Today i put about 200 miles of mostly twisties and some desert highway riding on her. I learned a lot about this bike and i'm positive i can give a very accurate review now of the bike's strengths and weakness' FROM MY POINT OF VIEW. I say that because lets face it, opinions vary wildly and there may be people reading this that wouldn't agree after having done the ride on it i did today. So keep that in mind. I'm going to be saying some things that might seem hard to believe. I may be using the phrase "not exaggerating" quite often, so when i do please understand that i'm not just throwing that phrase around carelessly....i mean it literally ! I will be discussing things i did in other posts too, so there may be some redundancy, but i will probably also be expanding on those subjects above what i did in other posts. This is gonna be a loooooooooooong one, so make a pot of coffee cuz you're gonna be here for a while. 
There are 2, count em, TWO negitives i have found so far, and neither is really much to speak of but they must be mentioned.
cons: 1)-vibration. It has about as much as my speedmaster, but it's at a higher frequency. So it gave my hands pins and needles at one point and a bit of cramping. The grips are very hard, so i think that could be part of it since i had those football grips on my speedy. in any case it's not a big deal because i have had hand cramps and such on the speedy too. It may or may not happen as much on this bike, so that's something i can't say in this review. But it could be an issue to some degree for some. 2)-power. I feel that it's quite adequate and in some cases pretty thrilling. But i also don't feel it's as strong as a lot of reviews suggest. It is more dependent on what speed you're at, what gear you're in and the RPM as to whether it's gonna jump when you ask it to. I thought it would be more like twist the throttle and wham, no matter what. So i'd say it's less than i thought it would be, more than i need, enough to make me happy, but i'd like a bit more. thankfully i believe that just pipes, free flow filter and remapping will take it where i want because it's already great, just not crazy like the R3. But it does have the same feeling of unreal power when you twist it when it's at a good RPM and gear/speed for that. And i can tell it will take very little to unleash it. My speedy was weak in the exact same way this motor is, and with a few things like pipes and filter and a few other tiny tweaks that all changed considerably. i can tell this engine will be the same, and in fact it's obvious it's VERY mildly tuned. Proof ogf that is the fact triumph is offereing a BB kit that meets emissions and beefs the motor up big time. In fact, i imagine this motor could easily be made to scream w/o stressing it at all. Anyways, there are your 2 negatives. Sorry if they weren't horrible issues, but if you look hard enough you may be able to find something more to complain about if you enjoy that sort of thing.
Ok, the good things....
handling:
this is where i am going to have a hard time finding the right words because i like to stay away from the word "perfect", but to be honest thats the word i feel describes it. No exaggeration, i feel it handles so good it's shocking. I spent a few hours in twisties today, and it blew me away to the point i felt it might out-handle a bonnie ! Please don't flame me for that. I'm not saying it WILL, but i AM saying, as crazy as it sounds, i think it just might ! Words fail me....i'm going to try and describe it but i don't think i can really translate my thoughts to words on this subject. When you go into a turn there are a couple things that happen. First, it falls into the turn seemingly w/o any input from the rider. It's as tho you just think it and it reads your mind and falls into the turn perfectly. Never too far, never not enough, and then just tracks right thru like it's on rails and as if it's reading your mind as to the line you wish it to follow. It seems to do this automatically, it's just stunning. Even when you take a turn too fast it seems to correct itself perfectly with just a little input from the rider. The bike handles so much better than my speedy that it's unbelievable. I thought my speedy handled great for a cruiser, and it did. I rode with a couple bonnie guys i met at RAT several times and they always told me they were surprised how the speedy kept up with them. And these guy can ride and aren't afraid to. Now with that said, the Tbird is so far superior to the speedy in handling it's comical. I think i shocked a few sportbike guys today to be honest. I think they probably thought i was on a harley and i kept up with many of them for a while or at least close. I don't know what they must have been thinking. But whether or not you choose to believe me, until you take a Tbird thru a hundred+ miles of twisties you will never understand how i could be saying this about a 700 Lb cruiser....it really seems impossible. I will say right here and now that while i find everything about this bike great to amazing, theres no doubt in my mind that the handling is the most amazing thing about it. I honestly am shocked by it.
Suspension:
well, i think i covered most of this subject by telling you how well it handles, but not completely. I can't imagine myself buying progressives for it like i HAD to with my speedy. As for comfort, i have yet to hit a bump or cracked/crumbling pavement or any other obstacle that gave me any grief at all. So there are no issues of that nature at all with the suspension. The front is NOT soft and doesn't dive at a stop like the speedy was till i got springs for it. It feels just perfect in that regard. And as they relate to handling, you know how in twisties how you can hit bumps in the middle of a hair curling turn and the bike will start wobbling? Not with this bike. Whether it's the frame and geometry that makes this bike handle so good or the suspension or a little of both, theres no need at all to upgrade as far as i can tell.
