Welcome to the forum!

The Water Cooled Twins Talk forum is where you can connect with other new Bonneville riders. Introduce yourself there, post photos of your Scrambler, and join the banter.

http://www.triumphrat.net/water-cooled-twins-talk/

Please complete your user profile so that we may see where you are from and what you ride as you post throughout the forums. Thanks!

http://www.triumphrat.net/profile.php?do=editprofile

Connect with local riders in the RAT forums. If you do not see a thread for your area, please start one.

https://www.triumphrat.net/rat-mid-west/

You may also find local riders and local events in the Rides and Events forum.

http://www.triumphrat.net/rides-and-events/

Please share your rides with us by posting photos of your rides in the Ride and Trip Reports forum.

http://www.triumphrat.net/ride-trip-reports/

Enjoy some off-topic and often humorous conversations in the Biker Hang Out forum.

http://www.triumphrat.net/biker-hang-out/

There is much to our forum, so please make yourself at home, browse the forums, and join the conversation where ever it may interest you. We are happy to have you here.

Cheers!

 

Thanks!

 

Hi Dr Joe,
At last I've found someone who has experienced the unnerving handling of the 1200xe. I picked up my new 1200xe (unlike you I should have test ridden it) only to find within the first three miles that it wandered like it was out of alignment. I reported this to my dealer and they said it was fine. I was not satisfied with this, so I checked the wheel alignment, and found the front wheelwas 26mm out of alignment with the rear. I contacted triumph directly, and they told me that is was designed to follow the same Centreline. I have continued to try and resolve this, but now they are saying that it was designed this. I am still trying to get them to respond to my emails and phone calls, but I think I'm being threated, like the proverbial, fly in the ointment.
Hopefully I will find outer people that have experienced the handling issue, in order to bring it further to their attention.
Regards Gerry 59.

 

How interesting! In fact, I now own both an XC and an XE. I have two residences, I loved the XC so much but always 2nd guessed my choice of the XC over the XE. I went and test rode another 2019 XE, and it did not have the wandering feeling at all. So I bought it and now have about 800 miles on it and pushing 3,000 miles on the XC. I plan to take the XE to my FL residence. I have no issue with that unnerving wander on this new XE, and I have ridden it well above the posted speed limit on rare occasion.

BTW, How did you measure the wheel alignment? I have seen a simple method with a string, but anything else? Alignment would definitely explain the handling issue I thought that I felt, but so might suspension adjustment. Can you share your documented communications with Triumph? I assume alignment repair would be under warranty. My dealer (Baxter) tells me that Triumph (the company) is great at customer support and making things right, so maybe start with your dealer. I also doubt that this issue is inherent in all XE's based on my own experience (owning a "good" XE) and the lack of comment from all of the reviewers of the bike.

Now, I have heard that there is a suspension issue regarding under-sprug rear pre-load and generally stiff XE suspension. I have seen a YouTube video of a Ohlins employee noticing that the factory-set adjustments of the stock suspension on an XE was terrible. Some adjustments fully opened and some fully closed. He also could not set the proper Sag for a heavy guy (but I noticed he was incorrectly using the specs of the XC).

I do not know your weight, but I am 6'6" and 275 and I do not know what the Sag is on my bike. Have you adjusted your suspension? Maybe it is not the alignment but the suspension settings. It is hard to adjust the preload on the XE d/t the position of the knob, even with the seat off. So I have not adjusted that yet but I plan to stiffen it up for full support as I assume Sag would be more than 1/3 with me on the seat. But I did set both front and rear compression and rebound (so easy) to just a clink less that fully open (soft). They were set factory set evenly side-to-side, but set on the firm side. I don't go off road or plan to do any jumps, and this bike has a mile of travel and is a firm ride anyway. I think the bike, for me, is much more comfortable and generally better to ride this way. I do not really push in the corners, but I love the handling with these settings. If you have not checked and adjusted the suspension try doing that and let me (us) know how things pan out.

 

BTW, anyone remove the air snorkel under the seat?

 

Yes, I took it out last week and have put a few hundred miles on it without. I also changed the air filter to a DNA oiled serviceable filter from A&J Cycles. I feel a slight improvement in the engine, feels a tad sportier and pulls harder, I found myself holding out to higher RPMs before shifting as the fun was multipled, but this is very subjective and the bike is still pretty new to me. The sound might have improved a little... same sound just a little less stifled. No new starting/stalling issues yet.


Thanks for confirming that counter-clockwise on the gold nut increased height, stiffness, and preload on the forks!

 

Hey Doc, if the preload adjuster nut is tight it'll be because it's either all the way out or in, depending on which way you tried to turn 'em. The black fork top adjusters on the XC don't click - they're continually adjustable as they simply wind up, or down, onto the spring to add pressure (preload) to the spring. Push down on the spring and the front of the bike rises and vice versa. Gently does it - if they won't move, don't force 'em 'cos they're at their limit of travel.
Calling the 'tool' under the side panel a spanner is to damn it with faint praise. You'll know what I mean when you see it!
Good luck. Don't make too many changes at once and you'll find the settings that suit you and the bike.
Check out Dave Moss tuning on YouTube to see it all in detail.

 

Yes. You are correct again. The XC already had max pre-load. The nut was all the way tightened (clockwise). I weigh 275 (125 Kg) and have about 50% travel with full pre-load on the rear, so I just left it at max pre-load on the front forks. I did do my XE front forks backward, so I adjusted it to minimum and my rears to max. Again, I don't think that I can get close to 33% no matter what, so I adjusted them to max pre-load and i did see quite a bit of lift on the front forks. I have an Indian that I have been riding mostly, and I am not sure I have even ridden the XE at all since I made the first pre-load suspension adjustments. I have ridden the XC (with my adjusting rear pre-load and factory at max front preload) a few times and I felt like I was leaning more forward. I was disappointed just now when I found that the front was already at full height. It was so tight, I wonder if a mechanic at the dealership thought it was just loose nuts and tightened them down. Finally, no clicks on either bike. Like you, just loosen or tighten. I'll check out that Youtube Dave Moss video. Thanks again and "Cheers".

 

A bit belated, but yes, I have just discovered the black fork-top nuts on my XC are wound out fully anti-clockwise. I thought they were fixed - the manual makes no mention of fork preload - but they do move clockwise, freeing with a little pressure on the spanner. Trouble is, I'm not sure I want the bike much higher than it is. But they're easier to adjust than the rear shocks. Just.

 

Interesting information! But, if this conversation is going to continue, it should be taken up in one of the Twin Talk Forums. The Welcome Forum just isn't for extended discussions. Thanks!