Front End Maintenance for KrZy8

Front End Maintenance for KrZy8

Bearings, fork oil, brake pads and more

Doing some front end work on an 06 with approx 70k and 3+ years on the clock.

Planned maintenance includes:

* Replace upper triple tree with Heli

* Replace steering head ball bearings and races with Timken rollers

* Replace brake pads

* Replace fork oil

* Reroute wiring - gps, xm radio, cc, etc

* Whatever else I think of..

Some of you have already been there, done that.

For others, you might enjoy the photo essay and see parts of your Feejer you've not yet seen... :lol:

My working environment. Not the best, crowded, hand tools only, but I got Elvis on the TV..









Getting started, removal of GPS mount.The ram mount has been deformed by constant pressure, it's more than 3mm out of round.



Cutting the cable stays. I used a Dremel.



Removing the tank. Some use fancy wood blocks, some use ropes, I use Napa oil filter for a Dodge truck!





Still pretty clean under there, for my bike.



I had this wad of adhesive backed foil to protect the Audiovox CC from excessive heat generated by the water pipe. It didn't last too well.



The blob you see is actually a butterfly, poor guy



Tire and fender removed, time to block the headers with wood cribbing in order to get the floor jack outta the way.



View from bottom up -





Removing upper triple clamp nuts and key ignition -



My upper nut was loose, hand tight...



Retaining washer - took a pix so I remember to put it back in place..



A bakery appliance works well to keep hardware organized.



More upper clamp and ignition switch pix. My switch had been recalled and replaced. I requested the tech to NOT shear the security bolts, making removal a real breeze.







This dirt after less than a year; I had a deer strike, new lower clamp, stem, and bearings at that time.



Removing loose top nut, no tools required.



Seating OldRoy's custom made steering head nut tool into the flanges of the nut. Never use a screwdriver to tighten your nuts unless of course you're in the middle of a long road trip and have no choice.



Removing hardware from the lower clamp. This was a PITA, it should be real fun come reassembly time..









Success is mine!







Differences between the Heli and stock clamp. The Heli is much heavier than stock, no releif area on the back side like the OEM piece.





As she sits tonight. Tommorrow will start on fork oil change and pad replacement.



As I review the pix/text before posting, I see the radiator is impacted. What's the best way to clean it without removing the damn thing?

Great write-up. Even I could understand it (it's the pictures, you know ).

QUOTE (dcarver @ Dec 13 2009, 05:56 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

......What's the best way to clean it without removing the damn thing?

...

High pressure water hose. (Don't get it neer dem nuw seels. Or even the old ones..)

[edit] Pictures from my "Playing Santa" post:

Before . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . After



(Click on image for larger view)

woohoo excellent docu... :yahoo:

are you thinking of replacing the wimpy tweeters while you have all the stuff off the bike?

The way your bike is farkled i'd think some Magnum Blasters would be in order.

Alfred

You would have more room to work if you ship that ratty old BMW up here for me to babysit for you. At some point I will have another Airhead beemer.

Fantastic Instruction Maintenance Article, dcarver! FJRay beat me to the punch on your /2, it should reside in Chandler, AZ.

dcarver,

Thanks for sharing this process with us...what a job. It is surprising how much dirt you picked up after you redone the front end. I like your shop setup.

All the Best in getting KrZy8 back to running order.

FJRay said:

You would have more room to work if you ship that ratty old BMW up here for me to babysit for you. At some point I will have another Airhead beemer.

Click to expand...

Do you have spare time? Is it winter up there yet? Does your shop have heat? Hmm, maybe a PM is in order...

Upper and lower steering head races out. Installing the lower race looks like it's going to be difficult.

Great photo essay. Very much appreciated. Some comments:

Radiator - beware high pressure water cleaners, and use with caution. Easy to flatten the fins if the pressure is too high, but if you get it right, +1. It's slow, but an appropriate flat-bladed screwdriver is useful for straighteneing some fin flattening.

Horns - swap those out now while you have the workspace cleared. You may only use them once a year, but when you do you want people to take real notice.

I wouldn't use that can of hydraulic fluid (in your first piccie, on the rack) when doing the brakes. It looks like it's been opened

As I said, thanks again

Day 2

Goals:

*Remove ball bearing steering head races

*Install roller bearing races

*Install new brake pads

*Install speed bleeders

Removing steering head races..

