Is it possible to do a seat modification to fit a cowl on a Trident seat?

[BEN_BANNED]

The 95 Speed Triple I bought was "customized" with a zillion Trident parts. I impulsively bought an OEM seat cowl from Jack Lilley with out realizing that bike had a Trident seat with no fitting holes to put the screws in.

3 questions:

1) Will cowl even fit over the Trident seat?

2) Can I drill holes into the seat to fasten the cowl down.

3) Am I basically screwed where I can't use the cowl and will end up having to take the seat to an upholsterer to have the seat modified?

Any advice?

[MotT3]

What rear body work do you have on it ? is the tail light oval or a square wedge shape ? Seat cowls fir the square tail light body work but alas look a bit pants with the oval tail light as the profile is different....your best bet regards the seat is to pick up a used Daytona or Speed Triple seat with the mounting lugs already on and sell yours on.....

If you have the oval tail light you can still convert you rear end to take the square tail light by using the side panels rear joining peice tail light and mounting plate for the tail light off a Speed Triple or Daytona 900/1200 it will all bolt right up and off ebay I reckon you could do all that for 150 quid max including the seat.

If in dounbt pop a pic of your bike up and we'll put you straight ;-)

Cheers
Mot

[BEN_BANNED]

Originally Posted by MotT3

What rear body work do you have on it ? is the tail light oval or a square wedge shape ? Seat cowls fir the square tail light body work but alas look a bit pants with the oval tail light as the profile is different....your best bet regards the seat is to pick up a used Daytona or Speed Triple seat with the mounting lugs already on and sell yours on.....

If you have the oval tail light you can still convert you rear end to take the square tail light by using the side panels rear joining peice tail light and mounting plate for the tail light off a Speed Triple or Daytona 900/1200 it will all bolt right up and off ebay I reckon you could do all that for 150 quid max including the seat.

If in dounbt pop a pic of your bike up and we'll put you straight ;-)

Cheers
Mot

As far as I know the bike still has the original Speed triple rear end with the square tail light. I did some searching on eBay for an OEM T300 Daytona/Speed Triple seat and the only listing was a dude who wanted over $400 for a beat up seat. I could get a brand new seat for a $100 more.

[MotT3]

Yup tis all good news your seat hump will bolt right up ;-) stuff the seat just drill it and fit the hump...recover in future if necassary but if you are riding solo 99% of the time just get it on...funny old mish mash of stuff on the old bus I can't decide whether it's a Trident with a Speed Triple rear end on what ? but the whells are early 6 spokes ie 18 inch rear ? tank deffo Trident as are the headlight mounting brackets etc oil cooler is non standard to either.....is it hot down your way ? overall she looks sweet enough though ;-)

[Berniebikes]

it's definitely a speed triple rear end, lower mounted caliper, plastic, hugger and all. Nice looking bike!

[BEN_BANNED]

Originally Posted by MotT3

Yup tis all good news your seat hump will bolt right up ;-) stuff the seat just drill it and fit the hump...recover in future if necassary but if you are riding solo 99% of the time just get it on...funny old mish mash of stuff on the old bus I can't decide whether it's a Trident with a Speed Triple rear end on what ? but the whells are early 6 spokes ie 18 inch rear ? tank deffo Trident as are the headlight mounting brackets etc oil cooler is non standard to either.....is it hot down your way ? overall she looks sweet enough though ;-)

It's a true "Frankenbike", my Friend.

It's definitely a Speed Triple and you are correct about the other bits. The previous owner claimed he put the 18"(Rear)/17"(Front) wheels on the bike because he said allowed him quicker side to side transition and quicker steering in the twisties. I have the original 17" Speed Triple rims if I ever want to switch them back.

Added note: I found a Dude on ebay parting out a 96 Daytona 900 and bought the ratty seat off of him. The frame of the seat is still good but it definitely needs recovered and new foam. I figured for $20 + shipping it was worth seeing if I can get restored.

[Berniebikes]

Don't worry about the frankenbike, that's the beauty of the T3s. I have a trident with daytona forks, a sprint shock, speed triple hugger and bars, Super III calipers and the list goes on! Enjoy it and ride it like you stole it, that's what they were made for.

[BEN_BANNED]

Originally Posted by Berniebikes

Don't worry about the frankenbike, that's the beauty of the T3s. I have a trident with daytona forks, a sprint shock, speed triple hugger and bars, Super III calipers and the list goes on! Enjoy it and ride it like you stole it, that's what they were made for.

Another question for you and Mots: The previous owner put a Trophy side stand(he didn't specify what year just "later model") and didn't replace the neutral safety switch. Does the switch have to be Trophy specific or will any T300 model switch work with the stand? Being a fairly new rider I'm concerned with the fact that the bike will take off with the stand down if it's in gear.

[KitNYC]

Being a newer rider, it's a good time to learn to check the sidestand instead of relying on an error-prone switch to do it for you!

I used the original switch from my '96 Trident when I swapped brackets, and it functioned mechanically. I can't vouch for electrical function, though, as a previous owner had butchered my harness in an attempt to disable the clutch and sidestand switches. (Neither worked, and my neutral light was always on.)

Anyway, all that said, I think you mentioned some odd complaints about how things worked earlier. I'd suggest replacing the switch with any T3 switch off eBay, verifying the function of said switch electrically with a multimeter, and verifying mechanical function on the bike. Then if it still doesn't work right, you'll have a good base from which to troubleshoot.

Cheers,
-Kit

[MotT3]

Yes it's the same switch ;-)