2012 Roadster Handling

[Bunny Burrell]

Bunny - spent my formative years in EOD, so trying desperately to avoid any form of Kaboom!

brilliant comeback .

Anyway I just went outside and photographed my fork tops.

I don’t recall seeing the O rings at the top of the fork, when I had mine out on my previous Rocket. Have you tried tightening the fork caps? Every fork I’ve done that has an O ring in the cap, once tight I’ve never seen it.
I just remembered, I’ve a Triumph Workshop manual in my shed I’ll check in the morning.

 

[Heidhurtin]

brilliant comeback .

Anyway I just went outside and photographed my fork tops.

I don’t recall seeing the O rings at the top of the fork, when I had mine out on my previous Rocket. Have you tried tightening the fork caps? Every fork I’ve done that has an O ring in the cap, once tight I’ve never seen it.

The fork caps are only for sealing though, correct? They shouldn't have any effect on the steering or fork performance - granted it may show the forks are a bit too high in the yoke. I'll whip 'em off tomorrow when it's light. Thanks.

 

[Bunny Burrell]

The fork caps are only for sealing though, correct? They shouldn't have any effect on the steering or fork performance - granted it may show the forks are a bit too high in the yoke. I'll whip 'em off tomorrow when it's light. Thanks.

Wait out!

Let me check my workshop manual first.

 

[Jhortz]

Guys - quick question. My 2012 Roadster has 3" bar risers fitted by a previous owner, Jardine exhaust but otherwise stock, Avon Cobra Chrome's front & rear with plenty of tread. Since I got it I noticed an odd handling quirk; at low speeds it tends to drop into the turn, trying to tighten up and I have to hold it up. On faster sweepers it feels like it wants to straighten up, and I have to hold it down. It's my first RIII so I don't know if this is normal, a "feel" issue caused by the risers, or something else. Having to hold pressure on the bars is starting to annoy me a bit as time goes on and as I swap back & forward from my HD softail.

I love the bike otherwise. Any ideas? (Please say it's an easy fix - I'm handy with a spanner but there are no Triumph dealers near me and I don't have a home workshop to do anything too involved.)

I'm not sure what my opinion is worth here, but what you're describing sounds like my bike too, which I assumed was normal. My 2012 Roadster is the only rocket I've ever owned or ridden, and while I've got decades of riding on trail-bikes my road bike experiences is fairly limited. The bike handling the way it does makes sense to me, it is a balance between a massively heavy bike and enormous torque. If the bike didn't fall over so hard it would be impossible to get it over, and if the torque didn't force it up so hard the bike wouldn't come up again. The weight makes the bike fall, the torque makes it stand up. At slow speeds I use torque to keep the bike upright, at high speeds the torque stands the bike up again in the corners. I'm a decent sized bloke (6'2 and 100kgs) and I really have to force the bike over when cornering and accelerating at the same time, try as I might I can't get the bike over far enough to scrape the pegs at speed . I also ride a street triple RS and when I come back to the rocket it feels like the rocket is trying to suicide itself into the ground every time I turn until I get used to it again.

I guess the best solution if possible would be to compare the ride to another bike. But I will be watching this thread to see the end result as now I'm interested as to what is "normal" for a rocket.

 

[TURBO200R4]

if you have never dragged the pegs then you never hit a corner to fast.
i hit a corner to fast and forced it down on to the frame i was able to wiggle the front forks (real pucker moment and ooh **** ) but it came back up and i never crossed the double yellow lines.
i would rather slide into the guard rails than drive into the on coming traffic.

 

[Jhortz]

if you have never dragged the pegs then you never hit a corner to fast.
i hit a corner to fast and forced it down on to the frame i was able to wiggle the front forks (real pucker moment and ooh **** ) but it came back up and i never crossed the double yellow lines.
i would rather slide into the guard rails than drive into the on coming traffic.

The roads where I lived are revoltingly straight and flat, it's a 2 hour ride to find a hill or corner

 

[Tripps]

The roads where I lived are revoltingly straight and flat, it's a 2 hour ride to find a hill or corner

Same here, both where I lived in NY and where I live now in Florida, the Flatlands.

 

[Itomis]

The roads where I lived are revoltingly straight and flat, it's a 2 hour ride to find a hill or corner

With roads like this, the wheel is probably worn out only in the center.

 

[Heidhurtin]

The roads where I lived are revoltingly straight and flat, it's a 2 hour ride to find a hill or corner

Ditto here - the only turns I get are at the lights/junctions, or the feeder roads ("ramps" for our colonial cousins) swapping from one multi-lane yawn fest to the next. That's why I notice the 2 distinct quirks - at junctions (30ish kph) I have to hold it up, but on the faster feeder sweeps (80-120kph) I need to hold it down.

But I will be watching this thread to see the end result as now I'm interested as to what is "normal" for a rocket.

That's why I asked. I don't expect such a heavy bike to flick easily between turns, but keeping a constant pressure on the bars to hold it in the turn feels completely wrong. It also means when I hit a bump, mercifully few round here, it has a wee wobble which is probably caused by me holding the bars so tightly. Straight line is great, coasting, braking or "gathering speed".

Assuming this is not normal I'll try any fix, but replacing the tyres is a last resort on cost grounds - I just fitted Avons to the HD at great expense and they transformed the thing, happily grounding the boards, but I don't have the confidence right now to try similar antics on the Rocket. Judging by the pegs though, a previous owner managed it.......

Let me check my workshop manual first.

Thanks. I have an electronic copy of "a" manual which shows this pic, but I'd appreciate you looking. It appears the fork caps can be removed without too much effort, and I can check the outer tube is level with the yoke top.

 

[Bunny Burrell]

Ditto here - the only turns I get are at the lights/junctions, or the feeder roads ("ramps" for our colonial cousins) swapping from one multi-lane yawn fest to the next. That's why I notice the 2 distinct quirks - at junctions (30ish kph) I have to hold it up, but on the faster feeder sweeps (80-120kph) I need to hold it down.


That's why I asked. I don't expect such a heavy bike to flick easily between turns, but keeping a constant pressure on the bars to hold it in the turn feels completely wrong. It also means when I hit a bump, mercifully few round here, it has a wee wobble which is probably caused by me holding the bars so tightly. Straight line is great, coasting, braking or "gathering speed".

Assuming this is not normal I'll try any fix, but replacing the tyres is a last resort on cost grounds - I just fitted Avons to the HD at great expense and they transformed the thing, happily grounding the boards, but I don't have the confidence right now to try similar antics on the Rocket. Judging by the pegs though, a previous owner managed it.......


Thanks. I have an electronic copy of "a" manual which shows this pic, but I'd appreciate you looking. It appears the fork caps can be removed without too much effort, and I can check the outer tube is level with the yoke top.

I think your forks may be a couple of mil high, but nowt daft. Maybe the previous owner had them out or he’s tried to quicken the steering up by dropping the forks in the yokes.
On my Rocket I’ve fitted YSS Shocks with adjustable length, which I’ve used to produce a neutral feeling to the way my bike feels. As 70% of my current riding is two up, it’s a little firm and sharp when I’m solo.

Now my biking back ground has been Sports or Naked bikes, all have been set up for sharp handling and the odd track day.
What you’re experiencing is by forcing the bars to hold it down, is what instructors call “ counter steering”. 90% of ridership don’t even realise they are even doing it. I’m wondering if your hanging onto the bars too tightly and not allowing the bars to do their own thing.
When I’m cornering, I tend to lean my body into the corner as well, I’m not talking about hanging off the bike like GP riders. Just lean from the waist into the corner, while I push gently on the bars. Give it a go it might help.