Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Puzzled]

I was reading about the wobble that some of the bat wing bikes have and this reminded me of my own bikes wobble. 2001 SERG, slow speed wobble. You can feel it in the bars and if you remove your hands from the bars it gets worse. It generally only happens while slowing down or at minimal RPM's. I had the front wheel and tire balanced and this made no difference. The rear tire was never balanced, however it is due for a tire so I'll balance it this time around. I don't ever remember the wobble before I changed wheels which leads to me to think the rear wheel and it's balancing. At highway speeds it is dead nuts on. I've covered many of miles without my hands on the bars with the cruise on.

I've considered the neck bearings also. The bike now has 19k on it and I've never been in there though the wobble started back at 9k (when I changed wheels). So I will venture into the neck area and check for loose bearings and make sure it is well greased.

Next was motor mounts. I've read all sorts of stuff on bad motor mounts. Unfortunately i don't know what I should be looking for. The motor does seem to vibrate more so now than when new. In comparison to other rubber mounted motors mine moves more than they do. Again is this mileage related?

What do you think? I'll start with the tire when it gets here. I'd like to only do one change at a time so I can pin point the problem.

[Puzzled]

The wobble in this bike is only on deceleration around 30 (ish) MPH. It only shakes a few times than I imagine the bike has slowed enough to get "through" it.

What I did this morning: I greased the neck bearings and I'm ashamed to admit it took a lot of grease before it pushed out the ends. The grease that pushed out wasn't old grease either it was the nice new hi temp Amsoil I pumped in.

I took the bike for a ride around the neighbor hood to test it. The wobble is still there but considerably better. The front end feels better also, duh! I was testing this with out the tour pac and full gear so the bike is weighing in a little lighter than its usual travel weight.

Next was to check the tire pressure. Again foolishness on my part. The tire was a good 10 PSI low. I aired it up and took it for another test run. Better but not perfect. Some of this I imagine is due to the fact I already trashed the tire as it is feathered now. I'll take some test runs after I install the new rear tire.

This afternoon I'll check the swing arm bearings and see what they look like.

[Puzzled]

I checked the swing arm pivot bolt. It was tight. I yanked on the end of the swing arm and it didn't move. I'm getting ready to go road test it shortly.

[OTIS]

May have worn neck bearings from lack of grease I have heard of this before.

                             OTIS

[VANAMAL]

i had the same thing on my old bike! i had the spokes replaced,wheel re-trued,new tire and balanced correctly- no more wobble!! its a wheel or tire thang [smiley=banana.gif]

[Puzzled]

The wheels are nice new RC Components mags. The rear tire is toast. I'm waiting on a new tire and than I'll continue my testing. The bike did this with new tires front and rear.

[kng103]

hey puzzled,
did you ever figure out what the wobble and the squeak was?

[Puzzled]

I'm still chasing the wobble. I really think it is in the rear wheel and tire (somewhere). I installed the new tire last Friday and have logged only a couple of miles on it so far. It seems worse now. I'm not so confident in the balance job the dealer did. I may remove the weight and try it.

I checked the fade away on the bearings/front end and it is on the tight side. Two full swings and just gets to the third but does not start back on the third rotation. I left it as is. I want to pick up a laser level and check the belt/rear. I can not believe I have a problem there as I've installed hundreds of wheels, but I'll check it anyway.

On that note I was thinking of checking the front wheel install. Not the balance but rather the placement in the forks. I'm going to see if I preloaded the forks possibly. Who knows as I'm guessing now.

I thought the squeak went away when I greased the neck, hunh? It hasn't been there for awhile. Well it came back with the new tire install. SO that told me it was related to the belt and wheel combination. As much as I would have sworn it was not a belt noise it sure seems like one now. On deceleration it chirps (previously described as a squeak/squeal). For chits and giggles I sprayed some belt dressing on the trans pulley. The noise is gone. This tells me I have the belt running to one side or the other, I think! Honestly I haven't tinkered with it much since the tire install. I will though as I plan to head to Americade with the bike later this week.

I have the new tire at max pressure and I don't like it! It is to dam hard. That is another thread.

[Puzzled]

I made it back out to the bike this afternoon for some tinkering. I picked up a laser pointer today to check belt alignment. It was a piece of crap and wasn't any help. I got to looking at my marks on the adjuster and I was about 1/4 turn off from a previous install. So for the sake of trying something I turned the mark to lign up with the old mark. Off I was for another trip around the block. Walla, the squeak/squeal is gone. OK, one thing down. Something so simple.......

The wobble is still there. After putting some more miles on the bike it is no different than before. I'm running out of things to try.  [smiley=nixweiss.gif]

I backed the tires down to 45 pounds and I'm going to try it later to see if the ride improved. I figured I'll back it down to no lower than 42 pounds. 8-)

I'm not giving up until I figure it out.  

[arcticdude]

Puzz,
What are you running for tires, frt/rr?

[HUBBARD]

Yeah, 'er 'uh, Puzzled,
  What you referred to as "feathered", I've always called "high-speed flat spots."  Are you a speed junkie?  I assure you, these flat spots will cause your Motorsickle to get a little woozy.  That's a good lookin' RG.  Go ahead on, and spring for a new rear tire.  Seems like you've fixed all the other common causes for the wobble.  Later--HUBBARD

[Puzzled]

Puzz,
What are you running for tires, frt/rr?

Metzeler ME 880 130/70/18 front, 140/70/18 rear.

[Puzzled]

Yeah, 'er 'uh, Puzzled,
  What you referred to as "feathered", I've always called "high-speed flat spots."  Are you a speed junkie?  I assure you, these flat spots will cause your Motorsickle to get a little woozy.  That's a good lookin' RG.  Go ahead on, and spring for a new rear tire.  Seems like you've fixed all the other common causes for the wobble.  Later--HUBBARD

I replaced the rear tire with another Metzeler. Yes I run at a good clip. I like to cruise at 85ish. However it is not uncommon to play in the triple digits.

I may head up to Americade later this week so I'll see how it behaves out on the highway.

[VANAMAL]

try having that wheel checked. id take it to the sport bike guys and ask them to balance and true the wheel. the wheel itself may be tweaked. i dont have much faith in the dealers guys.  [smiley=xyxthumbs.gif]

[arcticdude]

Those tires shouldn't give you the flat spots you've referred to.  I ran them on a 600# Honda at higher speeds without ever having a problem with them.  I'd look very closely at the wheels- make sure they're properly round and straight.