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When "when" happens

3K views 32 replies 10 participants last post by  MileHighScottie 
#1 ·
It's not a matter of "if" but "when" and last weekend, my "when" happened. After 30k over the last three years on the 99 955 ST I bought for my 50th birthday after not riding for 20 years.

Dark out, downhill wide one lane each way road with no stop signs for me and stop signs at the cross street. No lights at the intersection.

As I approached the intersection in the corner of my eye and with the lousy field of vision on my factory lights, I catch a young girl take off sprinting across the intersection on my left as a car approaching me passes her. I lock the front up, caught some sand and promptly dump it on the right side as she freezes like a deer 10ft in front of me. She's freaked out but comes out of it and crosses and has the look of seeing her maker. I have no idea how I came off but I'm guessing my cat like reflexes and mountain biking background kicked in and I honestly can't tell you if I rolled or landed flat footed.

My gear yields no hints, armored Triumph adventure jacket (the cheap yellow one they have been giving away at Revzilla for a couple of years now), Kevlar jeans, cheapish riding boots from Cycle Gear, FlyLow full leather ski gloves (it was in the 40s) and my trusty helmet. No noticeable signs of wear on the gear yet I have scratches/abrasions on both legs. Go figure.

The aftermath: No less than three different guys stopped to check on me and one helped me right the bike after I retrieved the right side saddlebag from the intersection. I sent the girl on her way with a kindly no problem, nobody hurt (as I successfully kept the urge to throttle her buried deep in my throat). It started right up again and I was able to ride the mile or so home.

The pain:

Lost my right footpeg, already replaced with an in-stock piece from the good folks at Foothills Triumph. So much for the spring activated folding action.

The bracket that goes into the locking section of saddlebag mounts is sheared off and I will need to figure out that one.

The right side large upper fairing is cracked in a number of different places, lost a quarter size piece near a mount but not in the mounting hole thank god and this fairing looks like it took the brunt of the pain. The brackets got pretty distorted as well from the impact as well as one of the mounting clips from the right front cracking off.

The folding mirror did its job and folded back out just fine.

Last night I started the process of taking off the side fairings and creating my 955 RSish bike with bags. Who knew there was a power plug behind the left mid fairing close to the saddle? Never noticed it before (I'd never taken off the bodywork). I am absolutely positive that I will cross the wiring into the OEM heated grips switch on the left side upon re-install, but I'm an idiot.

I've read a handful of repairing ABS fairings threads including the one from this forum and watched a bunch of videos. I feel armed and ready to tackle this on my own. The left side had scratches already from the PO so it is going to be a paint party once i get the right side all ABS glued up.

For what it's worth I am the guy that takes his bike in for an oil change. But after seeing exactly one already scratched up old replacement fairing on Ebay going for $199 I decided it's time to get handy.

First question, why do you guys do about the foam on the inside, it looks like it's glued in and I will need to tear it out to get to some of the cracks?

Thanks for listening, thank god I have ten days off for xmas and hopefully will have a good start on this winter project.

Any hints, advice, sympathy all appreciated.

Thanks,

Bob

Golden955
 
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#2 ·
Sounds like you came through it much better than it could have been.

For the foam, Triumph uses some sort of tacky adhesive with a peel away strip like you'd see on double sided tape.
I'm pretty sure you can order just the foam pieces by themselves but, being Triumph, they'll be priced at ONE MILLION DOLLARS per side.

You could probably get it loose with Goo Gone or WD40 and a plastic blade and then clean it up and reglue it into place.
 
#4 ·
Glad to hear you're OK, Bob. Regarding the foam, you can get heat insulating adhesive foam (with a shiny metal layer) from a lot of car accessory shops. Just clean the old fairing inner well before sticking it on.
 
#6 ·
Wowza Bob! Glad you're ok! Chat with me, I may have some bits you need in bins in the basement, and I'm just across town. Plus I work in Lakewood.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
#7 ·
Thanks for the offer Scottie, I will let you know when I get the reassembly going.

I finished the side and belly fairing removal, taped up the heated grip and the outlet wiring, replaced the peg and jerryrigged the pannier locking mech. Then I got out and enjoyed my new RS in our unseasonably warm 60 degree day.

Does anybody just keep the side fairings off and ride it semi naked? I'm actually not adverse to the idea.

I did go through the gear again, I must have rolled as my helmet had some scuffs and my gloves are roughed up as well. Funny how it happens so fast I didn't even remember the off.

Today I got the ABS glue and will start stripping the foam and prepping for surgery. I will post some pics as I get started.
 
