FRONT END WOBBLE

BigDawg_03Busa

BigDawg_03Busa

Registered
I took my bike to one of the local dealers for a new back tire. Drove the beast home ~30 miles with no problem and to work the next morning no problem.

When I get off work I leave the parking lot and it feels like my front tire is low in air, almost flat. I'm talking serious wobble. I check the pressure and it's right at 41-42 psi and tire looks good (has only about 2500 miles on it). I get it back to the dealer and they tell me I lost a weight, so they replace the weight and rebalance, problem continues. I return to the dealer and they replace the entire tire, Problem better, but not solved. So Saturday I replace my front brake pads....problem better (so good in fact I actually thought it was solved).

So I drive to my church ~15 miles and on the way home it starts again. So bad I'm keeping the speed under 50mph (I get passed by an old BMW by the way and all I could do was watch him pass and you know what I was thinking).

So now what do you guys/gals think it may be..

1. bearings
2. bad tire
3. poor alignment
4. steering damper
5. other

No I haven't hit any pot holes, I just think it's strange that it started after having a rear tire replaced. I'm pissed because I've recently spent.

$250 - new chain & sprockets
$180 - new rear tire
$70 - new front brake pads

Before this I've never had a problem with any instability when driving. One thing I have noticed when I look at the triple tree while driving it looks like it is slightly rotated to the right. Last night I had my bike on front & rear stands and it looks like the handle bars are off slightly to the right.

This sucks because it has limited my riding these holidays, so I'd appreciate any advice.

BD
 
BigDawg, sounds to me like you've got a belt seperating in the tire, take it off orput it up on a stand and spin the tire, it'll be obvious when you do this, trust me. The dang thing will be out of round lookin if its this, and it'll only get worse, if youre riding and it seperates, remember the deal with firestone tires and Ford explorers? Not fun my brother. NJ.
 
I've heard that if the tread pattern of the back tire "conflicts" with the tread of the front, it will cause the death wobble. It happened to a friend on is old Concours.

Is your new back tire a different kind from the front?

Just a thought.
 
Did the dealer test ride your bike? Did they drop it? Wobble could be from alot of things. How many miles on the bike? Do you do alot of wheelies? This could contibute to bad bearings. We need more info..
 
I used to have a bad problem with my 450 Nighthawk and from experience the front tire just isn't aligned with the rear. That's why when you go faster the bike wants to correct itself therefore making the front tire wander back and forth and then going into a very scary speed wobble. Trust me I've been in a couple and they're not nice...I don't know how I got out of them alive but I did.

I would say there's either something really wrong with the way your front tire and rear tire line up. Motorcycles in general are very simple, I would just take your bike and put it on some stands and check some measurements. Maybe start it up put it in 3rd or 4th gear and speed it up with the rear tire off the ground to see if it's not something in the rear end. Move the front tire around and make sure it's OK. Then check and make sure there isn't something wrong with the frame or with your forks...on my Nighthawk it was the forks that were bent a little that was causing the problem.

If you took it to the dealership they should be able to check these things for you but if you already took it there and they fvcked you around check it yourself. It's your life and your bike thats on the line here.
 
(nitrousjunkie @ May 29 2005 said:
BigDawg, sounds to me like you've got a belt seperating in the tire, take it off orput it up on a stand and spin the tire, it'll be obvious when you do this, trust me. The dang thing will be out of round lookin if its this, and it'll only get worse, if youre riding and it seperates, remember the deal with firestone tires and Ford explorers? Not fun my brother. NJ.
Click to expand...
Actually since replacing my pads, it's very difficult spinning the front tire. There is no smooth glide.
 
(Scooter @ May 29 2005 said:
I've heard that if the tread pattern of the back tire "conflicts" with the tread of the front, it will cause the death wobble.  It happened to a friend on is old Concours.

Is your new back tire a different kind from the front?

Just a thought.
Click to expand...
Nope back tire is the same as the front (Avon Avaro). The dealer told me I lost one of my weights, so they replaced it. The problem persisted so they changed the tire again all together.
 
(Lloyd @ May 30 2005 said:
Did the dealer test ride your bike? Did they drop it? Wobble could be from alot of things. How many miles on the bike? Do you do alot of wheelies? This could contibute to bad bearings. We need more info..
Click to expand...
Of course dealer test rode and said "I don't feel anything" of course being it was Friday afternoon of Memorial Day Weekend.

Bike has ~26,000 miles

No wheelies (none significant anyway)
 
Did you check the alignement of the rear tire? Measure from the swingarm pivot to the rear axle. Make sure it is the same on both sides?
 
Lloyd - I'll be having the bearings checked next week
rosco15 - I would have thought alignment would have been fixed by the dealer, but I know that's no guarantee either.
 
(BigDawg_03Busa @ May 29 2005 said:
So Saturday I replace my front brake pads....problem better (so good in fact I actually thought it was solved).
Click to expand...
something you did here made it better.... for a while..


1) check and make sure the calipers are not compressing the front brake pads..

2) you also mentioned the front wheel not spinning freely.... if one of the calipers is locked-up, this would be your biggest problem. If the brake pads are not slowin it down, loosen the front axle some and see if it loosens up the wheel.

..............
rock.gif
 
Thanks fellas, took it to the dealer today and the verdict.....duh duh duh ddddduuuuuhhh bad bearings!!! Figured with 26k miles. Well another $80 in ole Silver, but is she worth it, you betcha. We'll see when I get off work how things are.
 
well bearings were shot and when I say shot, they looked like they were shot with 12-gauge. As for ole Silver, no lie I feel like I gained an extra 10hp. She comes up in 2nd almost effortlessly now. Could be my imagination however, like your car feeling like it runs smoother after you wash it
laugh.gif
 
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