Triumph T140 Maintenance, Upgrades and Rides.
Triumph T140 Maintenance, Upgrades and Rides.
If you enjoy watching my videos then please don't forget to Like and Subscribe.
Join me on my rides across New Zealand, and videos on some of the maintenances and upgrades I have done on my bike.
All my videos on my channel are mostly of me riding my Vintage Triumph Bonneville T140v 1977 along with a few maintenance tips I can give you from my 50 odd years as a Qualified Mechanical Engineer, along with my hobby and love of running and maintaining the Triumph Bonneville T140 motorcycle
These motorcycles are in my opinion still the best motorcycle ever built
I do not narrate my riding videos, as the engine sound is more than sufficient. The sound can be a bit different between videos due to my continually customising my recording sound equipment to eliminate wind noise, reverb and other sound distortions that do not related to the true engine sound at high rpm and riding speed
The latest videos are pretty close to the actual sound from the bike when ridden
Cheers
Пікірлер
Another rebuild for the old girl. The bike is still looking great too. Love your work Dave. Regards Shaun.
Glad you enjoyed it
Thank you.
Hi Dave, Ive sealed my crankcase to run a dry belt primary. I've vented it from the plug behind the cylinder out behind the rear gaurd to catch can, its not very successful as throws out too much oil. Would this rocker cover solution be enough to vent a sealed crankcase? I would have assumed I would need a bottom end vent somewhere - I'm no mechanic 😅. Thanks in advance!
Hi so lets first understand what's going on with your bike. I understand you have fitted a belt drive. To fit the belt you will have closed off the three equalisation holes in the bottom of the primary case into the crank case. YES / NO.....?? (This is not a vent only a point to allow oil to flow from one side to the other to lubricate the triplex chain). Second im guessing again,,, that you have closed off the crankcase breather at the top of the Primary case at the back. That connects to a vent pipe that runs either to the back of the bike with a T140v,,,, or into the air breather box on the E and newer. YES/NO?? Then you have removed the plug and used the timing plug in between the carbs and fitted some form of pipe as a vent pipe for the crankcase and have linked that to the exiting breather pipes. YES/NO?? Before we can go further its very important I have a clear picture and my information from you is correct,,,, or please advise me on further... I can only then suggest a workable solution for you???
All of your assumptions are 100% correct. Crankshaft seal Inserted, 3 holes sealed with jb weld, closed off breather from back of primary, used existing hose that ran from primary to back of mud gaurd to connect to timing plug that i drilled out and brazed fitting onto. It is not an E model no air box. The 2 options i have seen that I have left is to drill and tap a hole in the top of the timing cover or to go from the front motor mount which would need me to pull the motor apart which If i ever want the bike to work again someone else would need to do. Now ive seen this video this looks like a prettier fix than the timing cover job if it would be enough to vent the crankcase. P.s. i would have never mucked with it i bought sight unseen and didnt check the primary until i broke down on it and he had a wet red belt set up which i changed to a dry BNR clutch set up.. where my troubles began.