#8 ·
After a long winter (we had snow three weeks ago) and hearing how caustic all the fluids were and needing ventilation and a place to work (my garage) I am just getting going on operation "fix the fairing." BTW, riding it without the midfairings hasn't been a problem at all and unless someone knows the bike, nobody has mentioned that it was missing pieces so god knows why I am spending so much time fixing the bits and pieces.

Last we spoke I had removed the side fairings and belly pan.

I started out removing the foam, thanks for the Goo Gone tip Steve, worked super easy and washed up easy.

So far I have fixed all of the cracks, plugged the hole and reattached 4 tabs (3 on the newly wrecked fairing, 1 on the other that must have been broken years ago when the PO had dropped it) using a half of a can of ABS cement and some plastic bits for bracing on the tabs.

I've sanded the **** out of both sides getting it down to smooth but roughed up texture. Started out pretty rough (36 or 38 or something to get the big bumps and decals off) then followed up with 400.

This weekend I will spray the primer and sand it down starting with 400 and building up to 1000.

Which brings me to paint and my first question this post, is there a more reasonably priced alternative to the $30+ per can Jet Black from ColorRite? I mean, we are talking Black, a beautiful deep jet black yes, but come on, $30 a can for black? I figure I'm going to need 2 at minimum and three more likely, to paint both sides mid fairings, the belly pan and the panniers. I'd rather spend $30 for three instead of $100.

Any easy options to get a 98% match vs. the exact match in a spray can?

I have the decals ordered coming from the UK for $20 instead of the $100 for a set at Bike Bandit.

Question #2, is there a preferred clear coat in a can that I should use, besides ColorRite's highly priced option?

I just hate throwing money at a 20yr old bike that I only paid $2,800 for 5 years ago and likely will only have another year or two before I upgrade to a GT.

Thanks all,
Bob
 
#9 · (Edited)
Hi Bob. Glad you're getting it back together. Not sure about your black option. I don't ride the slow colored Sprints [emoji6]

If it were me, I'd buy a can of black spray (not lacquer) and try it on a test piece, like a coke bottle. Hold it against your good paint and compare.

As for clear, I'd use cans of 2k clear. It has a hardener activator in it. Worth the money, but I think Colorite is over priced. I've used Spraymax 368061, and it's like $22 on amazon. Not cheap but good

If you need help, I'm just across town, and a buddy and I are having a rear hub bearing servicing party soon, if yours needs it. I also have a vat of RG2 grease for that.





Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
#10 ·
ha ha ha, if it were an easier task to take the front section off I'd repaint the whole bike, I've always liked the dark green or maybe go off brand with a dark burgandy.

I'd love to get the axle greased, it's been quite a while, just hope you don't mind a newb with two left thumbs tagging along. Depending on when you're planning I could even bring the bits and pieces over for an assembly party. I am pretty booked all summer (two teen kids and an active wife) but let me know and I will try and make it. Go ahead and txt me at the Classic CO Area code-218-0080. Thanks for the offer.

I'm horrible about taking pictures but here is one just post crash and another in the state they are in right now.



 
#11 ·
You can't see it too well but the back half was holding on by about an inch of the plastic not cracked and had a child crack going into the cowling. There was also a quarter size hole where I didn't recover the broken piece that need filling in by rear fastener. Another crack from the edge to between the S and the T and another smaller one up top. The fasterners were a beachie themselves. I've caught myself holding them up to the frame just envision what it will look like when finished. I am glad I decided to try this out. The last time I had a bike painted was when my dad and I stripped a burnt out 71 T120R to the frame. He worked in an elevator shop and they had a nice pro paint room. Litttle different in a garage and planning rattle cans.
 
#14 ·
Making progress, boy do you find out where you needed to sand it down more once you spray some primer on it. Had to sand down three or four cracks, rough spots and whatnot after this first couple coats of primer. It is starting to look good and I'm getting excited about painting it, the decals should show up this week and off I'll go.

 
#16 ·
Got them off Ebay from a seller named zengraphics, turns out I had bought some stickers from them a few years ago and was happy with their product. ~$24 vs. the $100 for a pair from Bike Bandit. They are in the UK so it takes a couple of weeks to get here, praying they don't get folded in the shipping.
 
#17 ·
Small world. I just bought a decal kit from them for my Daytona 955i.
 
#20 ·
I just bumped into this thread - sorry to hear about your near collision. Glad you made it out unscathed, mostly, and that your bike is shaping up.

