me in that I've got to wear a full face lid. The wind off the screen was making my head shake when it hit the sides of my open face lid, so I've dug out a Shoei XR-1000 I was given about a decade ago & hardly ever used. As a bonus it's almost the same colour as the bike.

Being the SE trim it's got a factory gel seat, which is more comfy than my 14's standard one. There is a bit less leg room, but not enough less to be uncomfy. It's higher though, I'm nearly on my toes unlike the 14 I could flat foot but it's not high enough to be an issue now I'm getting used to it. When I tried it in the shop it wasn't far off flat footed but I found it'd had the yokes lowered & rear preload wound down to drop it. It rides better as it should be so I'll get used to it.

Brakes are more powerful & the ABS works, at least the rear does as I tried it on gravel. Not had the bottle to try the front yet as it scrubs off a lot more speed a lot more easily than my 14 ever could.

The engine is a good lump, torque is less than a 14 unsurprisingly & higher up the rev range so I'm having to remember to change gear occasionally. It pulls from about 2.5/3k up to the 10k? (might be 10.5) redline & just builds power all the way. 128Bhp they say for these late ones & 79 lb/ft, it's more than enough for me anyway. It's a nice noise too from the induction. The standard can is staying as I'll take it to the Alps were noise limits are getting stricter & I'm no great fan of stupidly loud bikes for the sake of it when riding all day.

Underseat storage is smaller than a 14, I got about 1/2 the stuff under that I used to keep in the 14. But it's got a useful cubbyhole in the fairing on the RH side, it's lockable so secure for stuff too. The ODBII connector is in there as well, which once I spend £10.49 on TuneECU software for my phone will give me full access to the ECU to remap & everything.

Over all I'm enjoying it, not utterly convinced it's ideal for me as I've always gone for more upright bikes. But I'll see what it does on long trips & tours, I can see it staying long term anyway because it's a Triumph.

Oh & 55mpg overall since I got it makes it feel really cheap compared to the 35mph my 14 has been doing for over a year.

Finally, I'll upgrade the starter cables at some point. It's a common mod on these & other Triumph 1050s, the factory ones are too thin & when trying it start it hot they turn over slowly like the battery is flat.

[KiwiCol]

Very good report there Hooli, much appreciated.

[grog]

Good review Hooli. Get those wires changed.

[Mick_J]

Hooli, Tune ECU is free on your laptop.  You don't get the latest updates but the bike is too old to need anything new so it's not a problem.

[Hooli]

Hooli, Tune ECU is free on your laptop.  You don't get the latest updates but the bike is too old to need anything new so it's not a problem.

Wrong unfortunately. The windows version only works up to 2012 bikes, mine's a 2014. According to the Triumph forums anyway, I will try a copy & see what happens for the hell of it.

[Will14]

Sounds like your going to enjoy it Hooli, I really like them its just the bar height that is putting me off at the momet 

[Hooli]

I fully expected to sit on it & go 'nah the bars are too low' but it doesn't feel too bad. You can get 1" risers for them too from loads of places.

[GSXKING]

Went for a blast around Essex and Suffolk yesterday with Stoli and Chop (and Nigel - who never owned a 14) - up to Walkers Snack Shack (just past Bury St Edmunds), then a nice twisty cross country run to Sizewell Tea before returning home

So left to right - My R1250GS, then Nigel, then Chop on his Triumph T120 Bonneville, then Stoli on his Honda Africa Twin

What is that strange dappling on the road ?? Looks a lot like shadows so it must have been (heaven forbid) sunny. 

[Mick_J]

Hooli, Tune ECU is free on your laptop.  You don't get the latest updates but the bike is too old to need anything new so it's not a problem.

Wrong unfortunately. The windows version only works up to 2012 bikes, mine's a 2014. According to the Triumph forums anyway, I will try a copy & see what happens for the hell of it.

I cant think how easy it would be to navigate using my phone.  Well the Triumph forum is incorrect as I used it on my 64 (2014) 1050 Tiger sport to change the tune when I fitted an aftermarket can and it worked fine.  Have you got the correct interface lead? 

[KiwiCol]

an "in yer face lead"?  what will they think of next.