@@spencer8503 Hiya well considering you say you are no mechanic then your doing pretty good. Over the coming years I would recommend collecting all the parts second hand for the old triplex chain set up, as that will out live the belt set up by a very long way and give you a lot less trouble. Its very very important to check for wear on belt drives as a broken one can destroy your engine. Read the manufactures recommendations on the belt life... One point of caution is you may or not know about the wet belt to dry belt conversions. They wet belt ones are like that so that the hub on the clutch is lubricated in the same way the triplex chain hub is lubricated. Simply changing to a dry belt dependant on the make you have can mean you need to change the bearing on the clutch also. Anyway I can chat about that stuff forever lol...As you have the belt drive on already I will presume you have sorted that bit out and we shall go on from there. Firstly and understanding you MUST reduce the crankcase pressure or you will blow all your oil seals if you haven't done already. I suspect your rocker boxes and o rings are already leaking oil, but that will mostly come right after you have finished doing the breather upgrade. 1. Your new vent you have from the timing plug will work perfectly but needs a bit more work. First it needs disconnecting from the old funny shaped breather pipe that runs to the back of the bike. Seal up that connection part on the old funny shaped breather pipe up with a plug. That old breather pipe should be connected still to the frame breather pipe. 2. Now check the frame breather,,, running from the breather pipe just below the steering head along under the tank is still connected to the old breather pipe connected behind the primary side air cleaner. Its hard to see it unless you take the tank off. 3. Now fit a new re routed 6mm or 8mm pipe that will be routed rising up from the new crankcase vent connection you made, running almost vertically between the carbs and route it along under the seat same as I have done. 4. Cut this new vent pipe high up at the point where the new vent pipe curves up under the seat and fit a brass Y connector. Available from any DIY store. 5. Cut the new vent pipe again under the seat and fit a 5psi spring loaded 6mm or 8mm one way valve under the seat as in my video. THIS ONE WAY VALVE IS VERY VERY IMPORTANT.. Available from most plumbing stores for about $10 and then out to the back of the bike. This valve prevents moist air from being drawn into the engine and actually depressurises the crankcase when in operation. 6. Fit securely a 3mm dia plastic restrictor about 10mm long inside the new vent pipe you have made at the new timing plug vent you made between the carbs. This restrictor helps reduce and almost stops the oil throw you are getting from that vent position you are using. This oil throw is from the crankshaft as it rotates but still allows the lower crankcase pressure to vent. Ensure this plastic restrictor is fitted securely and cannot fall into the engine. 7. So now you should have a connection from the new timing plug you made that runs on its own vent pipe running almost vertically from your new plug up above the carbs to the brass Y connector then along under the seat to the one way valve, and then out to the back of the bike as in my video. 8. Now we are at where my video starts -----Remove the Rocker box cover and fit the pipe as I have shown in my video and connect that to your new pipe at the Y junction high up between your carbs. 9. Start the bike and put your finger over your new vent pipe at the back of the bike. You will feel it pulsing. That's perfect and you wont need a collector can on the end of the pipe as any oil in the lines gets sucked back from the one way valve. 10. If you find with use that you are still using too much oil just fit a 3mm restrictor inside your new rocker vent pipe.(Normal oil usage even on a brand new Bonnie is about 0.5ltrs per 1000 miles.) 11. I would recommend disconnecting the new breather lines every 10,000 miles and just give them a cleanout and check the one way valve is working ok. 12 Clean your engine and now check your bike for oil leaks. Replace any seals that have blown prior to you fitting the new breathers. You will be oil free after that. This is a bit drawn out I know but to do the job is really pretty simple and will only takes a couple of hrs and only cost a few bucks. Happy to answer any more questions you may have. Have fun and ride safe...🙂
Dave this has been incredibly helpful and makes a lot of sense. I can't thank you enough! Looking forward to following this to a T. You're a good man, thanks again.
@@spencer8503 Your welcome😀
In all my years I have NEVER seen a crank that needed balancing like that - I can't believe that it's right.
Ive been riding and rebuilding theses for over 50 years now and can honestly say before I had mine done I would have agreed with you. Ive always previously only had them done statically in the normal way. This crank for example was done the year before and was spot on at 74%. It really opened my eyes on the difference the dynamic balance has made to my old girl. No more vibration and she's as smooth as any jap bike. Watch some of my ride videos and you can see and hear for yourself. I recommend the 3 minute Sound of Music one I made on the bike.
Liked very much these B&W shots (mostly done in 3rd gear?), and loved the “suspense” created at the end... a nice way to end a film by suggesting that “the best is yet to come”. Much appreciated!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Great video and congratulations! The joy on your face when you get it to start after all that effort was priceless. Well done!
Thank you for your kind words, much appreciated.
Very good. I need to understand how to make a video. I mean the editing. Most programs seem so difficult and only to make the minimum like to cut unwanted parts and like that. Also most are way heavy for my computer. I do not have enough free time to study a complicated program from scratch
I just use Action Director, easy to use and cheap lol.
If you were running it at 2K rpms and you turned the fuel off, why didn't the bike just shut off when it was out of gas? Or did just a couple minutes of running lean at that RMP's cause the problem?
