A good friend of mine bought a Bonneville America new in 2004, rode it for 5 years, then put it away one day put a cover over it and never rode it again. I have persuaded him to let me put it back on the road, so tomorrow I'm getting trailered to my place for resurrection. I'm planning on new battery, tyres and oil change. I'll clean the carbs and check the air filter, clean and service the brakes, all the usual stuff to do when servicing a bike. (Not going to touch valve clearances as that's beyond me and will go to a dealer when that's needed) My question is, is there anything particular to the America that I need to look out for, I'm used to a TT600 and a Sprint 1050 (Had an ST, not got the GT) so I'm not new to Triumphs, but this will be the first in the Bonnie range that I've worked on.
You may well have considered this and it is not particular for this bike, but I might suggest, siphon/pumping or draining out any older gasoline, and looking into the gas tank, to see if there is any rust inside it. If it is present, it could cause mischief. Sincerely, Tommy
I have seen tanks with rust in the past. I recently bought my '09 Speedmaster with under 500 miles. That was one thing I really looked at closely when I looked at mine, and drained and refilled the tank when I got the bike home ASAP. My tank seemed to be really, really clean, although the gasoline was pretty "sour-stink" smelling IMO. Tommy
Thanks, I'll let you all know how it goes, put my spare battery on charge today and am picking the bike up this afternoon.
Well I've picked the bike up and it's safely in my garage now. Initial impressions are good. The chain was lubed up before it was put away, the fuel tap was turned to off and the chrome was covered in a thin coat of oil. There is some corrosion on the chrome, but not a huge amount. There is no obvious corrosion anywhere else. The brakes haven't seized on and it rolls with no problems. My initial thoughts are that this shouldn't be too bad a job. Checking the oil, fuel and putting a new battery in it are next to see if it turns over and fires up. (I need to change the number plate before I can MOT it, and the owner has the battery cover and a few other bits put in a safe place.)
Spent an hour on her this evening, the electrics were completely dead, even with a part charged battery. Fortunately the original owner had the alarm blanking plug, so off with the tank, fitted the plug and I have a neutral light. The battery won't hold enough of a charge to get more than that, but I'll fit a new battery next. (I can always re-attach the alarm if I choose as I've only unplugged it, but not sure that I'll bother)
Well drained the tank and all is good inside, connected up a good battery from my Sprint whilst the tank was off and turned the bike over, it turned over fine. Put the tank back on, put new fuel in, pulled out the choke, hit the start button, and she started up. She won't tick over yet, but she starts and runs. So I'll order a new battery, and continue with the checks.
Well drained the tank and all is good inside, connected up a good battery from my Sprint whilst the tank was off and turned the bike over, it turned over fine. Put the tank back on, put new fuel in, pulled out the choke, hit the start button, and she started up. She won't tick over yet, but she starts and runs. So I'll order a new battery, and continue with the checks.
Brakes, suspension, chain, steering, and electrics are all good, but the carbs needed stripping cleaning and rebuilding, so after discussion with the owner I've taken the wimpy way out and booked it into a professional to strip, the carbs, give them a sonic clean the rebuild and balance them. He's also going to put it into for the MOT. The tyres are visually fine, but I'm planning on replacing them anyway. (Anyone got any tips on the best tyres for the America?)
Avoid Metzler 888. Made mine( and others) vibrate .Ditched them in the end. Currently running Bridgestone Excedras which work well on my 2007 Speedmaster.
E.B. I picked one of these up [a 2002] a number of years back. Owner said it had been sitting 2-3 years. Drained the tank. Put in fresh plugs. The carburettor slides were a bit sticky for the first few miles, but I have had it for years. Really the most reliable bike I have ever owned. Done a few upgrades over the years, but I'll take one of these carburetted twins over a new one ANY time. ...J.D.
Think I would drain that old oil and replace with new stuff and a filter. Not worth not doing for how much it costs. Ken.
Good plan, already bought the oil, and the filter will be ordered tomorrow. I'd planned on that from the start, but as the bike started and ran so easily, I thought I'd get the bike running and through the MOT so I had something positive to report back to the owner. I'll have plenty of time for an oil change before he takes it back.
I thought that I'd get a quote for insurance, just out of curiosity, why is the bike not listed on any of the online sites? I've used the Speedmaster to get the quotes and am pleasantly surprised under £100 fully comp for someone without any no claims. (Although that's for a rider with no accidents or convictions who's nearer 50 than 40)
So you put the Bonnie away in 2011? If I were you my first trip would be straight to the tyre shop and put some new boots on. No matter how good they look, do you really want to risk your neck on old rubber for the sake of £200 or so?
You're absolutely right, in fact if you look higher up the thread I asked for opinions on tyres. I wanted to get it running again and through an MOT before spending out any more, that's done now, it passed with no advisories, so the next thing is to insure and tax it, and as you say the first trip will be for new tyres.
