tiger-tastic!!!

I'm 6'1" and own a 600 fazer. Even though it's a relaxed bike, I find it a
little cramped. Also I'm a lazy bugger and don't like having to change gear
too much so I've been looking for a big trailie style thang that would do
the job and hence I've chanced upon the tiger. It seems a good package
especially now they're giving luggage, centre stand and heated grips for
free. I looked at a 2nd hand bmw 1150gs last week and it seemed ok but the
tiger looks and feels so much better and its cheaper to boot.

So what's the deal with tigers then? Are triumphs rot boxes or will they
handle winter riding.
Do they hold their value well?

Any reasons why I shouldn't get one?

Cheers in advance,
Gav-credit-card-at-the-ready.

 

Surely a trailie, with very low gearing will require twice as much
shifting as reach gear has a much shorter range?

 

Great bike,

Torquey (sp?) engine, pretty good gear/power range.
- Thirsty!

 

They make you smile.

They'll handle it as well as any other bike, if you perform regular
maintenance, and wash the shit off it.

Better than most,

No worries.

Get out there and get it, then! ;-)

 

Last year I looked at a v-strom which seemed to lack a bit of character and
also the Futuras more trailee brother the Capo Nord. The styling of the Capo
Nord was really good (well it is italian) but still wasn't quite what I was
looking for. It just seemed a bit too agricultural.

The tiger however.....

and it's british ;0)

 

If you are thinking of a Big Trailee then I would recommend trying a few
different ones. Before buying the Varadero we tried Two Varaderos, A
a Tigerand a V-Strom( also tried a Futura but my back couldn't hack it).
They all do things slightly differently. I wasn't keen on teh Tiger but
SWMBO liked it a lot. I liked teh V-Strom but she didn't, The Varadero we
both liked. I wanted to try a BMW but she said it was too ugly and she
wouldn't get on it.

No if the Tiger is the one that floats your boat. You just need to be sure
one of the others doesn't do it better.

 

Thirsty, you jest? What are you comparing it to, a C90?
--
Tim two#21, YGL#3 & BOTAFOT#84

Due to the limitations of current email, the lip movements may be
out of synchronisation as you move your finger under the text while reading.

tim dot ukrm2 at dsl dot pipex dot com

 

Mash wrote in

Ridden one have you?

Compared to a 600 inline four the Tiger/1150GS require much fewer gear
changes. My last bike was a CBR6 which has a relatively narrow useable rev
range; you needed to keep the revs over 7k to make rapid progress. The big
trailies are tuned to give masses of torque from low revs.

On my GS you can slow down from 70 to 30mph behind another vehicle, wait
for an overtaking opportunity and pull away without changing from 5th gear.
On the CBR6 (and Fazer I suspect) you would need to go down at least 2
gears.

 

BlokeDownPub wrote in

I agree with Entwisi. With this type of bike it comes down to ergonomics
and personal taste. A test ride is essential.

I rode the 955i Tiger, Caponord, Varadero, Africa Twin and 1150GS before
settling on a year old 1150GS.

Why did I choose the BMW?

I've always liked the unconventional looks. It has shaft drive. Best
residuals of the group. 6000 miles between services. Got a reasonable
part-ex deal from Bath Rd Motorcycles for my CBR600. Finally, I was able
to take the bike I bought for a 70 mile test ride around the Cotswolds.

Why didn't I buy the Tiger: on the test ride I found that it was just
too unwieldy for a short arse like me. I love the 955i engine. As others
say, if it suits you after a test ride, then go for it.

