[Ripshod]

I just found a TW for sale nearby and I'm going to take a look at it later today. Currently my only bike is a Honda ST1300. That's a fantastic bike for long camping trips, having ridden it from my home in Tennessee to Maine and Canada four times and to the west coast twice, and most everywhere in between, one-up with lots of camping gear strapped on. There are two main reasons I want a smaller dual-purpose bike. One is that while we have some of the best twisty roads here in east TN and the ST is a lot of fun when it's leaned way over, but I'm always passing gravel roads that I want so much to ride down, but I don't dare take my 760 pound street bike off the pavement. I have short legs and an aversion to replacing those expensive plastic body parts. Also, the ST is not a very good vehicle for errand running and short hops around town. Of course it's possible but it's just a bit more work than I'm usually ready to do. The TW looks perfect for those two chores.



This TW is an '89 with all updated plastic and tank. It's the black/silver combo that I like best. The asking price is quite reasonable and as far as I can tell, I'll only have to do two things to bring it up to par. Since the current owner never took it on the street, he didn't bother to mount turn signals or mirrors. Those are a must for me since I'll have it on the road almost all the time. I'm not against going cheap on those accessories and will go with aftermarket stuff if need be, but I thought it'd be best to check in here with the keepers of all TW knowledge first. Am I likely to run into fitment issues on either of those two items? I know that mirrors usually are pretty standard with the 10mm threads and I can probably find something in my box of spares if that's the case. Is vibration much of an issue? I'm more concerned with the turn signals, both fitment and wiring. Since it's Monday I can't get any info from my local Yamaha dealer as to the cost of original replacements. What do you suggest?

 

[ATXthumper]

i think one of the mirrors will be reverse threaded yamaha usually does that.

the front turn signals are a three wire and the rear are two wire. the studs are 12 mm. most aftermarkets are 10mm or 8mm so they will work but youll need to use washers/spacers.

tws came with all the lights stock so youll wana make sure mounting tabs and the switch on the bar are intact as well.

hope you join the club!

heres a link to all the manuals and parts diagrams

 

[Rainman]

i think one of the mirrors will be reverse threaded yamaha usually does that.

the front turn signals are a three wire and the rear are two wire. the studs are 12 mm. most aftermarkets are 10mm or 8mm so they will work but youll need to use washers/spacers.

tws came with all the lights stock so youll wana make sure mounting tabs and the switch on the bar are intact as well.

hope you join the club!

heres a link to all the manuals and parts diagrams

The right hand side mirror is reverse thread. ATXthumper is right on about the lighting. Make sure all the tabs are in place. Also make sure the orginal owner unplugged the lights rather than ripped out all the wiring. Anyways, make sure the wires are all there, hopefully they are taped up and tucked away.

 

[Turtle Chaser]

+1 to make sure the turn signal wiring and handlebar switch is intact. I see turn signals on eBay all the time, definitely get a price from the dealer for comparison. Sounds like the perfect bike for your needs. If you get a TW you may need to get a battery maintainer for the ST, heh heh.

 

[Ripshod]

Well, it's mine now.



I got a good price on it. The clock shows 2100 miles, it's a '89 with later model tank, seat and plastic. He said he tucked the signal wires into the headlight box. Though I'm not looking forward to it, I'm sure I can figure it out. For $1300 I think I'll come out ahead.



After it's licensed I'll have to farkle it up some. First thing - a big rack for the back. Gotta have some place to put all the stuff I'll be running to get on it, leaving the truck at home.





BTW - I tried to post a picture here which was uploaded to another forum. Not allowed, apparently.

 

[bluedevilfootballman]

ripshod, i also live in TN in a harriman (40ish miles west of knox). if you would be interested in a 2000 tw with some upgrades let me know with an email... [email protected] . thanks

 

[Ripshod]

ripshod, i also live in TN in a harriman (40ish miles west of knox). if you would be interested in a 2000 tw with some upgrades let me know with an email... [email protected] . thanks

Now you tell me.

 

[Rainman]

Sounds like you got yourself a nice bike. Trying to piece it back together will be good for you. You'll learn so much about it which will be beneficial to you in the end. Congrats and good luck. Make sure to post any questions you have, we'd be happy to try and answer them.

 

[ATXthumper]

you can get a rack from cycleracks.com for around $160. shipping to tennessee will probably run around $35-40.

marc and don at cyclerack are nice guys they fill orders pretty much the same day its recieved. your rack is in the mail within 24 hrs of placing your order (online) if you call and place the order it probably goes out within a couple hours.



mine got dinged up in the shipping process and they refunded me the shipping even though it was USPS' fault not theirs. i recommend them to anyone needing a rack.

 

[Rainman]

you can get a rack from cycleracks.com for around $160. shipping to tennessee will probably run around $35-40.

marc and don at cyclerack are nice guys they fill orders pretty much the same day its recieved. your rack is in the mail within 24 hrs of placing your order (online) if you call and place the order it probably goes out within a couple hours.



mine got dinged up in the shipping process and they refunded me the shipping even though it was USPS' fault not theirs. i recommend them to anyone needing a rack.

Very good guys. I'm a customer for life.

 

[qwerty]

Yamaha is proud of those turn signals. $50+ each.



These would be really cool on the luggage rack and hand guards:

http://www.chromeglow.com/catalog.asp?prodid=634712

 

[Ripshod]

Yamaha is proud of those turn signals. $50+ each.

Yeah, I called the local Yamaha dealer just for giggles. They want $66 each for the rears, $68 each for the fronts. They also quoted $30 and $23 for the mirrors. Don't know why one is more than the other - I guess they figure that left hand threads cost more.



So I found these turn signals at Dennis Kirk, $15 a pair and I ordered two sets. Then I found this mirror and paired it with the "universal" mate for $15 each. All in all, less than $70 including shipping. I think I did all right. We'll see how well the signal wiring goes.



I got it registered today and went for a little ride down to the post office. Besides feeling really disoriented without mirrors, it went just fine but this little piggy shines on terrain. Bear in mind that I haven't ridden an off-road bike since I was 15 years old (that was a long, long time ago) but I just rode around and around in a couple of yards, up and down a steep 6' bank and even a short flight of concrete steps and the grin is still on my face.



I'm going down to Birmingham for the Vintage Motorcycle Festival weekend after next for the fifth year in a row. My twisted mind is trying to work out a way to tow the TW behind the ST. Someone talk me out of trying!



I've moved the next post I made here over to another thread about luggage racks. I was hijacking my own thread.

 

[Ripshod]

See 'Luggage Rack' post in Performance and Customization...