If it had been a tuning issue then only one header would have glowed hot but this was both. Im guessing that because the rpm were high then inertia kept her running as well as a weak mixture from the fuel running low, it weakened the mixtures and the temp shot up just before she finally ran out.
love watching your videos uncle david, how long have you had the bonnie for now
Thank you Chris, this one I've had about 10 years, and have had four other Bonnies over the last 50 odd riding years plus a myriad of other bikes including Norton Honda Suzuki BSA and one Harley but only for about 6 weeks lol.
I always enjoy seeing a man using a bike in the way it was intended.
Thank you much appreciated.
Very smooth running😊😊
Hello; may I ask you about this battery? Local shop sells the same brand but is too expensive here so I bough an AGM type of battery (that is expensive too). I do not know anyone using Lithium batteries in old and new bikes hence my question. As mentioned just Today bought the other battery but I have to buy 2 more. One for a T140E and other for a Thruxton R ("new" bike that has a great quality special model by Yuasa but discontinued) so What is your opinion after all these months? Thanks in advance
I was a bit sceptical about these battery's but needed something with high cranking amps for the electric start that I now have. Having used this one now for some time I think there excellent and would buy another with no worries. If you buy one ensure it has the BMS however.
@@DaveWhellersVintage Alright; yes; is the same battery Thanks
Back in the day I'd also give the kickstart a couple of prods with the clutch lever pulled in, to ensure the clutch plates weren't stuck, especially if the bike had been sitting for a while.If the clutch plates were stuck together, the bike could lurch forward when put into first gear.
Great video really appreciate the total lack of background music but suggest buy a clip on microphone. The back to camera stuff was inaudible. You must remember you're talking to 'us' not mumbling to yourself :-)
Thanks for the tip!
Hello brand spanking new subscriber here.(Paul). I know you said you use the permatex aviation form a gasket throughout the bike but do you also seal the cases with it? If not what do you recommend? Thanks.
Hi Yes I use it on the cases as is shown on the engine rebuild video. You must follow the instructions and let it dry off until its gone tacky first though or it wont dry properly when the two halves come together. The secret of getting an oil tight seal is not the gasket seal really, its the flatness of the two mating surfaces. Any bruises on a mating surfaces will keep the parts from coming together and no amount of seal will fix that long term. That's why guys often have a dry bike after assembly but after a few thousand miles its starts dripping. . Some of the old timers I worked with never used any gasket seal at all on the crankcase joints and they got the surfaces perfect. I recommend spending time using engineers blue with the two halves with no engine parts fitted. Put a thin smear of engineers blue around one side. Then put them together and just lean on the top case. Carefully pull it apart again and look for a nice blue line all around the opposite case to the one you put the blue on. At the points there is no blue examine and flatten off carefully with a fine tooth file and pull the file carefully sideways a couple of times along the bruised area. Then using same file with a bit of 800 grit emery, polish the draw file marks out. Repeat. Ive done that on all my bikes and none drip. The gearbox seal is another story though and only a smear of silicone gasket seal on the splines behind the rubber seal before you put the sprocket on will fix that. Hope this helps. Ride safe.
@@DaveWhellersVintage yes it does thank you for your time.
Great video David, about time someone addressed the electric start problems. I'm on my third set of gears and sprag clutches. If you decide to market the gears I would be interested.
Yes I will happily look at selling them after the final trials are complete but trust you understand I will need to make batches of at least 50 to keep the costs down. The bigger the batch size the cheaper the machinist cost drops down too obviously. At that batch size they should be around $400 to $500 NZ (about 200 to 250 quid) each and that includes shaft and my new clutch assembly. All you would need to do is remove your existing shaft and sprag housing and replace it with the new one. You would need to fit the Pazon E Altair Ignition. You can buy the Pazon Altair now and that would help you immediately with your exiting set up of course. With your order just include my name on the order so they will know you want my special program version with coil delay. There are two different size shafts needed and I will need to know if you have the pressed in bronze bush in the crankcase type, or just the plain crankcase like mine. I am confident all the other issues have been addressed and believe what I now have to be a reliable economical electric start, that should be pretty maintenance free. I will let you know how the test went in Part Five of my Electric Start Videos I think it should be ready in around four months. I need to put some serious milage on my prototype obviously before im willing to say its all good.
Great work David. I'm picking that when you come to take it apart again it'll still be working perfect and looking as good as new. 😊
That's the plan!
