2-4-2022: Defective front tire. Noticed a bit of vibration on the front end. Front tire had a high and low side with 3 mm or 1/8th inch up and down . Picture shows max gap with other side touching at 180 deg rotation. Only 600 miles on bike. Was told, today, there was an early batch of Michelin front tires made in Thailand that had similar problems. Replaced it with a 110 90 19 Avon. Problem solved and 2 of 4 weights removed to balance, to boot.
New Meat in the past month and coming soon. Will be looking to get ECU flash and exhaust Update : 7-2-2022 : ECU flashed by local guy at my house. He also did the 660 trident and 660 Tiger Sport. He'll be doing a few more bikes in the next week or 2.
This one supposedly shipped this week, but don't know if from the UK or East Coast USA. Breitling Watch Edition. Ordered on March 8, at the start , 9am. $ 2000 deposit. Was like trying to get a ticket to Comicon, sold out in a few minutes. Only 40 to the USA, 270 total. My GF was with me when I got order confirmation. March 8th also her birthday, so she called dibbs on the watch. File Picture:
Update: Breitling finally here. 850 Tiger traded in on a 900 Tiger Rally. Made rear lowering links. More details coming.
The only Breitling made part of the watch is the case. The movement, Calibre 23, and the strap are out sourced. The movement has just 27 jewels whereas the in-house movements generally have 47 and some even more. Power reserve is 42 hours vs 70 for the in-house movements. Only 2 years warranty, not 5. Not waterproof, only 3 atm. At £4,500 GBP it is over priced.
More updates: Weighed tiger 900 Rally with full tank and made lowering link. It had a higher ratio than i thought it would being 4:1 That is 1 inch lower was just 1/4 inch holes farther apart in link. Put bike on center stand and shimmed rear wheel to light contact. Removed stock links and shimmed wheel 1 inch higher. Stock center to center was 3.950 inch, link made to 4.200 inch. After drilling, bolts went in very easy without any effort. Must have been right on the money with the mill / drill. close as i could get to 12 mm was 31/64th drill. Stock links 1/8 inch thick steel. I had 1/4 inch aluminum. Bolts had extra length , so a good fit. The weigh in :
Breitling weight and Bar end conversion to regular mirrors. I left the mirrors at home, so not seen in the picture. Mounts were brembo half clamps with 10 mm fine thread. These replaced the stock clamps on the clutch and F brake Master C.
I use 1/2 to 3/4 amp Battery Tenders or the generic equivalent. They work just fine and i have been getting 5 years or more out of a battery.
The reason they say don’t use your regular intelligent battery charger like an Optimate on a Lithium battery is due to voltage sensitivity. The Optimate will, if it considers it necessary, go into desulphate mode which I understand can be up to 22 volts with as high an amperage as it is capable of.
The Odyssey AGM battery I fitted to my Ducati in 2010 is still giving sterling service. It is managed by an Optimate when not on the road so I see no advantage when considering longevity. The other consideration when thinking about Lithium batteries is the state of the electrical infrastructure and components on the machine. I would certainly not fit one onto a Meriden machine and would think hard about doing so on the early Hinckley machines.
Every time I read " Hinckley " , I think of........... Buzzard Day: Hinckley hosts annual celebration (fox8.com)