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Re: Clutch



At 09:54 PM 04/07/1999 -0700, David Sampson wrote:
>The first review that I read in Motorrad (the leading German motorcycle
>magazine)about the Sprint ST, severely criticized the bike on this
>point. They stated that one could expect to have a sore wrist in
>commuting as well as 'all day touring' situations.

Well, I used mine at Daytona, and for anyone that has seen that mess, my
comments can be appreciated. It turns the roads into huge parking lots
where it is very easy to find yourself stopping and going every 30 seconds.
What that means is a lot of clutch use - more than you would expect even
commuting in a congested city - and I had no problems with it.

>They also criticized the lack of a handle/hole for putting the bike up
>on the centerstand and the panniers. They did not like the fact that the

obviously they were riding a prototype - the production bags have a very
nice swivel handle for center stand assistance.

>top of the panniers was not at the same level as the passenger seat
>(hence making it less convenient if one were carrying a 'pack roll') nor

I carry my camping equipment in a waterproof canoe bag which extends over
the sides. I had it on last week without problem - the weight of the bag or
roll should be on the seat anyway and not on the bags....

>did they like the necessity of lowering the exhaust and installing a
>plate (probably a heat shield) between exhaust and pannier. They thought
>that if the top of the pannier was at the same level as the passenger
>seat, it might not have been necessary to lower the exhaust at all. 

no idea what they are talking about here. There is no heat shield or plate
to be installed. Maybe they were referring to the actual piece of metal
(about 1-2 inch) that is used to drop the exhaust? I'm not attempting to
say they were right to use a system that dropped the exhaust, but I can't
find any real problems with it (and Ducati does the same). The ground
clearance will not be affected for me - I would have to be way over for it
to touch - much further over than I would be with bags on (ie if I was
going to the track to drag my knee, the bags would be off anyway and the
exhaust moved back to higher position). As for the height of the bags, from
an engineering standpoint, you would be placing the load bearing point
lower on the bags (and changing the center of gravity) or have a bracket
that extended above the fairing which I know I would not just from a visual
perspective. 

>Normally, I find Motorrad reviews 'on the money.' About a month later, I
>went out and took a test ride and thought the clutch was no heavier than
>on bikes that I have owned with hydraulic clutches.
>
>A couple of months later, I took a ride on the very same Sprint ST
>demonstrator and found the clutch to significantly heavier that I
>earlier remembered.
>
>This change in the amount of effort required makes me wonder if it isn't
>a lubrication, binding or wear problem. I suspect the problem might be
>in the L-shaped metal tube that comes off the back of the clutch level
>that forces the cable to make a 90 degree turn.

I'll have to look and see - it may also be a case of binding at some point
on the routing of the cable. I have had clutches that are easier, but I
have also had some that were harder. 

I hope my answers didn't seem to flippant - its hard to judge tone on an
email - I definitely was not writing any of this with a "how dare you
question Triumph" tone ;-) Just giving my .02 worth - hope that it helps.

If you do end up with a ST, I'm sure you will find yourself in love with it
as much as the rest of us.

If you come up with any other questions, please feel let us know - someone
is bound to have an opinion ...

- - Eric


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