Very poor show, luckily for you you're at a level who can do this work but there must be many out there with the same issue..
I put a lot of time and burnt a lot of midnight oil designing and getting one made that can stand up to the immense pressures in the gear train. From all the pre-testing ive done on it off the bike its looking very promising, so its now down to road testing.
You can buy most of the components from Harris and LP Williams. The sprag that rotates around the intermediate shaft is only available from LP Williams or make your own like I did lol. The special Pazon Altair with the coil delay program is also available to you now that want that. Just include in the order that you want the coil delay Altair E and mention my name so they know to make one for you.
You can buy most of the components from Harris and LP Williams. The sprag that rotates around the intermediate shaft is only available from LP Williams or make your own like I did lol. The special Pazon Altair with the coil delay program is also available to you now that want that. Just include in the order that you want the coil delay Altair E and mention my name so they know to make one for you.
You can buy most of the components from Harris and LP Williams. The sprag that rotates around the intermediate shaft is only available from LP Williams or make your own like I did lol. The special Pazon Altair with the coil delay program is also available to you now that want that. Just include in the order that you want the coil delay Altair E and mention my name so they know to make one for you.
I am interested in the modification to the Pazon ignition, I am about to fit an electric start to one of my Commando's, my question is does the modification mean the kickstart can not be used if the coil doesn't spark for the first 3 compression strokes. I would want to retain the kickstart just in case.
When you order the Pazon you need to ask for the special E version Altair, if necessary mention my name to Andy. Kick start works fine as it ignores the first or second pulse which is enough to avoid kick back obviously. I always put mine to TDC now before kicking and its fine electric or kick start. On the Tridents and TSX ES Bonnies and one 850 Commando I once worked on years ago, I just used to put a simple coil delay timer on for 1 about second that had a switch to turn it on and off so you could select electric or kick. That worked fine but sadly vibration used to destroy the relays so needed to change them every six months. It worked fine but for that. No more wrecked starter motors or bendixes on those lol. Hope this or these ideas are of use. Ride safe.
Choc block? Great job and great to see it all come together.. ES makes such a huge difference I'm saddened those in charge at the time never saw the future even when it was staring them in the face..
Agree its not that hard really. I have designed a new stronger sprag as well that's in part 4 and will put that up on here soon.
You can buy most of the components from Harris and LP Williams. The sprag that rotates around the intermediate shaft is only available from LP Williams or make your own like I did lol. The special Pazon Altair with the coil delay program is also available to you now that want that. Just include in the order that you want the coil delay Altair E and mention my name so they know to make one for you.
As the last Bonneviles' like the TSS etc being an afterthought the ES add on is bit of a carbuncle sadly. I can see the need and it's welcomed by us oldies but it sure ruins the overall look. This one at least looks well engineered (far better than the original tbf)
Thank you I spent two years working on this and the parts are fairly easy to find off the shelf. I have redesigned the sprag and upgraded the lubrication to the intermediate gear also. That's in part 4. My knees are kaput so it was a case of pull my finger out and make something that works and still looks good on the bike or stop riding. This is the result.
You can buy most of the components from Harris and LP Williams. The sprag that rotates around the intermediate shaft is only available from LP Williams or make your own like I did lol. The special Pazon Altair with the coil delay program is also available to you now that want that. Just include in the order that you want the coil delay Altair E and mention my name so they know to make one for you.
I love the look and practicality of the screen. So I've just added one to mine. It's a Givi 34 if anyone else wants one.
Yes they work much better than most guys and gals imagine. Its important to release the screen clamps after the first week and reset them I found. Avoids over stressing the Plexiglass. I re check mine every 6 months after that. Mines been on over 8 years now with no problem and its much nicer to ride with it on. Good luck with yours.
The older model DID 530 VX with a pin length of 23.3mm is more likely to fit without modification if you can track one down.
Possibly but as there no longer available generally its a bit pointless for me to make a UTUBE advice or upgrade video about that one. Using the larger chain as I have is no hassle, and the modification work is very easy to do and takes no more than 15 minutes to do if you have the engine out. Hope this helps.
You can’t beat the sound of a old Triumph, I love my 1968 Daytona, wish we got your weather over here mate 🏴🇬🇧👍
Are the carb studs long enough for these spacers or do you fit longer ones?