Brakes:
Another "wow" subject. If you are considering a Tbird and want the ABS version, don't get it. Or at least see it it can be added later and get it without first and see what you think. Here is another aspect of this bike that blows my speedy away. the brakes are fabulous. Even tho this bike is 200 Lbs more than speedy. it stops much quicker and is far more stable in hard stops. When braking hard on the speedy i would never feel in control and the rear would often lock if i didn't consciously tell myself to go lightly on the rear. Th bird is awesome when braking had. Or just any braking....it's just fantastic. the lever is so sensitive that you could stop hard using your pinky. It requires zero strength for normal stops. What is surprising is that you'd think that it would then feel overly sensitive when in a hard braking situation, but no. they somehow were able to make the brakes respond to user input in a very forgiving way that makes braking so pleasant and effortless whether hard or normal braking that i don't think most people would want ABS once they try it w/o.
Engine:
The most impressive thing is that this bike can be ridden in town w/o ever getting out of 3rd ! I use fourth sometimes, but never 5th or god forbid 6th ! As i said in another post, in 6th at a lazy 3000 RPM's it reads 75 MPH. By going up to just 500 more RPM's or 3500, now you're at 90 MPH indicated ! Do the math.....if this thing will pull redline in 6th, and i bet it will with the BB at least or maybe with mpipes and related mods, it should top out at something much much higher than triumph's quoted 120 MPH.
As for sound, it sounds deep and throaty, tho not very loud, so pipes will help there. Also the throttle is a much shorter turn than my speedy. I haven't really checked it visually, but if the speedy turns 3/4 of the way around, this one would be 1/2. It goes from off to full w/o having to really twist your wrist. I like that. By the way, i don't quite know how to explain this, but the engine had a feel and response that just has you smiling for ear to ear at all times. It's just right. I don't know how else to put it. And whats funny about that is when i first rode it i wasn't sure how much i liked it ! Goes to show how you have to get used to things that are different before dissing them. You listening feet forward haters? (not you who have issues with back problems and such....i understand that)
Other mentionable details...
there is a button on the handlbars that allows you to scroll thru 2 seperate tripometer, odometer, clock, and fuel gauge. very cool !
tranny is smooth smooth smooth !
MPG:unfortunatly i wasn't sure just how many miles i had on it at the strat of this ride and didn't set one of the tripmeters. But i think triumph may have been right about this bike getting 45/54. I said i rode about 200 miles, but i'm not sure. But when i filled up after i got home it only took 4 gallons. So i may have got 50 MPG with a lot of fairly hard riding ! and if not, at least as good as my speedy which in itself is incredible for an engine almost twice the size and 200 more pounds !
The kickstand is smooth and easy to access. Seems stupid to mention smoothness, huh? But it honestly is a good smooth feel when you kick it down as crazy as that sound. And unlike my speedy which made it hard to get the edge of my foot on, this one is VERY easy access. Simple details, but worthy of mention because i have found lots of little things like this that show the great attention to detail triumph put into this bike.
Self canceling signals. Nuff said, right?! Oh, and no searching for clear lenses that fit too.
I often hear people bitching about plastic fenders....well, bitch no more ! Front and back, all metal !
Steering is dead solid...no headshakes on this thing at all. Feels like it's locked in place. Also, this bike is incredibly stable at speed. I had it close to 100 by accident at one point and it felt like I was doing 80 till i noticed things going by real quick and looked down to see i was moving ! I thought my speedy was stable, and it was. But this is like a rock.
To sum things up, as i was riding today the constant thought that went thru my mind all day was my god this bike is perfect. Everything about it has me reeling. I truly believe triumph built a one of a kind here the like of we may not see again. there is no bike i have ever ridden that comes close to it, and thats no lie, but it IS just my opinion. But for me this bike is it. I think it may have been Jack who said i think at another forum that it's like a much improved speedmaster or it's like a speedmaster but with everything improved. Something along those lines. But his point is well taken. It does to me seem like a bigger badder and far better speedmaster. I stopped at a store to get something to drink in the desert and a guy came over to tell me how beautiful it is. He has a harley and when i told him what i paid he nearly $hit his pants ! he was very obviously floored by the Tbird and the price i think may have left him wishing he'd known about the Tbird before he bought his, which by the way he said he paid something like $10k more than i did for.
