Triumphrat

Danny500 · 07-29-2009, 12:07 AM

So, I was able to get my bike together and take it for a short jaunt down the road... my front end seems to be off... by A LOT.

Even after I took the shocks off and re-filled them with new oil I ensured everything was straight from the axle up and still, the bars seem to point a tad to the right in order to keep the bike going straight.

It's really annoying, it doesn't help that the dashboard is a-symmetrical and I have no line to actually tell which way it's crooked... but if I look through the wind-screen it feels like the front of the bike points to the left, I steer to the right, and the bike goes straight...

What the heck...

I also loosened the rear end and made sure the rear wheel was straight and that the tensioners were on the same marks on both sides of the swingarm.

I'm at a loss.

Anyone else experience this???

miker · 07-29-2009, 12:55 AM

Sounds like you haven't got the forks set right in the triple clamps.

It's a tricky adjustment to make with all the gear attached. You can put it on the belly stand and run some straight edges from the rear to the front and measure where the wheel is out. Then you loosen the clamps, straighten the wheel in line with the back wheel, then the bars, then tighten the clamps.

Good luck
Mick

Skidpan · 07-29-2009, 04:35 AM

Just so you have something else to consider, I had a Diversion 600 years ago, that I was knocked off at low speed. Once the bike was repaired, it seemed that the front end, forks, bars, etc, wasn't straight, and no matter how often I tweaked it, it stayed that way. Then a mechanic at work suggested checking if the fairing was straight. It wasn't, the bracket holding it had been knocked in the impact so the fairing was about 8-10mm offset, which gave the very definite impression that the bike was pulling left. Bent the bracket and hung the fairing back on it, and everything was fine.
The 'face' of the bike is symetrical, so I would find the absolute centre of the headlights and drop a plumb line off that point to see if it sits in the middle of the mudguard. If your wheels are in line and the fairing shows as offset, then that's the problem.
Just a thought.
Best of luck and let us know.
By the way, GS500e - wonderful things, I'm on my third, this one cost £1000, I've done 50,000 miles on it and serviced it once, at 25,000.

crowtherstephen · 07-29-2009, 09:17 AM

I think i can help here.

This can be several things - seeing as your the bikes second owner, i suspect on of the following:

Its had a drop or slide in the past, even a drop of the centre stand can bugger up your front end.

1, your forks are not sitting in the claps correctly. Check your height adjustments at the top stock this must be perfect, just a few mm difference on each fork in height above the stock can equate to 10mm plus at the wheel. Oh and check for twist in the axel bar (although unlikely to be axel bar)

2, Check front wheel to ensure there is no buckle and that the tyre sits on the rim correctly.

3, Remove the front faring and check the cockpit mounting sub-frame, quite a meaty bit of metal and they can easily pop a weld, or bend in a fall…. Thus meaning your faring will not be straight and possibly throwing your eye out when looking through the bike

4, take off both forks and have them checked to see if they are straight.

5, if its non of these then you have one other thing to check, but you will need to get it to a workshop. Your top and bottom yoke could be in twist, i.e the aluminium is actually bent. These are weight bits of metal, but they are soft and easily bend, broken at impact.

I know of this issue as this time last year I had a slide on my tigger…. Not a bad slide, a soft landing on grass, but the bike took one hell of an impact when we hit the ground.

I assumed as my front wheel was off alignment that my forks were either bent, or not square in the yokes. I started with item 1, then moved into two, then 3 etc etc.. you get the picture, no matter how much pressure we put on the front wheel, we always went 10mm off centre.

Then I found a small Triumph specialist in Dover (UK) about 7 miles from me, borrowed a trailer and shifted the bike to him, within 24 hours he had the yokes off the bike, gently beat them back into alignment in the horizontal plain, replaced them, but a laser through the bike to check alignment, bit more bashing etc etc and presto, £40 later I was ready to put her all back together.

Wish I had passed 1-4 and gone straight to 5, I would have had her running and riding in 2 months post crash and not 3.!

The home DIT alternative is ram the wheel into a corner, loosen off the yoke bolts and try to force the wheel into alignment, not very scientific, and I would not recommended, but when I asked for advise on here – a couple of people told me it worked for them….

PeteH · 07-29-2009, 07:48 PM

Find a nice solid wall, ride up next to it, whang your bars so the wheel hits the wall, repeat until straight

Im sure I read it somewhere- but might have been dreaming

Danny500 · 07-29-2009, 09:51 PM

My replies will be in red

.

Quote:

Originally Posted by crowtherstephen

I think i can help here.

This can be several things - seeing as your the bikes second owner, i suspect on of the following:

Its had a drop or slide in the past, even a drop of the centre stand can bugger up your front end.

1, your forks are not sitting in the claps correctly. Check your height adjustments at the top stock this must be perfect, just a few mm difference on each fork in height above the stock can equate to 10mm plus at the wheel. Oh and check for twist in the axel bar (although unlikely to be axel bar)

Took entire front end off. Forks, mud guard, brakes, wheel, axle, etc. Axle is straight and true, as are BOTH of the fork tubes. Both tubes are EXACTLY 5mm above the triple clamps... still crooked.