I got a friend of mine to make mine but believe you can buy them from Amal. You can use the std stud if you leave off the o rings and compression cones for the o rings.
I got a friend of mine to make mine but believe you can buy them from Amal. You can use the std stud if you leave off the o rings and compression cones for the o rings.
I noticed you have really thick spacers between the carbs and manifolds. Did you put slightly longer studs on it or was there enough threads on the stock studs to make it work? I've been wanting to put the 5mm spacers on my 78 T140, but when I tried it there was only a few threads sticking out on the studs. I was worried it wasn't enough.
I got a friend of mine to make mine but believe you can buy them from Amal. You can use the std stud if you leave off the o rings and compression cones for the o rings.
This is great. I've been searching for the best instructions. There isn't much to go on but this definitely makes it clear.
You're very welcome!
Thanks for the ride! I like this bike and sounds great!
Glad you like it!
Really impressed with the sound quality of your videos 😊 and the clarity. I wonder if the windscreen helps your mic pick up the sound of those stock silencers so well. My first road registered bike was a 78 TR7RV and I replaced the stock silencers with dunstall copies and they stilldidn’t sound as good as yours😂 You’ve obviously done some nice fettling to this engine as it runs extremely well 👍🏼
I spent over a year developing a microphone that could work at over 100mph with no wind sound, its not as easy as people may think to get this sound quality.
I found it possible to loosen the foot peg nut to allow for the foot peg to droop down. Essentially you're loosening it to the point where the locating Peg can be pulled away from the frame. Makes it a lot easier to put it back together
In addition to my oil pressure problem, now mostly sorted, but my final leak is the oil being pushed up the wires and sleeve from the primary chaincase to the regulator and being deposited at the back of the crankcase. On close inspection you seem to have extended the sleeve and covered it in heat shrink plus some thin cable ties. How far back have you extended it? You are very proud of not having any leaks so were and how have to terminated the sleeve. I'm inspired to get a long tall Givi screen by the way.
I use silicone on the rubber o ring seals that fit into the back of the primary. I also put silicone in the seal from the inside then I push the assembly together. Its a very messy job but worth doing. You must form an oil tight seal at that point and not try to fix it higher up the cable. I use the shrink wrap just to make it tidy and add protection to the cables, it cannot stop oil. The screen simply makes a big difference on the air pressure on your chest when riding allowing you to cruse comfortably at high speeds.
@@DaveWhellersVintage I've put heat shrink and 2 small cable ties at the back of the primary chaincase and right upto the push in connectors to the regulator but not using any silicone. After about 100 miles it seems to have done the trick, but I'm concerned at your remark about the silicone ,not using it further up the cable.
Sorry dont understand, is this a question?
Is this in Australia?
No
I have a 1977 t1040 and live in Dunedin NZ. Where can I get one of these please?
I got mine from Dick Smiths online years ago. This one is abt same spec as mine. Duratool LCD Display with Backlight IR Infrared Thermometer Temperature Gun. The Phenolic Spacers are from web site --- www.britishmotorcycleparts.co.nz/ up in Auckland. $97. Hope this helps.
Great video, so helpful, doing a restoration on my 76 T140v and it’s my first. So everyday is a school day.
kzread.info/dash/bejne/pHaY1LWwYbGfdsY.htmlsi=kPrFZXhG-5uZQPq- It seemed rather long winded. Id rather three good swings from cold. Starting is at the three minute mark. 👍
This was made to help novices mate so of course its long winded.
You turn the fule off it runs out of fuel and it does a couple of spits and stops so why would the engine suffer happens plenty when people run out before they hit reserve happened to me a few times over the years and never had an issue ...
Ive done the same as you and ran the float chambers out before putting the bike away. But this time something was different. I think the mixture become weak and with the bike forced to run at high rpm it just heated up real quick as the mixture weakened, the temperature rises obviously. Thats my best guess and the evidence is plain to see on the engines internals. You can even see the melted copper head gasket in the bores. . I wont be turning my fuel off again.
A properly sorted and kitted machine, nice bike!
