Tiger Tales - Dialling in the 800XC for the dirt

[Aussie Trev]

Originally Posted by glitch_oz

Didn't mess with any electronics to just make a little alum bracket, bolt the switch onto that, then re-route the cable to make the whole shebang sit unter a side-panel, away from sticks and mud.

Now isn't that a bloody simple but very efective idea.....well done Sir

[Evomx971]

Originally Posted by Burren Rider

Sounds unreal through the forest now. Not overly loud still, just purposeful, almost like a WRC rally car .

My thoughts exactly!!!

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by Spots

At the risk of being far too obvious, there were some similarities and some differences. :) Afterall, one's a sports-touring bike for tall bastards and the other's a mid-size adventure bike.

To me the 800XC felt a lot lighter and narrower from the seat. Really easy to balance at slower-than-walking-pace. The 800 motor's got better usable power all the way down to, say, 1500rpm or 2000rpm or so. By comparison, below 3000rpm the 1050 Tiger is a grumpy-sounding cat which protests that its valve overlaps and runner lengths were meant for sporting, not stump-pulling. Edit: One other difference - The 1050 doesn't vibrate too much, but the 800's _insanely_ smooth and vibration free. Twist throttle, receive propulsion.

Wind management seemed better on the 800; less buffetting and noise. I found the 800's seat to be interesting/strange - it seems to lock the rider into just one position, whereas the 1050's got more room to scoot around.

In terms of handing they're quite different indeed - the 800 felt much slower to tip in no matter how forceful I was with countersteering (21" dual-purpose vs 17" sports-touring?), but once it was leaned over it felt sure-footed and confident. :) The 1050's handling felt a little more nimble overall but suffers in rapid side-to-side transitions through S-curves due to being a tall tubby tabby.


In summary I'd say the 800XC felt like it'd make a more comfortable/practical touring bike compared to the 1050 sports-cat; better wind-management, better tractability, more legroom. And with access to tyres that aren't sportsbike semislicks it'd be a hell of a lot better on unpaved roads, letalone getting into real offroad situations.

Thanks for the comparison, I was curious as to how the two bikes align themselves on the road.

Cheers,

Danny

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by ADVJake

Hi Danny,
long time no see.

Im very keen for the 800XC, its been dangerous for the housing prospects reading this thread... to sacrifice the deposit or not..

G'Day Jake,

Houses are over-rated. They accelerate slowly and really don't handle well on dirt roads . The rear knobby on the Tiger could be used to dig a Bear Gryll's style shelter in the ground and you could survive on the departed insects stuck to the screen.

The accountant in me would probably offer more rational advice though

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by glitch_oz

Hi Danny
Love the thread...great posts!!
Thanks for the effort taken
Re: sidestand switch...Rather than bypassing the switch, how about just re-locating it.... out of harms way, that is.

Like this perhaps (on a DL)


Didn't mess with any electronics to just make a little alum bracket, bolt the switch onto that, then re-route the cable to make the whole shebang sit unter a side-panel, away from sticks and mud.

G'Day Pete,

Thanks for the suggestion. I thought about that last night but can't see how it would be any different to bypassing the switch altogether? The problem with the clutch cutout on the DL is that the brains box thinks you must be stopped as the clutch is in and therefore changes the fueling to a different (richer) mix. My concern with bypassing the sidestand switch on the Tiger is that it will constantly think the stand is up and that may have some sort of impact on the fuel map alloted to starting duties. I have been really impressed with your build threads though so if you could elaborate on your logic that would be great

Cheers,

Danny

[glitch_oz]

Originally Posted by Burren Rider

. ....so if you could elaborate on your logic that would be great

As far as I'm aware (at least on the DL), the sidestand switch hasn't got a bearing on fuel mapping/ choke, it's only a safety cutout.

A stone-cold bike still runs on autochoke/ high idle even when the sidestand's up (i.e. parked on a ctr. stand/ milk-crate).....as well as automatically dropping into normal idle-rpm as it warms up on the sidestand.

Which makes it near impossible that the sidestand switch would have an active influence on fuel mixture/ mapping.
Repeated on-off switching caused by a short (wet/ mud etc) certainly would throw the ECU though, not the mapping.

Logically it shouldn't make a difference to mapping/ choke/ ECU etc. if the side stand, centre stand or the rider is holding the bike upright while it warms up.
The 1000/K6 and both the 650s (K5 +K9) have run happily with the "fix" so far.
I just wanted to get the switch and wiring out of harms way.
And since nothing's changed to any OEM part, it might be worth a try?


The clutch cut-out on the K7-> WEE's is a different matter. Yes, it changes the mapping.
Not the sidestand switch though..

[av_mech]

Barkbusters are my next mod. I nearly got stranded earlier in the year waaay out in the desert if Idaho because of a broken clutch perch when I tipped over in a gnarly climb. Lever protection is very important to me after that. Plus, the wind/rain protection can be improved upon from the stock plastic guards.



Anybody looked at the Cycra Pro-Bend Center Reach? HERE

Or the Moose Contour HERE and then add THESE.

Those look like about the best ones on the market. Opinions? Fitment issues?

I know I had problems finding ones that didn't hit the fairing on the KLR and so I abandoned the search. An almost ended up stranded. That won't happen on this bike. I don't see any interference issue with the windshield at bar lock. It would only be making sure to get the right ones to get around controls and fit the Nekken bars.