Ball bearing (OEM) race -

Lower

]

Upper



The whammy-dyne tool I bought which proved to be worthless, I could not get the 'fingers' to hit the race. Oh well...



Using heat to expand the hole diameter. Be careful where you place the flame. I had a fire extinguisher at the ready..



This is the upper race, and exactly what you do NOT want to do.. I've driven it out crooked, and now it's bound up. Applied more heat, noted where I needed to move the race, then back on the floor again with nothing but sophisticated tools at the ready..



Son of a gun, I win! The lower race was a piece of cake. The upper race was a PITA to remove. You are on your back, can't see squat, brake lines and other paraphernalia are in the way. I used bungee cords to move the lines outta the way, took several deep breaths...



The new bearings - roller, at bottom. Sure hope all this effort is worth it..



Timken part number, for future reference..



Now the game is to install the new roller races. First clean everything up. Then I put the races in the freezer for 30 minutes to contract the diameter. Heat will be applied to the frame to make it expand. Hopefully it will go together easy.

I don't have proper tools, so I jury rig it. I find that a 1.5" socket is almost the perfect size to drive the race in. But I don't want to bugger up my nice 1/2" drive set so I use a lead mallet to horrifyingly hit my drive set with.



Fire and Ice. I kept the races on 'chill' mode while I heated the frame.



I came up with this brilliant idea - to save the socket, use the old ball bearing race.



But how to secure it? Welding is out of the question - I have little skills and only Oxy-Act. So tape it is! :rofl:



What's wrong with this setup?



Yep, the race is upside down. doh!

Well, none of this nonsense worked. The 1/2" drive extension and socket were to heavy to manipulate to get the correct 'seat' on the race to drive it in squarely. So resorted to the old try and true.

To a man with a hammer, the entire world looks like a nail... get my 'drift'? :lol:

BTW, this brass drift is the small end of a piston from a big Caterpillar. I picked it up from the desert floor near Pearblossom Ca back around 1973...



I used an inspection mirror to see if the race was fully seated on the side I couldn't eyeball. It wasn't, I was damn glad I got my phat ass off the ground to fetch the mirror to look. This is how it should look.



Pix of my big brass drift.



The next step - remove the lower ball bearing race. I used Dremel tool to cut into race, hoping I could weaken it enough to use a punch to split it. I did NOT want to bugger up the steering stem or lower clamp, just 'cause. I know it doesn't matter, but jeesh..





I beat on this thing using a drift punch, and it simply wasn't splitting. I don't know, it seems like it should have worked, but being a rookie and all I did not want to use excessive force then end up buying a new lower clamp and stem.

So, plan B.

I cut a 'horizontal' groove using the Dremel, then used a drift punch to slide it up, and it worked! :yahoo:



Now then, about the lower seal; I'm not sure it will work with the new roller bearing. I posted a new thread asking others for help.. Here is the OEM configuration, the roller bearing is taller, I just don't think it will work.





Of to Brake-Pad land we go..

Removing the pad securing pin -



Yeah, they are due for new ones..



For the pins, I clean them up using steel wool and Brakleen. After they are nice and smooth, I coat them with a Moly dry lube that does not attract dust or dirt. This keeps the pads moving freely, helping to reduce drag, even after running in adverse conditions (like the 6 miles of dirt roads I ride everyday).





The newly installed pads..



Well, getting tired now, the back is starting to squawk..

But the Speed Bleeders are calling my name, so here we go..



They are pretty simple to install, just remove the stock bleeders, be sure to have a rag handy as it will leak a bit of fluid, clean up the threads a touch, then install the new Speed Bleeders. Oh, of course, if you're smart, you'll do this before installing new brake pads, just sayin'... :****:



OH, and don't loose the rubber booty like I did. When I discovered I'd lost the booty, it was time to quit. I've made good progress, tomorrow is a work day and I have other chores to attend to!



I hope this helps other folks later on, if not, oh well, I've had fun doing this.

TBC -

:****:

Hugs n Kisses Tim Bates, aka TwoWheelNut, today is your birthday!

PIAA dual tone horns are my favs. That there looks like to big a job for my delicate hands. I'll have to talk someone else into helping. But I will need to know which truck filter to buy though :lol: . I don't even have a truck, but I gotta do it just like the master.

doctorj

Don -

Ambitious project with your limited shop resources! Just a quick note on your removal of the lower bearing race.

> You Wrote; "The next step - remove the lower ball bearing race. I used Dremel tool to cut into race, hoping I could weaken it enough to use a punch to split it. I did NOT want to bugger up the steering stem or lower clamp, just 'cause. I know it doesn't matter, but jeesh.."

"If" you had had an arc welder, putting a bead on the side of that race would expand it enough, so it would have just fallen off. HTH

Those new Galfers look very pretty!

Khunajawdge said:

> You Wrote; "The next step - remove the lower ball bearing race. I used Dremel tool to cut into race, hoping I could weaken it enough to use a punch to split it. I did NOT want to bugger up the steering stem or lower clamp, just 'cause. I know it doesn't matter, but jeesh.."
"If" you had had an arc welder, putting a bead on the side of that race would expand it enough, so it would have just fallen off. HTH

Click to expand...

I've heard of the technique before, but not from a reliable source. So that really DOES work? I gotta try it someday. LOL, right after I get real power and a TIG welder.. :lol: Thanks for the words of encouragement. So far, so good!

It has worked for me numerous times on getting my mower bearings off/replaced underneath the finish mower deck.

Excellent documentation Don!!! :yahoo:

Thanks for the post, I've bookmarked it.

So then, finally back in the shop to finish the job..

I had bought some Timken bearings, but they didn't come with any dust seals. Went to local bearing house, they are not made. The stock lower rubber seal would not be a clean fit. So I bought an All-Balls kit that had both upper and lower seals.

All-Balls part number.



All-Balls contents



All-Balls stamped part numbers





Timken and All-Balls comparison. Long of short, I think the Timkens are better, they have visually better construction, with especially in the inner bearing faces. Take a look and decide for yourself.







The next step - install Timken's on steering head. I fashioned a section of PVC pipe that was just the exact correct diameter needed, cut it flush on one end, put a coupler on the other end to bang on, and the entire cost was $0.00! Be sure to clean the inside of the PVC out first though.. :lol:



It took some time, and careful persuasion, but eventually I won. Obviously, a press would be nice right about now, but I did get it seated. The piece on top of the new roller bearing is from the old roller bearing, I used it to strike against.



New top bearing, all greased and ready for action.



Here is the upper All-Balls dust cap, the bottom was similar.



Off to the Fork Land..

Here's my old oil, after about 20k, only. Yuuck.



OK, up for discussion. I did NOT want to completely disassemble the front forks this time. So I left them intact, removed the caps, turned them upside down, let them drain for several hours (overnight, actually), and carefully measured the quantity using a Ratio-Rite cup. Both legs were identical in oil volume.

Then, I used diesel fuel to flush the old oil out, get all the aluminum out of the valve stacks (my goal at least). It took two good flushes, including manipulating the dampener rod, and giving the tubes the old twist n' shout return while turning up and downside. After two flushes, the diesel came out really really clean. My thinking is that since diesel is a light oil with high cleaning ability, it would be the perfect, cheapest fluid to use for flushing. What say you?

Reassembly, fresh new wt oil, same volume as removed, then work the damping tube and inner and outer assemblies..



Remember the fork dust cap!



..and the rod!



Button it all up, the top cap threads all the way down, then tighten the jam nut.



After that, its normal stuff you already know.

The hardest part for me was reassembling all the crap that attaches to the lower tree. There's a stupid plastic mud guard that gets in the way, the fairing is in the way, and I have big arthritic hands. It seriously took me over 2 hours to get the hydraulic brake lines junction block and all that crap reattached. Using a forehead mounted flashlight helped illuminate it, but then I couldn't see shit w/o my glasses on, which would immediately steam up, given it was



40 fricking degrees in the shop. I eventually ended up cutting a slice in the plastic mud guard and removing it from the hydraulic lines to get the junction block reinstalled then put the plastic guard back in place.



Well, that's it. She's back together, and test rode just fine, so now I'm off to work on the ass-end.

Good Day, eh?

I admire your skills and contribution to the forum. It was a good read. Mine is in the shop for similar service -- I don't have your guts. Nice to know what they are doing to my girl though. :good:

I'm prowling for info on fork rebuild. The photos were of great help for a visual, thanks (to all) for taking the time to do a write up. Need more info on fork rebuild that includes inner/outer bushings and any related "special tooling".

Regarding the seals for the steering bearings, is there a supplier other then All-Balls? Seems silly to buy their bearing package just for the seals, heh.