preperation tenere in morrco
 

i wonder if i could pick the brains of the guys who have

been overlanding in tough terrain
i have 10 weeks to iron out what i need to do and take

so far im pretty well sorted with the obvious stuff

tyres levers chain links ect ect but im fairly new to the bike ... so its kinda tenere tips im looking for

ive looked up the forum and have a spare rectifier which fits neat under the seat above the snorkal .. pre wired with connectors and ive checked and sealed the o/e
as a bit of insurance ..thanks stoic bloke


ive messed with the gearing and got what i like 14.46

id like any suggestions please what to watch out for or prevent
or what you didnt take and wish you had ..kind of thing

other than the three questions you may be able to help me with below



air filter ..
ive read about replacement filters ..bearing in mind im not altering the performance of the bike ..just have a dust free airbox
which one can you suggest to be the best in very dusty conditions on a standard set up

has any one found it neccasary to fit crash bars ??
or damaged anything thart could have been prevented by them
it has a bash plate and pump bars on ..

rear brake pads

mine are nearly shot in 3k miles i reall am not heavy on the brakes at all

is this unusual /usual

best sugestion for replacement /will i need spares

thank you for your feedback ...steve

Steve, three comments I have,

Gearing, we took 4 Teneres into Portugal last May, I ran with the 15T the others ran with the 14T and to be honest it was a pain. The bike was using a litre more fuel per fill up than the others and there was no real benefit . Try out your 15T by all means, but when you compare against othe bikes it's just not worth the effort.

Air Filter - or more to the point the air box seals. Take bothe sides off, grease the seal and replace, if this is left stock you will get sand in your airbox.

I fitted the OTR bash Plate, others had the OE bash plate, (I didn't have crash bars), fell off lots of times and no real damage to the bike, other than some scratches that my Mx boots caused..... However, the bash plate has some pretty deep pot marks in it so worth the effort in my case. Then again we did take some tracks at a stupidly fast pace (Stoic really can crack the whip when he wants to!)...

Bar Risers, I have 20mm and the cables just manage this. Worth considering if you like standing up. And to go with that some wider pegs (ther is a link on the site for cheap ones from eBay, take a while to arrive but do the job really well).

Look at coating your tank with some of that HG clear film, it'll stop lots of the scratches.

Try to avoid 6 inch spikes, they do your tyre no good at all!

Enjoy your trip.......

ahh right its the sides that are the weak point thanks

and not the filter itself ?

Yipipidyyip.... The seal isn't great. I used some White PTFE grease that I had left over form my MTB days, it just needs to be sticky and fill the crack.

I also smeared some inside the airbox (the clean air side) - just in case!

I have a DNA filter, but it took three cleans to get all the dust/sand out of it. I'm not sure how the guys with paper filters faired (Nick ???). Never needed to clean it during the trip though.

Hi

Could you explain this in more detail.Thanks

Dazzer

Doing the same trip myself end of May, and also pondering the bash-plate engine bar issue.

Pictures below taken from other forum members show damaged water pump and a metal putty repair to the engine casing.

Protecting the water pump I would consider to be critical.

Not sure what is more likely, damaging the engine due to hitting a rock, or me simply dropping the bike on it's side.

I am considering either the Hepco & Becker engine bars, or the Adventure-Spec engine bar/bash plate combo.

http://my2wheels.webs.com/tenere/WhichEngineBars.jpg

There has only been one report, I believe (of course I could have missed some) of a damaged water pump. It is off course possible that you could destroy it, but there is no real evidence to support any claim that it is vulnerable. In fact, lay your bike on it's side and look at how far from harm the water pump is.....

Tims problem was just pure bad luck. again this is the only example of this failure in lots of trips people have done.

The whole Bars V's bash plate debate is really down to where you are going. catch a branch in your bars and you are going down, they will brush off a bash plate. Then again, go sliding down the tarmac and the bars will keep some distance between your bike and the ground - horses for courses as they say.

I used to run with engine bars, and I moved to the OTR bashplate, not as big as the TT one but it gives enough protection to the waterpump/engine area from loose rocks. JMo did the HR Dakar with only the OTR bash plate.

Honestly, I wouldn't get too concerned with the water pump protection - bending your radiator is more likely.

Please

mmm its a quandry for me
i dont think i would get tangled up in the crashbars in the rocky tracks

http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/3...nbeacons15.jpg
By minkyhead at 2011-01-21

im leaning towards them ..
i may a well ask if anyone knows if you can retain the o/e bashplate with the different makes ..they are not big on information on the sites ive looked at ...

It depends on how extreme the routes are that you're planning. For many people doing non-technical everyday tracks the OE plastic bash plate is fine.