[av_mech]

Originally Posted by Burren Rider

Hey Danny,

I've posted a number of times in your thread and never said thanks for starting it!! Looks like you and I have very similar riding styles and will be modifying our bikes in much the same way. So, it may be a bit overdue, but THANKS!!! Tyson

[av_mech]

Danny, one more thing before I hit the hay.... Can you give a review of the Big Blocks? I found a smokin' deal on the TKC (yet to be installed), but I'm really curious how the Big Blocks are performing/holding up on the Tiger. Thanks!

[Adv Grifter]

Originally Posted by av_mech

Barkbusters are my next mod. I nearly got stranded earlier in the year waaay out in the desert if Idaho because of a broken clutch perch when I tipped over in a gnarly climb. Lever protection is very important to me after that. Plus, the wind/rain protection can be improved upon from the stock plastic guards.

Anybody looked at the Cycra Pro-Bend Center Reach? HERE
Or the Moose Contour HERE and then add THESE.
Those look like about the best ones on the market. Opinions? Fitment issues?

I know I had problems finding ones that didn't hit the fairing on the KLR and so I abandoned the search. An almost ended up stranded. That won't happen on this bike. I don't see any interference issue with the windshield at bar lock. It would only be making sure to get the right ones to get around controls and fit the Nekken bars.

Fitment to a street bike can be a challenge. I went with Tusk guards on my DR650 (and WR250F) because they offer so much to and fro adjustment. But it's never easy. Doesn't Triumph offer "real" barkbusters" for the XC?

Lucky you were able to zip-tie things back on. I've seen broken perches, levers, fingers, hands ... and one of the worst ... brake reservoir. Hard to ride down off a mountain with no front brake.

Bark Busters have really saved me riding dirt bikes. I always carry spare levers for my DR650 but never have needed them with the Tusk BB's in place.

PS I like the Cycra center reach idea. Might work for the Tiger ... not sure.
Looking forward to more ideas in this area

[av_mech]

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

Fitment to a street bike can be a challenge. I went with Tusk guards on my DR650 (and WR250F) because they offer so much to and fro adjustment. But it's never easy. Doesn't Triumph offer "real" barkbusters" for the XC?

Lucky you were able to zip-tie things back on. I've seen broken perches, levers, fingers, hands ... and one of the worst ... brake reservoir. Hard to ride down off a mountain with no front brake.

Bark Busters have really saved me riding dirt bikes. I always carry spare levers for my DR650 but never have needed them with the Tusk BB's in place.

PS I like the Cycra center reach idea. Might work for the Tiger ... not sure.
Looking forward to more ideas in this area

I'd like to take my bike to an accessories store and bring a few products out to the parking lot and do a "visual" fit. I might have time at lunch tomorrow to head there. A deadline looms at work for the weekend, so I doubt it, but I'll try. I looked on Triumph's website and I didn't see real bark busters. Maybe they make them, but they'll probably be $200. I'm confident I can make something work better for less money.

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by glitch_oz

As far as I'm aware (at least on the DL), the sidestand switch hasn't got a bearing on fuel mapping/ choke, it's only a safety cutout.

Thanks for elaboration Pete, I reckon I will give it a go on the sidestand switch and see if anything goes astray?

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by av_mech

Hey Danny,

I've posted a number of times in your thread and never said thanks for starting it!! Looks like you and I have very similar riding styles and will be modifying our bikes in much the same way. So, it may be a bit overdue, but THANKS!!! Tyson

G'Day Tyson,

No worries, I am just happy that it is beneficial. When I was looking at the Tiger it was so new that the internet was the only real world (well mostly real world ) source of info out there and I was hoping to contribute a bit in exchange.

As for handguards, I have a set of Aussie made VPS Barkbusters on the way. They make a model specifically for the Tiger so I think they should fit up well.

[Burren Rider]

Originally Posted by av_mech

Danny, one more thing before I hit the hay.... Can you give a review of the Big Blocks? I found a smokin' deal on the TKC (yet to be installed), but I'm really curious how the Big Blocks are performing/holding up on the Tiger. Thanks!

I am actually running a Mitas E-09 Dakar on the rear. The Mitas are a bit more aggressive than the TKC80's and they seem to hold up better in the long run. Not as good on the road as you can feel them "walk" a little on the side knobs when really leaned over but in my opinion they are considerably better in the dirt.

[dhula]

Originally Posted by Burren Rider

G'Day Tyson,

No worries, I am just happy that it is beneficial. When I was looking at the Tiger it was so new that the internet was the only real world (well mostly real world ) source of info out there and I was hoping to contribute a bit in exchange.

As for handguards, I have a set of Aussie made VPS Barkbusters on the way. They make a model specifically for the Tiger so I think they should fit up well.

I have a set of Bark Busters on my roadie with the VPS plastics.
The kit comes with all the gear you'll need to fit either the Roadie or XC. Can't remember the exact cost but I think it was ~$150.
If you are after a bit more weather protection then my thoughts are to get the STORM plastics (as in the pic above) as I don't reckon the VPS cover quite enough (having had a few broken fingers/thumbs over the years tend to feel the cold even with thick winter gloves). I have the extensions fitted in the high position and still ended up putting a bit of 100mph tape in various places to add to weather protection and this seams to have added a bit of protection but maybe it could be better.