'83 Triumph T140ES Refurb project

[grandpaul]

I've had this project sitting a while since my client collected the '79 Bonnie that I re-commissioned last year. It's finally time to start.

This is a Canadian bike, so it's seen plenty of salted roads, snow-packed winter parking, lots of miles, and a knock-down by a vehicle that was backing up. It's got surface rust from one end to the other, all the rubber bits are perished, the brake discs are totally rusty, one muffler is rusted through. Brake hoses will be replaced as a precaution, even though they are still passing fluid effectively (it's only a matter of time before they become one-way valves). Fork stanchion tubes are too rust pitted to clean up, they'll be replaced. Tires are worn, battery is long flat, carbs need kits, etc., etc., etc.

 

[grandpaul]

Here's some more "before" photos, showing general condition...

 

[grandpaul]

Before I started to disassemble the bike, I made sure to take compression readings. Good thing I did...



The plan was to pull the top end and do a "de-coke" and lap the valves. That ought to put it right.

 

[grandpaul]

I dumped the contents of the sump and found almost a quart of fairly dark oil; at least it wasn't burned and/or sludgy.

Installed a fresh battery, poured in a quart of fresh oil, a gallon of gas and started to kick away. Not even a sputter, so I was about to spray a squirt of starter spray in the airbox when I noticed the intakes were TOTALLY split and the carbs were just hanging by the cables & hoses; a couple of wraps of duct tape cured that, mostly.

Turned on the key, touched the starter button, and it lit right up. That's a good thing. With a broken front brake lever, I kept the check ride slow and easy. Everything seemed to be in order except the headlight that refused to light up (could be anything).

So, starting with the sidecovers off and an empty shelf, away we go-

 

[Sea Dog]

The salt on the roads really kills a good motorcycle. Nice that it is all original GP. Look forward to following the restoration.

 

[grandpaul]

Removed the mufflers first, to give access to the rear axle. Photo shows the reason the axle didn't want to budge at first - RUST! A couple of close-up shots underneath the sidecovers; there were lots of spider webs. Wheels off the bike. If anyone had removed and replaced anything on the bike before, they sure torqued the bolts back up nice; every fastener so far has let loose with a nice, crisp "snap" as they free off...

 

[grandpaul]

Next chore was to break down the wheels. As the tires are shot, rims are rusted, and spokes are somewhat rusty, the easiest way to accomplish this task was to chop the hubs out of the lacing with a bolt cutter. Everything will be discarded but the hubs.



Bearings will be washed and re-packed with fresh grease before the hubs are sent to Buchanan's for re-lacing to new rims, with all new spokes & nipples.

 

[grandpaul]

Removed fenders, shocks, chainguard, tank & seat. I DO NOT like the single petcock, and "cross-over" tube; it makes a mess to remove the tank, even when you THINK it's empty...

A quick "peek under the bonnet" to see years of dust and grime buildup; that's it for this morning. Shelves are already full, need more shelves!

 

[hemibee]

This is going to be fun to watch.

 

[grandpaul]

Quit sitting there watching - GRAB A WRENCH!

 

[grandpaul]

On to the forks. I removed the meters and controls before starting, then removed the headlight and handlebars after I got the lowers off. You could remove all of that at once.

To remove the lowers, all you have to do is insert an allen wrench in the bottom and unlock the internal damper body; the lower leg slips off. Next, remove the seal retainer circlips from the top of the fork legs, then pop out the seals and washers with a screwdriver; lowers are done.

Removing the internals from the stanchions is as easy as unscrewing the bottom nut and slipping everything out the bottom, no spring pressure. Removing the stanchions from the yokes is sometimes tough. Loosen off all the pinch bolts, upper & lower, and tap a screwdriver into the slot in the upper yoke, and another into the slot in the lower. Remove the top plastic caps, use a soft drift, and tap the tubes while pulling/twisting them out from the bottom. This time, they slipped right out.

Lastly, loosen off the yoke stem pinch nut, unscrew the yoke stem top nut, and extract the yokes.

 

[grandpaul]

Next, I removed the carbs & cables, wiring harness & electrical stuff, then the exhaust pipes (that was a chore)...



The parts shelf is getting fuller! My back is shot for the day, where's my ibuprofen?

 

[grandpaul]

Removed rear brake caliper & torque arm, then removed the swingarm; s/a spindle was as rusty as the rear axle (so was the lower engine mount bolt).

Left side engine plate was a breeze, right side was a booger due to the rear brake pedal nightmare. I need to remember to install that contraption BEFORE installing ANYTHING ELSE on the bare frame!

I used the method of laying the engine and frame on a cushion, then wrestling the frame off. Getting to this point was NOT easy. When it's time to re-install it, the rockerboxes will be off.

Just because you THINK all the oil is drained, doesn't MEAN all the oil is drained!

 

[grandpaul]

Just over 10 hours to get to this point.

Next items will be to wash & repack wheel bearings and send hubs off to be re-laced. Then, wash all hardware & bare metal bits, and send that stuff off to Cad plating. Last will be to remove all engine covers and send those & fork lowers off to polishing. There is a possibility we'll send a few parts off to be re-chromed.

Once all the parts are off to the subtrades, I'll thoroughly wash the frame, swingarm, yokes, stands, and various mounting brackets, sand them as required to clean them up, then paint them with Rust-O-Leum gloss black.

After that, it'll be the top end job, then reassembly begins. If anyone is using this thread as a guideline, I'm doing a complete engine overhaul (in another thread) that you can substitute the bottom end portion of; should be proceeding almost exactly in parallel, coincidentally.

 

[grandpaul]

I decided to go ahead and knock out the engine covers and get all those parts out to polish.

Had to enlist some help to get the engine up on the bench stand, I used to be able to do that by myself.

This is my first time inside an e-start Triumph timing chest, pretty interesting. I would have thought they could have accomplished the same thing with 1 or 2 less gears...

Typical sludge in timing chest, primary case and tranny; tranny actually had the proper amount of lube, and it was in decent shape!

 

[grandpaul]

The head and pistons were pretty much as I expected, years of carbon buildup needing a "de-coke".

Cylinders are in EXCELLENT shape with factory crosshatching still evident. A few very minor vertical scratches are nothing to worry over.

 

[DaveM]

Nice one Paul it is going to be great to see this one restored to its former glory

 

[CarlS]

Great thread, Paul and a fine project. That salt certainly took its toll. That is a lot of corrosion and rot.

This is first time I have the inside of an e-start.

 

[grandpaul]

I'm actually kinda surprised that there's not a lot MORE rust, and no real rust damage apart from the wheels...

 

[CarlS]

That is a very pleasant discovery.