Anyways, thats about all i can think of right now. Dave, the only reason i don't tell you at this point to go out and hock everything you have or rob a bank if necessary to get one is that these as i said are MY opinions. But if i knew you'd feel the same once you rode it, i'd sy do it....at any cost, just do it. this bike is phenomenal ! Dave, seriously, you're almost my age and you only live once !!
There are 2, count em, TWO negitives i have found so far, and neither is really much to speak of but they must be mentioned.
cons: 1)-vibration. It has about as much as my speedmaster, but it's at a higher frequency. So it gave my hands pins and needles at one point and a bit of cramping. The grips are very hard, so i think that could be part of it since i had those football grips on my speedy. in any case it's not a big deal because i have had hand cramps and such on the speedy too. It may or may not happen as much on this bike, so that's something i can't say in this review. But it could be an issue to some degree for some. 2)-power. I feel that it's quite adequate and in some cases pretty thrilling. But i also don't feel it's as strong as a lot of reviews suggest. It is more dependent on what speed you're at, what gear you're in and the RPM as to whether it's gonna jump when you ask it to. I thought it would be more like twist the throttle and wham, no matter what. So i'd say it's less than i thought it would be, more than i need, enough to make me happy, but i'd like a bit more.
thankfully i believe that just pipes, free flow filter and remapping will take it where i want because it's already great, just not crazy like the R3. But it does have the same feeling of unreal power when you twist it when it's at a good RPM and gear/speed for that. And i can tell it will take very little to unleash it. My speedy was weak in the exact same way this motor is, and with a few things like pipes and filter and a few other tiny tweaks that all changed considerably. i can tell this engine will be the same, and in fact it's obvious it's VERY mildly tuned. Proof ogf that is the fact triumph is offereing a BB kit that meets emissions and beefs the motor up big time. In fact, i imagine this motor could easily be made to scream w/o stressing it at all. Anyways, there are your 2 negatives. Sorry if they weren't horrible issues, but if you look hard enough you may be able to find something more to complain about if you enjoy that sort of thing. Ok, the good things....
handling:
this is where i am going to have a hard time finding the right words because i like to stay away from the word "perfect", but to be honest thats the word i feel describes it. No exaggeration, i feel it handles so good it's shocking. I spent a few hours in twisties today, and it blew me away to the point i felt it might out-handle a bonnie ! Please don't flame me for that. I'm not saying it WILL, but i AM saying, as crazy as it sounds, i think it just might ! Words fail me....i'm going to try and describe it but i don't think i can really translate my thoughts to words on this subject. When you go into a turn there are a couple things that happen. First, it falls into the turn seemingly w/o any input from the rider. It's as tho you just think it and it reads your mind and falls into the turn perfectly. Never too far, never not enough, and then just tracks right thru like it's on rails and as if it's reading your mind as to the line you wish it to follow. It seems to do this automatically, it's just stunning. Even when you take a turn too fast it seems to correct itself perfectly with just a little input from the rider. The bike handles so much better than my speedy that it's unbelievable. I thought my speedy handled great for a cruiser, and it did. I rode with a couple bonnie guys i met at RAT several times and they always told me they were surprised how the speedy kept up with them. And these guy can ride and aren't afraid to. Now with that said, the Tbird is so far superior to the speedy in handling it's comical. I think i shocked a few sportbike guys today to be honest. I think they probably thought i was on a harley and i kept up with many of them for a while or at least close. I don't know what they must have been thinking. But whether or not you choose to believe me, until you take a Tbird thru a hundred+ miles of twisties you will never understand how i could be saying this about a 700 Lb cruiser....it really seems impossible. I will say right here and now that while i find everything about this bike great to amazing, theres no doubt in my mind that the handling is the most amazing thing about it. I honestly am shocked by it.
Suspension:
well, i think i covered most of this subject by telling you how well it handles, but not completely. I can't imagine myself buying progressives for it like i HAD to with my speedy. As for comfort, i have yet to hit a bump or cracked/crumbling pavement or any other obstacle that gave me any grief at all. So there are no issues of that nature at all with the suspension. The front is NOT soft and doesn't dive at a stop like the speedy was till i got springs for it. It feels just perfect in that regard. And as they relate to handling, you know how in twisties how you can hit bumps in the middle of a hair curling turn and the bike will start wobbling? Not with this bike. Whether it's the frame and geometry that makes this bike handle so good or the suspension or a little of both, theres no need at all to upgrade as far as i can tell.