Finally

 

BlokeDownPub wrote in

please read http://www.ukrm.net/faq/UKRMsCBT.html and learn the etiquette
of the group

 

I've had mine for almost a year now, I bought it as a tourer because my
other half is over 6ft tall and didn't like being perched on the back of
the ZX9 with her knees up beside her ears. I've used it all winter and I
must say it's stood up to that better than I expected - no serious
problems at all. It now comes with centre stand, heated grips and
panniers (but not top box) fitted as standard and I reckon if it had
shaft drive would be better than the BMW easily - but I'm biased and I
admit I haven't ridden the BM The new ones don't have spoked wheels
which should give you more choice of rubber, mine is limited due to
using inner tubes, having said that the Metzeller Tourance is fine by
me. It is tall and heavy but at 5'10 I can cope OK, although I have
nearly been caught out by its high centre of gravity a couple of times.
Fit a scottoiler and you have a great tourer, it's NOT thirsty - I have
seen over 200 miles from a tank (24 litres), two up and with luggage.
The engine is the usual Triumph triple detuned for mid range - Triumph
claim 105PS at 9500rpm and 68lb/ft at 4400rpm from the 955i so there's
nothing to be gained by red-lining it. It has six gears, you can short
shift and cruise or if you give it some and use the torque it can get a
move on. It has non-adjustable front suspension with a long travel so
under heavy braking it dives like an Argentinian footballer but it
handles very well for it's bulk and you can see over hedges, cars etc
quite easily. The brakes are pretty good, non-floating twin discs on the
front, which is just as well 'cos the bike has a dry weight of 215kg. It
has a surprisingly high grin factor and I'm well pleased with mine.
Build quality seems good and you'd have to ask TOG about residuals, they
are a popular second hand choice - I couldn't find a one year old one so
I bought a three month old ex-demo bike with 700 miles on the clock.

The clocks are almost unreadable at night, because of the high level
exhaust the right hand pannier is a lot smaller than the left and the
gear change is slow and can be a bit clunky. They seem to be reliable
and the engine is a treat. E-mail me if you have any specific questions
and I'll get back to you when I can.

 

please read http://www.ukrm.net/faq/UKRMsCBT.html and learn the etiquette

please accept my appologies.

 

Not a Tiger.

 

BlokeDownPub secured a place in history by writing:

Too tame. You're expected to throw a fit and spray some abuse around
first, then fall into line eventually, after everyone has joined in.

You won't get away with that level of spelling or punctuation either. From
that point of view, this might as well be uk.rec.linguistic-pedantry (a
good thing IMHO)

 

Low to mid 30's IMHO is bit thirsty compared to the Hog's 44/gal. But I
guess in reality compared to the greedy sprot bikes around then it's prolly
quite frugal.

 

Unless I spend a long time at 100+ mph, I'm regularly getting 42 to 46
mpg from mine - and I dont exactly hang about.
Worst I had was after a 70 mile blast at a steady 110, sat bolt
upright[1], which gave me 36mpg.

[1] Tall screen - just buffetting on my head[2], arms and shoulders,
rather than feeling I'm going to be ripped off it.

[2] gave my neck muscles a good work out.

 

The one I had for a while was considerably thirstier than that. But it could
have been in need of a service. My Trophy, admitted a 1200 was very thirsty
when the tap was opened for any length of time. But both bikes rarely needed
a gear-shift between 30 and as fast I wanted to go, under most conditions
even when 2 up and heavily loaded. Makes the left hoof a little lazy really
;o)

 

Odd, cos I get 40+ mpg out of mine.
--
Tim two#21, YGL#3 & BOTAFOT#84

Due to the limitations of current email, the lip movements may be
out of synchronisation as you move your finger under the text while reading.

tim dot ukrm2 at dsl dot pipex dot com

 

<not surprised>

--
| ___ Salad Dodger
|/ \
_/_____\_ GL1500SEV/CBR1100XXX/KH500A8/TS250C
|_\_____/_| ..66073../..15556.../..Ebay./.Ebay.
(>|_|_|<) TPPFATUICG#7 DIAABTCOD#9 YTC#4 PM#5
|__|_|__| BOTAFOT #70 BOTAFOF #09 two#11 WG*
\ |^| / IbW#0 & KotIbW# BotTOS#6 GP#4
\|^|/ ANORAK#17
'^' RBR-Visited:35 Pts: 705 Miles:2429

 

ohh! naughty!