Triumphrat

raggedraider

hey
in 48 hrs i will be the proud new owner of a 97 t 595 and im a bit anxious because just after i did the "hand shake" with the fellow - i ran home and looked on the fourms and found out this bike has or had a "major issue" with 4th gear

im now loosing sleep.

did every bike ( that didnt get an upgrade ) blow 4th ?

the bike is in museum quality type of shape - ( i have never seen a bike so clean )

its the second owner and he has the service records ( guess i should have looked at them )

its got 10000 miles - i couldnt find anything to negotiate price ( it is to my eyes perfect )( i have killed alot of jap bikes and know when there getting shabby )

the bike ran great , i pick it up sat , it cost 3500 bucks - no leaks , faint scratches by the key hole /ign swithch - type perfect

thanks for any help
brian

bradtx

Brian, I don't think that the majority of '97 and early '98 T595s broke 4th gear, but it is a known problem. Those that have failed run the spectrum from near new to many tens of thousands of miles.

Ride it as you wish. Hopefully it'll be fine and BTW take it in at 12K for service as that's when valve adjustment is scheduled.

Brad

fivehundo

I've heard of T595s going 60k miles plus. They're not "lemons", really. They have a few failing commons, just like all bikes do but they're fantastic motorcycles...

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"The Father wove the skein of your life a long time ago. Go and hide in a hole if you wish, but you won't live one instant longer. Your fate is fixed. Fear profits a man nothing." Herger the Joyous

DEcosse

Sounds like you got a great deal considering condition & price.
There is certainly no guarantee that the 4th gear issue will arise, just as there still remains the possibility it might. History does not indicate there is any given mileage where it could kick in - some are very early in their life while others can go many times more miles than yours and many never see the problem at all.
You have two choices if there is no record of it being addressed (& honestly with such limited mileage it probably hasn't):
You can either choose to proactively remove the motor, split the cases & replace the 4th/6th gear; while you're at it install the later sprag as that was another early model failure prone item that was susbequently upgraded.
Do nothing - enjoy it until you detect a problem & then HAVE to do something. If it does implode, probably just as cost effective to replace the entire motor unless you have the capabilities to rebuild the original yourself.
I would probably go with the latter myself - run it until/if problem arises. It may never happen.

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raggedraider

the bike is flawless.

i just started to read , and when i a few "poped 4th gear " posts i got worried

did they recall them or offer the update ? or was it like - if you brought it back and demanded the update? , i was thinking the guy might have had it done , i guess my best bet is to check the engine # - he does have all the " service " paperwork

i have to admit the sound of the engine ideling sold it , it was a perfect bike at a perfect price , then he hit the button - whoa!

i was planning to take it somewhat easy on it anyway

i could easily imagine a 2 gear downshift from 6th and dropping the clutch into 4th --might atribute to a loud bang
does anybody think dropping the gear ratio ( sprocket size ) might take some of the load off everything?

thanx alot for the replys
thanx

raggedraider

052966
is the number on the case.

-now the question is
how can i determine if the gears have been replaced?
do dealers keep records against serial #s or mark engines that have been fixed?

i noticed there seems to be an abundance of white sealant about the case(s) - allmost like somebody wanted to make sure they didnt leak

when the big bang happens - is it the gear stripping or is it the case breaking ?

this bike is so sweet , but a heartbreak to see its so nice , but know its gonna pop

andrewb

Brian,

honestly man, you are worrying a bit much over a slight possibility. Ride it, enjoy it and take it easy while you learn what a triple can do.

You did an oil change when you got her home, right? Did you tear the filter apart to inspect it? How's the oil? You filled it with a quality synthetic right?

You flushed the brake lines and clutch system right? New DOT4? Maybe even flushed and refilled the cooling system?

You'll feel better about your bike if you did these basics when you got her home.

Or sell it and buy a Honda, I hear they're perfect

Sprocketjockey

:::

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raggedraider

well

i was slamming down the parkway , minding my biz - when i notice a clear section of un obstructed highway
i snapped it open @ 90 ish and "tunneled" my way to 140 ish - then i rolled it back to about 5/8 throttel , and thats about where the bike stopped accelorating - very interesting

what a crazy tourque curve - im so used to "tossing everything i got into 13k rpms" --i mean , it wasnt like i was "lugging along" , but it didnt seem like i was buzzing apart

in town it seems like im short shifting , but it also seems like thats ok.
a hard upshift into 2nd , results in a small wheelie , 3rd seems like its trying

it seems like i should use both feet on the rear brakes , but no complaints on the fronts
its a keeper

DEcosse

Rear brake is notoriously inefficient on this bike
A quick cheap effective mod is to replace the OEM 14mm rear master with a 1/2" version from early 90's Kawasaki ZX7/750 (91-96 model years)- this is form/fit replacement other than the bore size. It does make ~ 20-odd % difference in increasing the resultant force at the caliper for equivelant force at the pedal.

Note that is only known model/years that is both 1/2" & form/fit. There are some later model 1/2" units that are similar but the mounting holes are 'through' - these will work also if you get longer bolts & install with nuts, but the model ID'd is simplest.
Here's an excellent pic (actually from #8 below) that shows the physical attributes as well as the 1/2" designation clearly illustrated




Here's some on EBay - this is ubelievable number of choices available - I've often looked & not found one at various given times

M/C #1
M/C #2
M/C #3
M/C #4
M/C #5
M/C #6
M/C #7
M/C #8
M/C #9
M/C #10
M/C #11

I have no knowledge of the accuracy of any of these descriptions -- only that if they ID'd the year/model correctly it should work.
Note that at that age, some may be in need of a seal replacement - EBay is full of these kits for under $20, so worth doing in conjunction.

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GSXR 1000 Front End Swap