Triumphrat

Legend JJ · 01-10-2010, 09:25 AM

I ride during the winter months but haven't had the chance for two weeks since we've had ridiculous winds along with some snow. i figured i would start up the Legend, and let her run for about 15-20 mins (purely just to hear her purr in the garage)

since i wasn't actually taking her out i had time to realized how long it takes for the engine to reach full temp. i only need to keep the choke on for a min and she'll idle just fine but when i tried to rev the engine just to hear the roar, it sputtered a lot. i know there's nothing wrong with my bike, it just hasn't warmed up enough yet. so here's the question; how long you guys let your T3's run/idle before taking them out on the road? normally, it'll idle for at least 10 mins before i pull out of the driveway and it seems to be okay enough

ssevy · 01-10-2010, 11:11 AM

To answer your question: I don't ride in the winter because of all of the salt on the roads in the Adirondacks, and the frost heaves which are everywhere. I have, however, ridden in the fall down into the 30's, and my Legend never requires the enriching lever at all. Basically, I start it in the garage, walk it backwards out, and then ride. No warming up required. I do have 142's however, so she isn't starved for fuel by any means.
To expand on your question, I wouldn't run the bike just to warm it up and then shut it down again. I think that would cause more condensation build up in the crankcase. I would think a ride of at least 30 minutes to an hour would be the minimum to get the fluids all moving and any moisture burned out. In terms of warming up and riding, certainly you don't want to risk a stall in traffic, but definitely get rolling once you are past that point in your warm up.

NeilD · 01-10-2010, 12:36 PM

I start mine up with 'choke,' back off to halfway-ish, put on helmet and gloves and go, normally ease the 'choke' off about a mile down the road.....
with my aircooled bikes I used to allow to warm up before setting off as they are being cooled as soon as you go down the road, so take longer to warm up..

Slinky · 01-10-2010, 01:31 PM

I start up on full choke, back it off to a slightly fast idle and ride off straight away, I knock the choke off fully after a couple of miles. Same thing on my air cooled bikes.

I would not start the bike up in the garage unless I plan to use it, personally I think it does more harm than good, introducing cold, damp air and condensation into the engine.

Wombat · 01-10-2010, 01:49 PM

I don't really have winter to contend with here, but my procedure is to start with no choke, hold the throttle at 1500 rpm for maybe 15-20 seconds when the revs climb up to about 2500 rpm and off I go.

I found that if I needed to use the choke (on any of the bikes that I have owned here), the carb settings where wrong and the plugs would foul.

buckoz · 01-10-2010, 03:53 PM

same as NEILD start half choke put helmet on back the choke of way ya go and as others have said it not good to run for to long without riding you might think you are doing the right thing but its gotting hotter and nothing is under load IMO get a trickle charger and hook it up to that if you are worried about battery

Legend JJ · 01-10-2010, 07:00 PM

wow that's quite a bit of different info i wasn't expecting. i didn't know if was a good idea to ever ride with the choke on unless something was wrong with the bike. i always assumed it would overheat the exhaust since the fuel was enriched more than normal for a longer period of time. that's definitely an option for me now if i need to hit the road right away. i also didn't know about the condensation problems just by letting the bike idle for a while so i won't be doing that again. i'm not at all worried about the battery since i have it on a BTJr every time i park her in the garage. like i said in the original post, i just wanted to hear my baby run for a while since i missed her

patrol21 · 01-11-2010, 08:07 AM

Too much fuel equates to cooler exhausts temps. It is too much air that causes heat. Running with your choke on can cause a bit of plug fouling. Regardless of the temp, once the bike is warmed up, there should be no reason to have the choke ingauged.

tommyP · 01-15-2010, 05:16 PM

I rode my 1999 Legend yesterday. The weather hit 38 degree F here in the Chicago area. I started the bike at partial choke, 50 -75%. And back off the choke immediately until the RPMs hit 1500. After about 10 seconds I lower the choke so the RPMs hover around 1100. As the bike warms up the RMPs climb and I close the choke incrementally untill it is all the way off. This process occurs while I get the helment, gloves neck warmer, etc. At most 2-4 minutes. After that I pull it out of the garage, and into the parking lot, and then into the street. No problems or stalling or hesitation.

The salt reside is everywhere here too. So I sprayed the bike down upon return. I guess I don't care too much if it rusts away. Not like I'm planning on leaving to my grand children or anything : ) The roads are definately bumpier here in the winter too. There seems to be swelling of the surface at every seem and plenty of fresh pot holes. A good time of year to go 5 under speed limit instead of 5 or more over!

The only thing I've done to "winterize" the bike is to put Sea Foam in the tank. Otherwise, I start it and let it run for 10 minutes every week if it's too cold to ride. I also will change the oil in late winter regardless of milage. This coming Saturday is forcasted to be in the upper 30's again. I will definately get another ride in.