2, Check front wheel to ensure there is no buckle and that the tyre sits on the rim correctly.

No buckle, tire is perfectly seated.

3, Remove the front faring and check the cockpit mounting sub-frame, quite a meaty bit of metal and they can easily pop a weld, or bend in a fall…. Thus meaning your faring will not be straight and possibly throwing your eye out when looking through the bike

Fairing brackets are straight. I can put a line through the center of the rear cargo rack, the center of the gas tank and the center of the wind-shield and they're all straight and true.

4, take off both forks and have them checked to see if they are straight.

See above.

5, if its non of these then you have one other thing to check, but you will need to get it to a workshop. Your top and bottom yoke could be in twist, i.e the aluminium is actually bent. These are weight bits of metal, but they are soft and easily bend, broken at impact.

I know of this issue as this time last year I had a slide on my tigger…. Not a bad slide, a soft landing on grass, but the bike took one hell of an impact when we hit the ground.

I assumed as my front wheel was off alignment that my forks were either bent, or not square in the yokes. I started with item 1, then moved into two, then 3 etc etc.. you get the picture, no matter how much pressure we put on the front wheel, we always went 10mm off centre.

Then I found a small Triumph specialist in Dover (UK) about 7 miles from me, borrowed a trailer and shifted the bike to him, within 24 hours he had the yokes off the bike, gently beat them back into alignment in the horizontal plain, replaced them, but a laser through the bike to check alignment, bit more bashing etc etc and presto, £40 later I was ready to put her all back together.

I'll have to double check this with the fairing off. Should be a quick way to tell with a straight edge and a level.

Wish I had passed 1-4 and gone straight to 5, I would have had her running and riding in 2 months post crash and not 3.!

The home DIT alternative is ram the wheel into a corner, loosen off the yoke bolts and try to force the wheel into alignment, not very scientific, and I would not recommended, but when I asked for advise on here – a couple of people told me it worked for them….

I may actually try this first, only because I don't think it's really THAT serious. It could be... but it may not.

A quick note...

Upon closer inspection I noticed that it seems the Left-Hand axle nut looks as if it's about 5-10mm further BACK than the Right-Hand axle nut when the bars are straight. But if the forks are true, it may be that the lower triple mount has come un-aligned from the upper triple mount. Or, as you suggested, one or both became bent somehow...

To the garage!!!

WibblyWobbly · 07-30-2009, 04:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny500

My replies will be in red

.

A quick note...

Upon closer inspection I noticed that it seems the Left-Hand axle nut looks as if it's about 5-10mm further BACK than the Right-Hand axle nut when the bars are straight. But if the forks are true, it may be that the lower triple mount has come un-aligned from the upper triple mount. Or, as you suggested, one or both became bent somehow...

To the garage!!!

I once read of a fairly simple and foolproof method of aligning the forks.

You will need either a sheet of glass or a flat sheet of steel. The width of this must fit on the gold part of the forks.

You may need to remove the fairing to do this.

Lay the sheet across the front of the forks, it should touch at four points without any rocking motion being felt.

If it does rock then something is out of alignment, the solution is to slacken off the upper and lower clamp bolts and twist the forks until both of them touch the glass without any rocking motion, then re-tighten.

Hope this helps!

For what it's worth I am convinced the forks are out on mine, but on closer inspection I think it is that the front edge of the tank is slightly angled, causing an optical illusion. When I have the time I am going to check the forks properly.

Cheers

Rob G

crowtherstephen · 08-03-2009, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Danny500

My replies will be in red

.

A quick note...

Upon closer inspection I noticed that it seems the Left-Hand axle nut looks as if it's about 5-10mm further BACK than the Right-Hand axle nut when the bars are straight. But if the forks are true, it may be that the lower triple mount has come un-aligned from the upper triple mount. Or, as you suggested, one or both became bent somehow...

To the garage!!!

there is nothing on the yokes to align them so it could be, however if you loosened of the top nut, and the fork clamps, you should be able to easily move the whole assemberly into alignment by pulling on one fork and pushing on another.. if it goes straight and then pings back to miss alignment then your yokes are deffo. bent.

Danny500 · 08-04-2009, 03:45 AM

I don't know if it's me... really I don't. The A-symmetry, odd-ball feel, and simply not being 'used' to the bike yet really makes me second-guess anything being severely bent.

When I snugged everything up I may have let the bike settle too far on the stand causing it to re-bend a little bit back to the left. Who knows.

I simply don't understand how the yolks could be bent... I mean, I understand they could be... but how is a mystery.

Well, the bike is getting new tires soon enough. So I figure when I get them in I'll set up an appointment with the local shop to throw them on, balance the wheels, tighten the spokes, get the wheels aligned and see about getting the front end straight...

If all it takes is a couple whacks with a rubber/lead mallet it shouldn't lead to an expensive bill.

I'll keep you posted.