Triumphrat

TJRCARRILLO · 10-26-2007

Im looking into buying a steering damper and wanted to know which one is better in performance and quality. The ones that I've seen is LSL or Norman Hyde. Are there any others?

Thrux-ton-up · 10-26-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by TJRCARRILLO

Im looking into buying a steering damper and wanted to know which one is better in performance and quality. The ones that I've seen is LSL or Norman Hyde. Are there any others?

Don't know about the LSL - I have many of their parts and the quality is good. I have the Hyde unit and love it - it mounts and blends into the bike in a very unobtrusive manner. Works very well for it's intended purposes - nearly crash tested several times due to sand in corners and I 've always managed to keep the bike upright with no tank slappers.

SHRuuM · 10-26-2007

I've got the LSL damper and it too is a very good product. Either way you go it will help the handling quite a bit. Around town I use the fourth click and on high speed twisties the sixth click. I don't know about the Norman Hyde but if you get the LSL you'll also have to get the key relocation and headlamp bracket kits.

Bonafide · 10-26-2007

I had a damper I bought from the classifieds ... it came from one of the vendors that's on here all the freaking time. It was a nearly new piece. Showed no signs of being used to me and this price was right. I didnt like how it mounted (clamping to the frame) but again - price was right. Yes, it ended up marking the frame when I removed it. It lasted all of a month before it stopped doing anything effective. I could have just bought a replacement Shindy piston thing-a-bob ... but I hated how the whole thing mounted on my bike - was so freaking long/big, it was over an overbearing contraption hooked on the side (eye sore), and flopped around because of the mounting banjo-style clamps (see: cheap) - I just didnt like it. So much that I bit the bullet and bought a new Norman Hyde piece from my fav vendor - especially after comparing mine side by side with Thrux-ton-up's. The NH set up was so well thought out/engineered and the quality was MUCH better. The NH damper also doesnt require you buy anything else in order for it to be mounted.

If you look at my pic below (of the Thrux) - you can see my old set up mounted on my bike while I was riding in NC back in Aug this year. Bleh.

tham · 10-27-2007

Not sure of the brand,
But I have had the one that Bella Corse carries for 2 years now with nary an issue.
One of the best mods I have done.

I have never had a tank slapper or even a hiccup when throwing the bike around since mounting this.

Some will question the looks, but I actually like the way it looks.

Super easy to mount ,great quality & adjustability.
The Norman Hyde unit just didn't suit my eyeballs.

TJRCARRILLO · 10-27-2007

I forgot to add that in my original post. I don't want a piece that looks clunky or out of place. It has to look good. Lets face it, we all like a little visual stimulation.
How about the mounting hardware? Stainless steel, aluminum?

tham · 10-28-2007

I agree....
I will probably make mine dissappear a little by anodizing or powdercoating both of the mounting clamps eventually.

The machined clamp on the fork tube is excellent in fit & finish. (I am going to assume it is T6061 aluminum as that tends to be the standard for pieces like this.)

The cast clamp on the frame is an excellent fit but the finish could have been better.
(but that is only cosmetic & could be polished/anodized/powdercoated.

I may even rebuild the unit itself at some point & powder coat that black as well.

I used Stainless steel hardware all around with anti seize compound.

The only way you are going to completely get away from the clunky side mount steering dampeners is possibly attempting to mount a Scotts Dampener to your triple clamp...

(Couldn't tell you if they have the application as I didn't research these for the Thruxton)

Anyway it is a thought....& now the "clunky" aspect would be centrally mounted at least.

There is also the Ohlins steering Dampeners....but they dont have the Triumph listed (You could email them to see.)
I have had friends mount these sideways across the frame on Ducs...(Once again..I couldnt tell you if that is possible on the Thrux.)

Just some ideas.....good luck.

MAR · 10-29-2007

I have had the same one as THAM. I also got it from Bella Corse. It continues to work great and was an easy mount.

HiVel · 10-30-2007

The Hyde gets my vote! Clean and simple plus it works!

TJRCARRILLO · 11-13-2007

I just wanted to thank everyone for the suggestions. I ended up going with the Norman Hyde damper. I felt that the all black looked best with my bike. I also like the way it mounts, it looks like it belongs on the bike. Put on a set of Ikon springs in front, the bike feels and handles great! Now I have to save up for some new carbs.