But on harder stuff you need better protection. Chris Scott also did his sump in. It's not a question of whether parts are vulnerable when the bike is lying down, mine was standing up at the time, but a pointy rock got inbetween the Yamaha bash plate and the Yamaha engine bars (2nd of Nick's pics). The AdventureSpec bash/bar combo (4th of Nick's pics) would have prevented this.

As far as the air filter is concerned, if you are travelling solo you'll find there's hardly a problem with dust ingress.

[quote=Tim Cullis;146926] The AdventureSpec bash/bar combo (4th of Nick's pics) would have prevented this.

+1

They are a quality bit of kit.

hi minkyhead, its the luck of the draw with the waterpump. my sumpgaurd is sufficiently wide enough to fend of all i have thrown at it. it's up to you, bars gaurd or combo.

i would suggest a chain guide to stop derailments. again it might be a case of refitting the chain or it could be as some have found out a bit more serious. zou and molgen required swing arms[ if you need, give me a shout i have a solution]http://www.xt660.com/showthread.php?t=14756&page=2&highlight=paddy near the bottom

as i do push on a bit and dont be shy on drop offs. i found the peg mounts to be a bit weak, they are easily welded though [off the bike] tt make a stronger version. for normal use the standard ones are fine but worth keeping an eye on

i may be wrong but i think darren may be mistaken about the ratios. iirc. all bar him were on 15 tooth fronts and he on the 14. allowing us the long legs for the open trails.

to date mine is still on the 15/46 even with the 18'' wheel and full of the swing arm michelin desert tyre, thought my technical trail technique is about clutch / speed. the engine has loads of low speed torque, for me it's fine.everyone have thier own preferences!

heavier fork oil, i know i used a different setup on the heroes but i feel the forks are fine for regular trails, sure better springs like the hyperpros help. mine bar the atf oil and the preload wound up suit me fine, how extreme are you planning?

your rear pad wear seems excessive [[im only starting my second set with 25,400mls]still on original fronts 18,000 fork brake change]. is all free and working correctly? or is the pedal high and inadvertly being dragged? the second set were kyoto cheapos from webmoto and are bedded in on the heroes 5,300mls and are hardly worn

for me; for another race the fork wheel set-up is going back and stronger peg mounts
for an adventure no changes required! just right

Totaly agree, it all horses and stuff.


No, confusion is the key to my earlier comment, you are correct.

thank you for the replies

i think ill cut some chequer plate and just beef thing up around the pump knowing my luck ill run over the very same rock as tim did
ill work somthing off the engine bars

im pretty smitten with the 14/46 at the moment ..i deffo wont need a 15
off road 40 50 mph is as fast ill be going .. i had a bad off two years ago and until recently havnt been able to ride off road ..i was /did jack it in sold me offroader ..
ive changed me mindset a little and just want to enjoy the journey and keep as best i can within a safe /safer limit

it seems better for picking my way through stuff and i can use 2nd a lot more without
the the bike shaking itself to peices
it will tug along on tickover in 2nd now over slippy undulations ..which allows me to sit my untalented ass on the seat and pick a line .. with the soft pulses in 2nd is better than the revs in 1st . im quite pleased with how tracktable it is with this gearing

i just find it so much more pleasent all round .. b road blasting /town work and very slippy slow stuff
except of course on the longer tarmack haul ..but a sat nav 73mph is around 5k revs
the speedo higer up is around 9mph out
i may set off with the 15 and put the 14 on after spain ..

brake pads are somwhat of a mystery . i ride the engine mostly
.. ill get two sets..i think what ever is in it is just soft ..

chain guide i think is a good idea there is a fair bit of slack reqired
cos if the suspension movment
could you tell me which bike did you pinch it off?

thanks steve

chain guides http://shop.jimaimracing.co.uk/acata...in_Guides.html

The smashed water pump on the pic you posted was mine and I have a friend who wrecked his pump twice.
So i guess it's a matter of luck .
I would suggest finding some way to protect it, especially if you're headed into rocky trails.

Drop the bike on the wrong spot, and it's bye-bye water pump.

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_h_hIYKggHWM/Su...j6kcsTA/20.jpg
That's with the OE guard.

Smashing the pump in the middle of the desert is not a pleasent experience.

this is all good stuff thanks
the shotcomings of the o/e bars .. and sump guard it coudnt be that hard to make the guard fit round the pump in the first place ...grr
so brittle as well me old drz pumpwas in exacly the same place

im going to plate up around it both sides for peace of mind

it looks to me the crash bar set up protects the pump less than the o/e bars ..mmmmm
of course it protects the radiator better ..



thanks for that .. a very motivational photo :bricks:

cave man plan ..ill stick a pic up when ive done it a peice of cardboard as a template .. no fancy seams
just a peice of ally chequerplate some rubber backing a vice and a ferkin big hammer :036:

http://shop.jimaimracing.co.uk/acata...in_Guides.html

http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/2285/plateedited1.jpg
By minkyhead at 2011-01-22

just had a thought about plan b

fowlers of bristol supply spare housings 36.95 ..plus postage

im thinking this may not be a bad investment ..

Because of all troubles with protection, I decided to make one bash plate on my own.
I am building one, that will cover all...
-will protect water pump
-will protect engine block
-no heavy tubing
-lightweight aluminium 3 mm plate
-cheaper than anything

Right now its out of the autocad and proceeding on plasma cut...
It will soon be made.
Will post some pics.
If interest will be good, I can make them some more for any of you guys.

hi minkyhead, the website does no single out the guide rubber i used, though they show it complete with ali surround [to the left and low down]. they were used throughout the range, as a target '03 450exc is the one i use, usually less than a tenner for the genuine units, its not the first bike i have converted my gasser 300 has been on one for years.

the only additional advice is you may want to consider using rivet link as the guide will rub the protruding link ends off letting the clip drop off!.

i have a couple of brackets ready to go if your interested, checkout http://www.xt660.com/showthread.php?...wingarm&page=2

Did 3 weeks in Morocco last year on my Tenere, Had the ADV-Spec combo guard , recommended , i took some spare levers , didn't use , but had a couple of major offs and bent and deformed brake pedal , its seems to bend well :) , had to goto a guy in Merzouga to bend it back by bashing it very hard on an anvil :)
So i may take a spare next time.
Other than that , spare tube/tubes and a means to inflate, remember prior to going protect you rectifier. spare chain rivet and link and tool
Lessons learnt , go light as possible , i took two rollbags for everything inc tent and sleeping bag , cooking kit etc , no panniers.

I bent my rear brake pedal a number of times in the US, and as Mooby suggests - it bends out very easily, but is a right booger to bend back straight...

As part of the rally bike prep, I simply chopped a third off the pedal tip:

http://i492.photobucket.com/albums/r...t/DSC00677.jpg

And this stopped it catching on anything, including the ground in the inevitable offs... you can also add a 'brake snake' cable (I did, didn't seem to need it though) which cost about �3.50 from race spec etc.

Jx

ps. Stoic is right - the footrest brackets (U shaped piece of tin) are a weak link if you spend a lot of time riding standing up, and/or use your left footpeg to get on and off like I do... I've had two crack now (thankfully not ever break right off) - I'd beef up the welds there before you go, if you have a local welder who fancies a pint...

great tips thanks ill look at the gear lever mod
3 quid for a snake is not going to break the bank either
at least yamaha have fitted a mild steel lever

i wonder if the bigger footrests put more strain on the bracket .. i got some off ebay
and their much better .. but may contribute to the problem ..

luckily welding is a strong point for me ..

im really looking forward to getting going now the new year is rolling on
:happy:

thanks very much .. i may have tracked down one with the two horizontal bolt holes
ill get in touch if i struggle but i should be fine
i appriciate the info from everyone i really do .. thanks

over the winter month's I have been Getting the bike ready for our trip to Morocco and I wanted to fit a better engine guard than my Tenere came with.
Having had a look what was on offer I went for the Adventure Spec one.
This seem's to be the strongest on the market.
When it was fitted to the bike I tought that they just may be a slight chance that a stone could still get between the gap on each side of the alloy guard.
http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/Image051.jpg
So Craig and I thought it best to Fill the gap's in just to make sure that there was total protection to the bottom of the engine.

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0943.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0945.jpg

Standerd the Yamaha Tenere come's with a none flick back rear brake lever.
We have seen a few of these catch when off roading and bend right back ,and they can not so easily be bent back in to shape.
So I cut the end off my brake lever and welded on one off a XR400.

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0950.jpg
Also fitted a scott oiler and a set of wide foot peg's from Ebay, I Now have to have a stronger spring fitted to the rear shock and were ready.

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0946.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0947.jpg

http://i151.photobucket.com/albums/s...w/DSCF0948.jpg

Nice work Darren - I did something similar with my OTR bashplate once I got back from Heroes', not because of stone ingress so much, rather ending the wings short like that gave the potential for it to fold in a really heavy landing (or after dragging it's lardy arse on and off a work stand each night at service)...

http://i492.photobucket.com/albums/r...n/DSC01428.jpg

Jx

ive gone pretty low tech ..

ive two shoulder guards i dont use on my body armour
so i ve plugged the gaps around the water pump with it
they bolt on to the o/e plate and the top bolts in the cooler cover
the hole centres were perfect
its not perfect but pretty effective against rocks flying up into the gaps



got a ktm chain guide off ebay for 99p would you belive it ..he he

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/5659/img1715cj.jpg
By minkyhead at 2011-01-31

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/2238/img1719o.jpg
By minkyhead at 2011-01-31