I really appreciate reading about your painting process since I've often wondered whether can spraying could do a decent job. Decal placement is another challenge to making the bike look good - I wonder how you'll place them. With all the chest pumping :Sheep about 'the fastest color' I've considered changing my bike's color - which was the fasted now, yellow? >:)


Years and years ago I was riding on my lunch break in San Francisco. I pulled away from the green light and just as I got through the intersection a pedestrian ran out between parked cars just feet in front of me. I slammed on the front brake, pre ABS days, and promptly hit the pavement, sparing anyone from injury. I'd like to think (dream?) my braking skills are good enough to avoid washing out the front (I passed the test a couple of times since), but I'd love to have ABS. Would it keep me from buying a bike I really want (let's see, Aprilia Futura, a Ducati ST, 5th Gen VFR, a vintage something or other)?

Looking forward to your updates.
 
#24 ·
Looks shiny! Nice job.

What was your sanding process? I mean, the sandpaper grits you went through, did you end up using compound at the end, etc?

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#27 ·
Post Mortum:

Let me preface this with I am not a hands on guy, I can hammer boards together (framing) but do not have the attention span or patience to do finish work. I only took this on because a. I really like the fully faired look and b. the cost of buying the unpainted pieces plus paying to have them pro painted would equal about a third of what I paid for the bike almost five years ago now.

I had low expectations and all in all I'm happy with how they ended up and I lived up to my low expectations.

The highlights:
Repair was a lot easier and ended up better than I expected given how it was shattered in four or five places and had a hole that needed to be filled. I was very heavy handed with the ABS glue and it did the trick, I glued cracks together, the old tabs back on, filled holes, all with just the ABS glue. This is an area where you know it's all going to be sanded fifty times and you don't need that much detail, just get it all back together and let the sanding make it pretty. A big chunk standing out? No problem, get some lower grit and get it down.

Assembly was something I feared, had to manhandle it quite a bit as the brackets (two on each side) were pretty mangled but it all came together and except for the hairline crack I caused because I'm an idiot, it all came together just fine.

One of those hand held sanders really helped when taking down the old decals.

Speaking of which, very happy with the decals



Lowlights:
I rushed the painting and should have taken the time to a. sand it better before painting and b. after a couple of coats, sanded it down again. I even have some lightly painted sections along the rear edges that I'm sure 98% of people won't notice but I will know and notice every time I get on.

I did touch up a light section near my heated grip switch that must have missed most of the spraying and I sanded it down and sprayed it an it looks great, unfortunately out of place on the dull coat most of the bike has.

This has left me with a pretty dull surface and upon inspection you can see scratches in the paint. There are areas where I must have worked it well with sanding that look like glass, these sections are the exception.

I used $6 black paint for the project instead of Colorrite Triumph Jet Black, there is a difference but I knew and expected that going in. If I was really concerned I would have gone with the more expensive stuff.


Shopping list (not exhaustive) for fairing mids and lowers and bags:
ABS glue/cement 1 Can
Primer 3 Cans
Paint 3 Cans
Clear coat 3 Cans
A ton of sanding paper everything from 60 to 2000
A lot of shop rags to clean, clean, and clean every step along the way
Patience, I didn't bring enough and it shows
Total cost was about $100

I've since sanded with 2000/compounded/polished/waxed, it helps but no where near factory condition. And that's ok. I've got my bike back, all fo it and I'm happy.



OK HUGE QUESTION: In my rush to get it all back together I completely forgot to put some insulation on the back of the repaired fairing, what am I risking here?
 
#29 ·
I have a stress crack on my silver bike's fairing right on that bolt hole too. If the bracket behind it is tweaked even a little, it stresses the plastic. I fixed the bracket, ABS cemented the crack and stuck a sticker over it.

Want to meet for a pint to show off your handywork?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 
#31 ·
I have a stress crack on my silver bike's fairing right on that bolt hole too. If the bracket behind it is tweaked even a little, it stresses the plastic. I fixed the bracket, ABS cemented the crack and stuck a sticker over it. I

Want to meet for a pint to show off your handywork?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

I would love to meet just to get together with another inmate, just be kind when evaluating the handiwork. Shoot me a txt at classic co area code 218-0080

I ran a bead of the ABS cement down the crack and it seems strong as new, glad I'm not the only one who has experienced it. Funny part was once it was all bolted on the stress was relieved and it was almost flush. Another reason I don't want to take it off and put the foam/insulation on. I'm afraid of what I'll screw up next time.
 
#30 ·
Thanks for the detailed report Golden! If you have any close-ups to share I'd love to see them.
 
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