Triumphrat

Stan_Laurel · 05-29-2009, 06:11 PM

Based on previous experiences.

Before we start. I LIKE TUNEBOY. I THINK IT IS GOOD. Please, anyone who wants to champion Tuneboy, and assumes that anything that says it is not the best thing since Triumph was invented. NOTE. I like it. I am a fan. This is just a constructive discussion on how to get the best out of it, For anyone.

Advice and comments from any bike owner who has tips, and experience in using Tuneboy, please feel free to post. I’d love to learn from you. Yes I know some people will get on their soap box and state the obvious: "but a lot of information is bike specific".

However, a lot of skills and knowledge is transferable.

Let me get started.

Hello. I own an 03 D600, & Tuneboy. I have been coming to rehab for 10 years. Sorry wrong forum. Back on topic. Prior to buying Tuneboy I found plenty of posts saying that it does everything that the Dealer tool does, and more. So I brought it. I have now found that there are limitations. Who knows they might be in me. This is why I wanted to start this thread to build a knowledge base. Other than people saying yes it is great. I feel this is needed as there is little to no information on how to use Tuneboy, from the people who make it.

For those who have cut to the end. Please use this Thread to post any how to do advice you have with Tuneboy. When I get my lazy ass in gear I’ll post on setting your primary throttle sensor on the D600. Although, in the mean time if anyone wants to go first be my guest.

Stan_Laurel · 12-24-2009, 07:32 AM

Wow posted this in May 09, now Dec. Hahaha. Don't all rush at once then. For those thinking of buying it. Do not expect to learn much from the very limited documentation. Before you buy. I'd advise you have a look around at what information is available for your bike.
I have a D6 and I've found very little so far. I've also found that if you try to ask in threads about Tuneboy, that are not related to your bike. You always get someone having a go, because you don't own the same bike. Even though Tuneboy is sort of a generic tool. I can see that from both sides. Although, I'd always try to help people.
Mainly due to very poor documentation, and bike specific support. I wont buy this for another bike, and regret buying it.

BombFactory · 12-24-2009, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stan_Laurel

Wow posted this in May 09, now Dec. Hahaha. Don't all rush at once then. For those thinking of buying it. Do not expect to learn much from the very limited documentation. Before you buy. I'd advise you have a look around at what information is available for your bike.
I have a D6 and I've found very little so far. I've also found that if you try to ask in threads about Tuneboy, that are not related to your bike. You always get someone having a go, because you don't own the same bike. Even though Tuneboy is sort of a generic tool. I can see that from both sides. Although, I'd always try to help people.
Mainly due to very poor documentation, and bike specific support. I wont buy this for another bike, and regret buying it.

I would usually ignore under-informed statements like yours, as you have only posted in 2 threads (this one included) on TRat since you joined five months ago, but I feel that people interested in using TuneBoy are entitled to an opposing opinion that better describes reality. My following comments are in all due respect, but if you are going to make a public comment, the public will respond. It is a fallacy to think that using TuneEdit or some of the other tools TuneBoy offers is for the novice, or that it is a "generic tool." How are highly-specialized tools like TuneBoy and TuneEdit a "generic" tool? If you are arguing that TuneBoy is not very user-friendly outside of loading tunes or reading/clearing error codes, you are correct. However, to fault it for not teaching you how to be a mechanic is like faulting a dictionary because the user cannot read.

You say "if you try to ask in threads about Tuneboy . . . you always get someone having a go, because you don't own the same bike," but you did not post in other threads. You only posted in one other thread, which doesn't seem like a good way to judge an entire community of members. I read your posts in that TuneBoy thread, and I don't think people were giving you a hard time because you didn't own the same model motorcycle; they were giving you a hard time because you hijacked a 1050cc thread to complain about how TuneBoy was designed for 955cc engines, because it doesn't allow you to do things like adjust the throttle bodies. If that statement were true, you'd be able to adjust 955i throttle bodies with TuneBoy--which you cannot do without a vacuum tool. This probably irritated the senior members, because it automatically showed that you did not know what you were talking about, but you thought others should listen to you nonetheless. Your demeanor upset some members, not because you didn't own a 1050, but because you assumed those who did should be well versed in a Daytona 600/650 as well.

I'm guessing you never emailed or called the owners/inventors of TuneBoy, because if you did you would have been greatly helped by them. Instead, you posted in two threads complaining more about what you don't know than what TuneBoy can do, and now you think other people should know that the tool is garbage because you never figured out how to use it? I understand that it can be frustrating to not have a comfortable skill level with a particular tool/system, but to condemn the tool in public doesn't help you learn how to use the tool, and it only misrepresents a tool that many TT600/S4 and Daytona 600/650 members have used with success.

Will · 12-24-2009, 03:11 PM

Since we are started, I'll jump in, since I've been using TuneBoy and TuneEdit since about 2002. It's the best tool out there for what it does, but as you point out, it has some limitations.

First of all, asking specific questions about how to do this or that is the best way to approach things like TuneBoy. It has a whole lot of capabilities, some of which I haven't got into much, even after all this time. It can also get you into a lot of trouble. It can get you back out of trouble if you have your wits about you.

