Triumphrat

Royb · 05-16-2008

I finally got around to installing the seat latch on my 02 TB.......

I did a search on E-Bay for "Triumph Seat Latch" and came up with half a dozen folks that had one for sale. Gotta love E-Bay!

I bought one for a 955 that cost $20...........

It fit right on the bracket that already lived under the seat. The holes were threaded and I had some flat head metric screws from some Givi mounts that were perfect. You will need these flathead screws as I tried allen heads and it won't work. The screws need to be flush...

The cable was simply left long and looped around the side and attached with a little clip I had hanging around. You simply pull on the little end thingy and the seat pops off...

The bottom of the seat was a bit more involved. I have a lathe, so making the "penis" was relatively easy. You could do it with a piece of half inch stock in an electric drill and a file if you were cleaver.

Continued in next thread.......

Royb · 05-16-2008

Once I had it pointed and a groove cut for the release mechanism, I inserted it upside down, with the point sticking up and put the seat on. Once the seat was positioned, I pushed down and it made a mark where the center of the pin needed to be placed for proper position.

I then cut a piece of aluminum bar stock and drilled it to accept the rear end of the penis. The rear of the pin was turned down and threaded for a 3/8 NC nut.

To establish the proper length of the pin, I placed a block of modeling clay on the latch, and installed the seat and pressed it down to where it will fit. The clay was squished and the thickness of the clay was the proper length of the pin. Neat huh?

Lastly, I needed to make the rubber bumpers a bit thicker. I had these little rubber plugs (from the Givi mounting kit) that fit perfectly into the holes in the existing bumpers. The seat now rides about 1/4" higher than stock. You can't tell by looking at it.

This whole set up works slicker than s---! I couldn't be more pleased.......Total time was about 1 hour.............

TonyD · 05-16-2008

Nice job, Roy, and thanks for sharing.

A couple of questions: did you use self tapping screws to secure the pin plate to the seat?; and did you just use the plugs with the two rear-most rubber stoppers?

Royb · 05-16-2008

Yes, simple self tapping sheet metal screws. The plastic on the seat bottom is quite thick.

I also used a hole saw to drill out a space large enough for the 3/8" nut on the bottom of the pin. This pin could have been welded to a metal plate, but I wanted some adjustability if it wasn't tight enough. The threads allowed me to extend it a bit with washers if needed.

The extra rubber plugs were used on all rubber bumpers.

CrazyCroc · 05-17-2008

Now that's how you do a technical thread! Reads just like a manual and it's easy to follow with pics. Great job, Royb! I'm putting this project on the list.

vonbonds · 05-17-2008

He he he he...he said penis!

Seriously, great thread with outstanding detail!

toller · 05-24-2008

Congrats; and much better work than my own. I suggest you circumcise the pin; you can grind an angled relief into the top of the pin facing the rear to reduce it catching when angling the seat up.

Nice work.

leo in saint louis

My last project was to take a crashbar from an 80's yamaha and splice it to fit. Glad I did 'cause 2 weeks ago the bike and I went sliding down the highway sideways. the crashbar, my krauser saddlebag and part of the mirror was ground a bit and my windshield cracked on the bike and my riding jacket and pants were similarly shredded along the left side shoulder, arm and leg; other than that, neither my legend nor I were hurt. Amazing. About 60mph & 100+ feet sliding. Very lucky neither the bike or I tumbled!