Ironically , without the 'tickling' (choke instead) that's pretty-much how I start my W650. My other bike is unfortunately Only electric-start (all bikes should have a kickstart !) I also kick it over a few-times with fuel and ignition-off first, to get the oil-around as starting produces the-most damage in engines . You can do this on electric-start-only bikes when they are cold at-least , by turning them over until the oil-light goes-out 'Then' activating choke . Dave
That's close-to the style of riding I enjoy on my 82-XV1000 (TR1 ) Dave
I live on that road , 2nd-tight-bend after the one-lane bridge , got me early-retirement when my bike-shop-ass-embled front-end burst ! You have to watch the South-end of Hunterville, often a speed-camera parked there , catches a lot of people out . There are a lot of nice-rides around these-parts . Where did you source your front-disc from ? Dave
I got the new disc from Britishmotorcycleparts.co.nz -- up in Auckland.
I know they had faults, but that sounds like a bike!!
Cheers🙂
Exelent video, thanks for not ruining it with music. Man,...you make her work hard😊 at some point i thought she was going to explode. Cheers mike (Netherlands)
Na shes very happy at high rpm and runs well up to 7k with little effort since I had the crank dynamically balanced.
@@DaveWhellersVintage I know it wasn't breaking a sweat because my ' 70 Daytona 500 4 speed ran at high RPM extreme amounts of time. Clean oil is all...
Looks like you got close to the ton there? 🙂
The ton is no problem and gets there pretty quick. I took her up to 111mph one time on a private flat road with no wind. Speed maxed and measured on a gps. She was still pulling and it was me that bottled out as the screen was getting flattened with the wind pressure. I don't make a habit of doing things like that though, and only when im on holiday in Germany lol.
Excellent stuff.
Thank you . This was the last ride of the year. Shes in wintering mode now tucked up in the workshop for next summer.
@@DaveWhellersVintage you've been great this year!
Question: It looks like the crank roller bearing races were removable, why did you not seat the race first then put the cases together?
Lining up a C2 bearing in the crankcase housing whilst holding the crank vertical all at same time is almost impossible if you put the race in the housing first. A C2 bearing is a very close fit as it was explained in the video verse the C3 bearing. Doing it the way I have done it is very easy. If you use the three piece roller bearing kit you can seat the housing in the crankcase first but its still a proper fiddly job even then. Personally I prefer the two piece bearings as it all slots together beautifully as long as you heat the case up above 90C. This temperature is most important or you will never get the bearings to slot in cleanly. Hope this explains it for you.
Each manifold that attaches to the head has a nipple where the crossover balancing tube attaches. Could you hook a carb sync manometer style tool up to those two nipples then fire up the bike and balance the carbs while it's running like you would with an old Honda CB? I never see people do that, so I'm assuming there's a reason for it, but with my 07 Bonneville the carb sync nipples were on the manifolds, so it seems like it could work.
If you want to use manometers then you will need to disconnect the balance pipe between the carbs. Use two manometers, one on each carb individually to balance your carbs for fine tuning. I doubt you will improve on the performance however. Lots of effort for very little reward in my opinion. On Honda fours using manometers is the only way to do it, but on these old twins its very easy. You must still do the mechanical part as I explained on the video first to set up your cables and carb stops. After this just fine tune with the idle air screw to get the best rpm. Hope this is of use.
Lovely job, I can see myself fitting an ES kit as I get older and my knees get bad. I’ve had a 78 750 Tiger for many years and I’ll never sell her! She’s completely stock other than an external oil filter. The crank case has never been split so I’ll have to go in there at some point and clean the sludge trap. She’s not a particularly vibey bike but I’d certainly consider getting the crank balanced, did you find it made a difference??
Hi yes I would recommend getting it done dynamically but not statically on a balance bed, or the old way as some call it. Dynamic balancing Is not cheap but the difference is astonishing. Knowing what I learnt with this I whish I had done all my other Bonnies I have had over time. Until I had this old girl, which will be my last bike. I never experimented and every thing went back as it came out of the factory. Mine ticks over with hardly any vibration at all and at 3000 and above, shes as smooth as any jap bike. I would also recommend fitting a Pazon Altair Ignition system. The difference between contacts / Boyer up to the mk4 and even the new Trisparks is also amazing. Anyway its up to you and its all personal preference.
My old stamping grounds. The bike sounds great.