Chrome radiator end covers

Triumph Chrome Radiator End Covers

Here is a photograph of a Triumph Thunderbird Sport fitted with chrome radiator end covers. These were not supplied as original with this bike but make a useful addition for those wanting to give their bike some extra bling.

These chrome end caps were fitted as standard on the Triumph Thunderbird (1995~2004) from 1997.

They will fit any of the Triumph Triples but are increasingly hard to get hold of.

Models they fit include: Thunderbird 900, Thunderbird Sport, Adventurer and Legend TT.

If anyone is interested, I have some spare chrome genuine Triumph radiator end caps for sale and will post more info soon.

Update: I have listed a pair of radiator covers for sale on eBay here: http://goo.gl/4Y1eWL

Triumph Chrome Radiator End Caps

Triumph Thunderbird Sport – locking petrol cap

Triumph Thunderbird Sport – Locking Petrol Cap

Today I ftted a locking petrol cap, it’s the Triumph Modern Classics one and the box states it’s for the Bonneville, Scrambler, T100 and Thruxton. Before I purchased mine, I did email a couple of dealers and asked if this cap would fit my bike (Thunderbird Sport 2003)?

I actually received mixed responses, one said it would fit whilst another said it wouldn’t?

I decided to take a chance and purchased anyway, it arrived today and I can confirm it does fit.

For those interested, the locking petrol cap Part Number is: A9930170. Mine was supplied in a box date stamped 06/03/09.

Triumph Thunderbird Sport Locking Petrol Cap

Now I have to say that I think the original Triumph petrol cap is great, a work of art; but I don’t want to run the risk of leaving the bike unattended without a locking petrol cap. So now I have both, if I’m just riding for fun and want to show the bike off, I could always pop the original cap back on. The original petrol cap has a much slimmer profile and definitely looks nicer, but better safe than sorry I reckon?

Triumph Thunderbird Sport Original Petrol Cap

Triumph Thunderbird Sport Original Petrol Cap

I’m assuming this second fuel cap ( or should I call it a gas cap? ) was the one originally supplied by Triumph when it was built in 2003?

Hopefully some Triumph Thunderbird Sport owner might find this helpful? If you know or can confirm the origins of the this petrol cap, then please post a comment.

Triumph Thunderbird spare parts list

Triumph Thunderbird Sport Spare parts list.

I just wanted to share with you what is possibly the best online Triumph spare parts list I’ve seen available on the internet.

It is a Swedish site so the currency prices are not much help, but what they do have is an easy to navigate menu system which brings up exploded diagrams showing all the relevant part numbers – very useful!

Click > HERE < for the Thunderbird Sport link.

The main Triumph index is > HERE < and the list includes the following models:

Triumph Adventurer, Triumph America, Triumph America EFI, Triumph Bonneville, Triumph Bonneville & T100 EFI
Triumph Bonneville from VIN 380777 & SE, Triumph Daytona, Triumph Daytona 600, Triumph Daytona 675
Triumph Legend TT, Triumph Rocket III, Classic & Roadster, Triumph Rocket III Touring, Triumph Scrambler
Triumph Scrambler EFI, Triumph Speed Four, Triumph Speedmaster, Triumph Speedmaster EFI, Triumph Speed Triple
Triumph Sprint Carbs All, Triumph Sprint GT, Triumph Sprint RS, Triumph Sprint ST, Triumph Street Triple
Triumph Street Triple R, Triumph Thruxton 900, Triumph Thruxton 900 EFI, Triumph Thunderbird
Triumph Thunderbird Sport, Triumph Thunderbird 1600, Triumph Tiger, Triumph Trident, Triumph Trophy, Triumph TT600

All information courtesy of Lelles MC

Polished front forks

Triumph Thunderbird Sport

Ok, I’m going to write up some general stuff about the bike and pass on any maintenance tips I think are worth sharing.

This bike came supplied with polished front forks. Ramoto had obviously taken the trouble to strip the bike and had the forks professionally polished. This removed the lacquer finish because on a 9 year old bike it would have been showing signs of wear and tear. Also, worn lacquer can make things worse as any corrosion that occurs underneath the lacquered finish has the effect of lifting the lacquer and trapping moisture which then causes more corrosion. So it’s all been stripped off.

Here is a photo of the front fork assembly:

Now I like to take advice, so I asked the guys about how best to look after the polished front forks. They told me that any good metal polish would be fine, even Brasso, but that I should NOT use Autosol! Apparently Autosol contains ammonia which is bad for aluminium.

So off I went to do some research online, looking for a good metal polish and hoping to find one that was specifically designed for polished aluminium surfaces. Well I found what I was looking for, it was Meguiars Motorcycle All Metal Polish. I paid £9.99 for a 6 oz pot.

When it arrived, I could see it was a white paste with no strong odours. According to the instructions, it seemed simple enough to use. Apply, let it dry and polish it off. No great effort required. So I did……. and the results were both instant and fantastic! It lifted the polished surface into a fantastic deep lustre shine. It was so noticable that I showed my son the difference between the two forks before I polished the second one up.

Now I don’t think the difference would show up in a photograph, but it is certainly visible to the eye. I’ll be interested to see how long the shine lasts and what the long term use of the product is like. Might post an update at some future stage.

I also ordered the Meguiars Motorcycle Liquid Wax Wet Look polish. I used that on the petrol tank and whilst it was good and gave a nice shine, I can’t say it particularly popped out to the extent I would actually recommend it over other similar products.

But at least I’m pleased with the All Metal Polish! Sets off the front end of the Triumph Thunderbird Sport a treat.