Brakes:
Another "wow" subject. If you are considering a Tbird and want the ABS version, don't get it. Or at least see it it can be added later and get it without first and see what you think. Here is another aspect of this bike that blows my speedy away. the brakes are fabulous. Even tho this bike is 200 Lbs more than speedy. it stops much quicker and is far more stable in hard stops. When braking hard on the speedy i would never feel in control and the rear would often lock if i didn't consciously tell myself to go lightly on the rear. Th bird is awesome when braking had. Or just any braking....it's just fantastic. the lever is so sensitive that you could stop hard using your pinky. It requires zero strength for normal stops. What is surprising is that you'd think that it would then feel overly sensitive when in a hard braking situation, but no. they somehow were able to make the brakes respond to user input in a very forgiving way that makes braking so pleasant and effortless whether hard or normal braking that i don't think most people would want ABS once they try it w/o.
Engine:
The most impressive thing is that this bike can be ridden in town w/o ever getting out of 3rd ! I use fourth sometimes, but never 5th or god forbid 6th ! As i said in another post, in 6th at a lazy 3000 RPM's it reads 75 MPH. By going up to just 500 more RPM's or 3500, now you're at 90 MPH indicated ! Do the math.....if this thing will pull redline in 6th, and i bet it will with the BB at least or maybe with mpipes and related mods, it should top out at something much much higher than triumph's quoted 120 MPH.
As for sound, it sounds deep and throaty, tho not very loud, so pipes will help there. Also the throttle is a much shorter turn than my speedy. I haven't really checked it visually, but if the speedy turns 3/4 of the way around, this one would be 1/2. It goes from off to full w/o having to really twist your wrist. I like that. By the way, i don't quite know how to explain this, but the engine had a feel and response that just has you smiling for ear to ear at all times. It's just right. I don't know how else to put it. And whats funny about that is when i first rode it i wasn't sure how much i liked it ! Goes to show how you have to get used to things that are different before dissing them. You listening feet forward haters?
(not you who have issues with back problems and such....i understand that)Other mentionable details...
there is a button on the handlbars that allows you to scroll thru 2 seperate tripometer, odometer, clock, and fuel gauge. very cool !
tranny is smooth smooth smooth !
MPG:unfortunatly i wasn't sure just how many miles i had on it at the strat of this ride and didn't set one of the tripmeters. But i think triumph may have been right about this bike getting 45/54. I said i rode about 200 miles, but i'm not sure. But when i filled up after i got home it only took 4 gallons. So i may have got 50 MPG with a lot of fairly hard riding ! and if not, at least as good as my speedy which in itself is incredible for an engine almost twice the size and 200 more pounds !
The kickstand is smooth and easy to access. Seems stupid to mention smoothness, huh? But it honestly is a good smooth feel when you kick it down as crazy as that sound. And unlike my speedy which made it hard to get the edge of my foot on, this one is VERY easy access. Simple details, but worthy of mention because i have found lots of little things like this that show the great attention to detail triumph put into this bike.
Self canceling signals. Nuff said, right?! Oh, and no searching for clear lenses that fit too.
I often hear people bitching about plastic fenders....well, bitch no more ! Front and back, all metal !
Steering is dead solid...no headshakes on this thing at all. Feels like it's locked in place. Also, this bike is incredibly stable at speed. I had it close to 100 by accident at one point and it felt like I was doing 80 till i noticed things going by real quick and looked down to see i was moving ! I thought my speedy was stable, and it was. But this is like a rock.
To sum things up, as i was riding today the constant thought that went thru my mind all day was my god this bike is perfect. Everything about it has me reeling. I truly believe triumph built a one of a kind here the like of we may not see again. there is no bike i have ever ridden that comes close to it, and thats no lie, but it IS just my opinion. But for me this bike is it. I think it may have been Jack who said i think at another forum that it's like a much improved speedmaster or it's like a speedmaster but with everything improved. Something along those lines. But his point is well taken. It does to me seem like a bigger badder and far better speedmaster. I stopped at a store to get something to drink in the desert and a guy came over to tell me how beautiful it is. He has a harley and when i told him what i paid he nearly $hit his pants !
he was very obviously floored by the Tbird and the price i think may have left him wishing he'd known about the Tbird before he bought his, which by the way he said he paid something like $10k more than i did for.Anyways, thats about all i can think of right now. Dave, the only reason i don't tell you at this point to go out and hock everything you have or rob a bank if necessary to get one is that these as i said are MY opinions. But if i knew you'd feel the same once you rode it, i'd sy do it....at any cost, just do it. this bike is phenomenal ! Dave, seriously, you're almost my age and you only live once !!
:cash: :ya2:
h:
