V-twin, I have a rode unidirectional mic, maybe we can plumb that up to get some good sound (albeit yours is pretty good) of the situation if it is still required. Could plug it into a digital dictation device just to get the sound.
Thanks Crash for the offer. I can't make my bike 'tame out' at will. You might be riding with me for couple of months before getting the footage as good as that. Most times, it is less obvious in exhaust sound difference. I believe my footage will be shared with USA head office and instructions sort. It is now a waiting game. Let's hope people in power are sensible and choose to open up the engine to explore.
Re easy start cam, certainly sounds plausible though. Or a sticky exhaust valve? Had one of them on a HD once. But then you'd surely notice a drop in performance? Re X Wedge - it was rumoured the 111 was based on the X Wedge... not hard to see why. Re GoPro, if you're using the waterproof sealed case, that's excellent sound quality - virtually no muffling. I'm waiting for the 5 to come out to replace my 3 x 3's, but I always use the open cover, and on one of the Blacks I use a stereo mic attached to a cage. Wind is an issue though. Yes, they improved the audio in the 4's, and they are improving on that again in the 5.
Re: Drop in performance - They asked me about that too but I'm making the following assumption. When exhaust is 'f@rting' (as in my video - that is, really quiet), I would assume naximum loss of engine power. I'll also assume, when my exhaust is slightly taming, my performance is only 'slightly' diminished. Meaning, when I experience slight taming from day to day, it is difficult to notice the power loss. In case of my vid, I didn't rev hard so not sure. Looking back, I may have had some loss but nothing like a limp mode. Re: X Wedge - Re: GoPro 5 - Is new one coming out? I'll check up on rumours. Back to 'waterproof' rear case I use. It's the open rear case with flimsy clear film glued to it. The sticker said 3m waterproof but I would only use it in the rain. Too scared it might leak. I was very pleased with the sound also. I don't think Hero 3 would have produced a useful footage.
It was supposed to be out in October, and they delayed it.... March to June is now the "expected" date. We'll be able to tell though because all the retailers will start madly discounting 4's. The stereo mic has great audio when still, or going slow, much better than the built in mic, but suffers from wind because its so 'out there'. It's good when I park and let bikes pass me, you hear them come and go (L > R). I need a dead cat
Great sound Rob. Thanks for the heads up on Hero 5. Re: Dead cat - Ask Crash about it... I'm sure he's got a family of dead cats!!!!
UPDATE: I just spoke with my dealer very briefly. They worked on my bike today and they will be working on it for half-a-day tomorrow. I took the bike in as down shifting from 3rd to 2nd and 2nd to 1st got really stiff (only once every twenty changes or so but so stiff that stomping on the shift lever didn't even get it out of the gear). One of the things they said they did was 'changing exhaust gasket'. I don't know what was done to it but they are checking stuff and changing bits to stablise my exhaust sound so I am hopeful. I am told I should be able to pick up my bike tomorrow so I should have more info as to what was done.
UPDATE: So I picked up the bike from the dealer. It did go tame again the following day (not as badly as it did in the video). A senior mechanic from the head office came out and after watching my video, he did the following: - Pulled exhaust off and checked headers - Checked cats (ensure they where not moving) - Replaced the exhaust O-ring casket. That's it! Did not check compression, did not check cam chain tensioner, did not open up the motor in anyway. What a waste of time. It is out of dealer's hands now. The dealer mechanics can only do what the head office tell (authorise) them to do. I'm booking the bike in for another day.
What a pain! That must be so disheartening, having spend the money on aftermarket slip ons. I hope you can get it resolved.
Yes, disheartening. I would have thought a company that has been making Victory for so long would have gotten manufacturing tolerance issues resolved... certainly by 2nd year model. If you ride enough TS111, you will hear differences... some are more quiet at idle while others might have noisier top end when cruising. The fact that sound varies so much indicates great variations. But I accept that as a commercial reality. Everything is made to price. But, once the issue has been reported, they could open up the engine and see what is going on. Not just replace a exhaust gasket and give the bike back. Anyone with half a mechanical knowledge are rolling their eyes after seeing my video and when I tell them what Indian head office decided to do for a fix.
Sorry to here you are having such a bad experience, I had hoped that Indian would have wanted to understand it as part of continual improvement of the product (if not because you are important to them as an owner and customer). Your perseverance and continued support for Indians through the forums is admirable, I hope it pays off before you ditch Indian in favour of the Ducati you mentioned in another thread (I can see the attraction by the way, didn't like them at first but then heard one start and I was a bit smitten). Interestingly I have found the opposite when I have had an issue. I had a bad clunk in the rear end when the ABS activated and Polaris Central in Perth suspected an out of spec swing arm bush and got authorisation from Indian for the work. They stripped the entire back end of my back to rebuild it, took a month to get the authorisation, order the parts and complete the job but they told me that from the outset. Has the dealer accepted that you have a real issue? Is there anything we can do as fellow owners or through forums to put pressure on for you? I do worry that the issue you have could develop on any of our TS111 engines at some point. My hearing is not what it used to be so it may be that it is already occurring to a lesser extent. I am already listening for clacking, I don't want something else to have to worry about when I go for a ride.
Robbo, your comment is really appreciated. I'm touched. Truly. However, it is not necessarily. Thank you! Fortunately or unfortunately (depending on your view), my bike is exhibiting intermittent issues. If the engine was blowing black smoke all the time, it would have been easier. Since I cannot make my engine change sound (tame/flat) at will, I am in a bit of an unusual situation. I am realistic too so I am not really hopeful that Indian will be able to find the cause. If they want to find out the cause for no other reason but to improve their products, they would have checked the cam chain tensioner, check compression of cylinders, check tolerances of valves but no... they change the exhaust O-ring seal. Laughable really. This is not the dealer by the way. It is the Indian Australia head office warranty person diagnosing it. I am sure they will change the spark plug next and send me on my way. Two weeks later, they might change the headlight bulb. Why? It might be drawing too much current and it might take power away from the engine. Two weeks later, they might replace fuel cap. Why? It might not be letting enough air in through the one way valve and that is starving the engine. Re: wide spread issue - I would say the TS111 'clacking' is a wide spread issue affecting maybe 10% - 20%. I have ridden 6 TS111 bikes now and mine and one other demo bike had clacking. Melbourne dealer is well aware of the clacking issues. They may consider them to be 'normal' or 'acceptable' character of the TS111 but they are aware of them. Some people can hear clacking and others cannot. Re: listening for clacking - DON'T! Once you hear the sound, all you will hear is the clacking sound. It is best not to try and listen out for it. The clacking sound is 'off beat' (completely different beat to engine beat or revs) so when it happens, you will hear it, even if you don't want to hear it. You will notice it as a 'rattle'. If you are cruising at around 1,900rpm - 2,300rpm on flat road, it might be clacking. Twist the throttle and if the noise goes away and if you coast again and sound comes back, it is definitely 'TS111 clacking' issue. Re: Exhaust taming issue - is a rare issue. I have only encountered one other owner with the same issue. I sure know how to pick a winner. I suspect manufacturing tolerances as the main culprit. I'm sure we will see a lot less issues in 2016 models and by 2018, they should be much more refined machines. Re: dealer accept I have real issue - hard to say. Once you take your bike to the dealership a few times and you can not get resolution, it gets escalated to the head office. Once the head office gets involved, dealers are no longer in the picture. Head office will authorise certain tests or fixes and dealer mechanics just follow order. They are looking for the cause but not very enthusiastically so... Re: Perth Indian - I am glad to hear that they looked after you. As I said, it is easier to get things fixed if it is 'in your face' obvious. Intermittent issues are the worst. Thanks again for your support. I suspect my options are limited but I will keep you posted.
V-twin, I appreciate the response and the sage advice. I am sure that there are many other out there hoping you get a resolution, thanks for the comprehensive coverage of your problems.
Since I am not qualified to give advice, let's leave it at 'sharing opinions'. Thanks to everyone who is following me on my less than ideal journey.
Fair call! Some opinions are better than a lot of expert advice I have received over the years. The real trick is being able to pick the right one!