Wayne and Emma are very accessible, and they always responded to my emails in person. Trust me, I have screwed things up and needed help more than once!

It is a transparent tool, meaning it doesn't have any specific map loaded, nor does it load a specific map into your ECU. You have to decide what you want to put into the ECU. If you don't know, this forum is a good place to start asking questions. Not all bikes have the same body of information, simply because people haven't necessarily done the kinds of things you might be interested in doing with them. Having a relatively uncommon bike like a Triumph cuts both ways. You won't see another very often, but you will be on your own more often than not if you are making modifications and upgrades.

The TuneBoy website has OEM maps you can download to experiment with. There are some quirks, like dead speedometers when you load a TT600 map into an S4. Beats me what happens there, but it's a known issue which has happened to several people.

Another issue is the Power Commander mode is a bit clunky to work with relative to plugging a Power Commander into a Dynojet. You have to reload map modifications instead of the dyno writing directly to the Power Commander. I can't say how this really works, because I have never used TuneBoy in conjunction with a dyno, so I'm repeating things others have noted.

I do not know of any Triumph gameboy function TuneBoy doesn't do. Different controls show when plugged into different bikes, since different bikes have different injection systems. A D6 is Kiehin while a TT600 or S4 is Sagem. They are different systems, and therefore have different adjustments.

So, when people say it depends, they are correct. There is no generic information, since the tool is more complex and more powerful than can be explained by any kind of generic information. Trying to document all the things TuneBoy can do would take a huge amount of space. It's better to learn the program incrementally instead of trying to learn it all at once. Software manuals are always a disaster, anyway. I'm not a computer person, so I learn software the same way I learn everything else: dive in and start messing with it to see what happens.

Stan_Laurel · 03-12-2010, 02:49 PM

BombFactory. Thank you for coming down to my level.
Your right. I'm no mechanic. I'm not into pretending I'm something I'm not. I’ve never had my skill level professionally assessed. I have been messing with bikes for the last 28 years. If that's anything to go by.
As you know. I have struggled to find information on how to use Tuneboy. If you have any good links please post them? .
I don’t think I’m running anyone down when I talk about the lack of instructions that come with Tuneboy. I think It's fair comment to say there is next to no documentation. Which for me, was a disappointment. I do tend to read manuals. I’m not exaggerating, when I say, that finding information on Tuneboy; and my specific bike. On the WWW has been difficult. Again, please feel free to post any links.
As for this being public. No problem. I’m sure people will make their own minds up about what they do. Regardless of what anyone says here. I make no claims at being well educated on Tuneboy. Quite the opposite. Although, always willing to learn.
Also, advising people to have a look around before they buy is fairly sensible advice. Wouldn’t you say?
Fair comment on the two post thing in TR. The Triumph community in my over all experience is very positive. So I’m sorry if I give the wrong impression.
As you can probably tell, I was a little frustrated with the fault on my bike at the time. On a light hearted note. I have real life friends, who like to spend time with me. So I can’t be too bad.
As for contacting Tuneboy directly. Yes, they are helpful.
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Will.
You’re a gent. Your opinion on Tuneboy is very eloquently put. The only thing, I’m not always keen on though, is “dive in and start messing with it to see what happens”. Can work out expensive.

Thanks fellas.

Don’t suppose either of you would know how to set the secondary throttle sensor on a D6 using Tuneboy would you?

Best wishes to you both, and any other www sole who meanders in here. Stan.

spank86 · 03-12-2010, 03:05 PM

well I've never used a tuneboy but I would guess the problem with regard to specific information is simple because the bike itself is more rare. Less people have it than a lot of jap bikes and out of those less have fitted a tuneboy and out of those fewer still have one, have fitted a tuneboy AND are one here.

BombFactory · 03-12-2010, 08:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stan_Laurel

BombFactory. Thank you for coming down to my level. . . . As you can probably tell, I was a little frustrated with the fault on my bike at the time. On a light hearted note. I have real life friends, who like to spend time with me. So I can’t be too bad.

Stan, I vote this the best reply anyone has given to my opinionated, though I like to think informed, statements! There are two poles to every opinion, and you going from one into a middle ground drags me from the other pole right along with you. Cheers for that.

Your comments about doing one's research before buying are certainly sensible, and intelligent.

Off the top of my head, I cannot recall a specific Tuneboy thread that I can link to, but I will try and find some that I've seen in the past. Judging by your comments about TuneBoy's tech support, I'm assuming you contacted them. Hopefully that was helpful. What exactly are you looking to do with Tuneboy/TuneEdit?

As for setting the secondary throttle position, are you referring to the computer's throttle position (different from the actual throttle position sensor's position)? I'm not familiar with the D6 Kiehin management system enough to give definite advice, so I'm not sure what you are referring to. If you are speaking of resetting the ECM's throttle position, it is done through the diagnostics (instrument panel) display, at least on a TT600/S4 Sagem system. The instructions give details for bringing the engine up to specific temp (I believe above 80C), and then you press the reset function. After that, you shut off the ignition, wait for the ECM to shut down completely, and then you fire it back up, allowing it to idle for 30+ seconds to reset everything. Again, this is for the Sagem system, and off the top of my head, so the instructions may be different for D6's.