Front end wobble

[BigFJR]

I like to have a relatively light touch on the grips. Most noticeably at between 40 and 50 mph, the bars begin to oscillate increasingly till I tighten up. It's not noticeable with "standard" grip pressure, just when I lighten up to almost nothing.

I don't see any marks where the wheel may have lost balance weights. The tire doesn't show abnormal wear that I can see. I have not lifted the front end to look for play in the steering head.

Anyone that's had something like this before, please let me know.

Thanks.

 

[SLK50]

Might be time for a new front tire even if there's some tread depth left.

 

[Patriot]

I found a bad front wheel bearing...crunchy sound as I spin and shake on the front wheel

even a tiny bit of a click side to side

<sigh>

 

[Bustanut joker]

Don't see any marks where I might have lost a wheel weight ... Might be a good place to start.

Pretty sure it ain't the bearings as this would happen all across the rpm range of the spinning wheel.

Might even be harmonics.

I read somewhere where all wheels shimmy at certain points. I know every bike I've owned has displayed this trait, some worse than others.

 

[Sully1300]

I like to have a relatively light touch on the grips. Most noticeably at between 40 and 50 mph, the bars begin to oscillate increasingly till I tighten up. It's not noticeable with "standard" grip pressure, just when I lighten up to almost nothing.

I don't see any marks where the wheel may have lost balance weights. The tire doesn't show abnormal wear that I can see. I have not lifted the front end to look for play in the steering head.

Anyone that's had something like this before, please let me know.

Thanks.

I had something similar this past summer that just started out of the blue. I tried checking air pressure then went riding - no change. I tried re-torquing head baring then went riding - no change. I tried loosening all the fork pinch bolts and re-tightening then went riding - again no change. Finally I reluctantly changed the front tire when I didn't think it was even close to being needed because it only had about 1500 miles on it, then went riding - fixed it! Frustrating but sometimes tires (even same brand) aren't all created equal.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Typical speed for the wobble to begin, most prevalent coasting down on decel.

What tire you running and how many miles? I had one brand new tire that would balance perfectly, but shook the bars all the way to 60 mph. Replaced it under warranty and the problem went away.

Good luck with the diagnosis!

--G

 

[joebiodiesel]

In my experience, every time my bike had a wobble with no hands on the bars, a new tire fixed it.

 

[wfooshee]

Tire. No question. Deal with it if you don't want to replace the tire.

On a new tire, the rolling center is pretty much perfect. As the tire wears, that centerline wears a little bit to one side or the other, and when you let go, it has the effect of steering the tire, one way and then the other, as the centerline on the road moves from side to side of the bike's actual center. For most of us, the perfect storm of wobble is between 40 and 50 mph, probably a harmonic thing with the mass of the forks and bars.

That's my theory, and I'm sticking to it until somebody with important-sounding letters after their name says otherwise! :lol:

 

[CAJW]

Tire. No question. Deal with it if you don't want to replace the tire.

On a new tire, the rolling center is pretty much perfect. As the tire wears, that centerline wears a little bit to one side or the other, and when you let go, it has the effect of steering the tire, one way and then the other, as the centerline on the road moves from side to side of the bike's actual center. For most of us, the perfect storm of wobble is between 40 and 50 mph, probably a harmonic thing with the mass of the forks and bars.

That's my theory, and I'm sticking to it until somebody with important-sounding letters after their name says otherwise! :lol:

Garounteed this is the problem. You'll get the money back you paid for this advice if it isn't but, dollars to donuts, it's the tire.

 

[BigFJR]

Thanks all! Never had an issue with any bike before. Could be that riding the Duc the past ten years has changed my riding habits some.

The FJR has Dunlop Sportmax fore and aft. Have only had the bike a couple of months but now after taking a closer look at the tire, I will not feel bad about replacing it. Sooooo, now to read some of the endless "Best tire" threads.....

Gracias!

 

[gumba]

This topic has been around for as long as the Forum. I've been with the alignment side. A new tire might fix the the 45 mph head shake, but a misaligned front end will cause it reappear sooner then need be. I'm getting 10-11k out of front tires now. They look and feel like ****, but no 45mph h.s.. Before this emphasis on alignment I was getting the shakes on some new tires. If you don't put some thought into alignment you will have the shakes forever!

 

[garyahouse]

Typical speed for the wobble to begin, most prevalent coasting down on decel.

What tire you running and how many miles? I had one brand new tire that would balance perfectly, but shook the bars all the way to 60 mph. Replaced it under warranty and the problem went away.

Good luck with the diagnosis!

--G

--G,

Replaced it under warranty? What's that? I asked the dealer who installed my wobbler, and he CLAIMS that the tire factories don't warrant their tires for the "wobbles." All the while he was suspiciously eying my Exalto CT on the back. I explained that the new PR2 that I had installed the same time as the new CT... 14k miles ago... didn't wobble. The wobbling from 35-45 began the moment the new PR3 was installed. "Sorry" was all he had to say.

Reading the rest of the entries, I'd like to add that this DID NOT happen to my PR3 as a result of tire wear. It began on day one.

Still wobbling,

Gary

darksider #44

 

[Bounce]

Many fully faired (often amongst the heavier) bikes have a wobble at around that speed. I think it's a combination of weight (shift) and rake/trail. You can moderate it with the things mentioned but never totally get rid of it.

Try what was mentioned. Do it in order of cost to you.

Tire PSI (don't go by the OEM recommendations, it's been proven to be about grip and not tread longevity, etc.).

Check both sides of the fork suspension (they often get set differently for some reason).

Retorque the front hub using the recommended steps here in this forum.

Check and properly set the steering head bearing (clean, lube, and torque like discussed here).

While you're at it, properly set up both the front and rear suspension since bad mojo in the back can affect the front too.

Swapping tires every 500 miles isn't in my budget just so I can let go of the handle bars. Instead, I keep at least 1 hand on all the time. It makes this whole thing a non-issue. In spite of that, doing the above has benefits for overall handling.

 

[Fontanaman]

My 2009 FJR with just under 30k miles started doing that this summer. I checked the tires and adjusted the front forks and it still did it. I had not ever service to forks so I did and that fixed it. I suspect it was a front fork bushings - they where toast as was the rest of the suspension.

Truth be told I had a GP Suspension installed and a Penske shock. Regardless the handlebar shake at 45-65 stopped.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Typical speed for the wobble to begin, most prevalent coasting down on decel.

What tire you running and how many miles? I had one brand new tire that would balance perfectly, but shook the bars all the way to 60 mph. Replaced it under warranty and the problem went away.

Good luck with the diagnosis!

--G

--G,

Replaced it under warranty? What's that? I asked the dealer who installed my wobbler, and he CLAIMS that the tire factories don't warrant their tires for the "wobbles." All the while he was suspiciously eying my Exalto CT on the back. I explained that the new PR2 that I had installed the same time as the new CT... 14k miles ago... didn't wobble. The wobbling from 35-45 began the moment the new PR3 was installed. "Sorry" was all he had to say.

Reading the rest of the entries, I'd like to add that this DID NOT happen to my PR3 as a result of tire wear. It began on day one.

Still wobbling,

Gary

darksider #44

Gary -- One word...Avon. I purchased a set of Avons from a reputable local dealer and a buddy and I mounted and balanced the set. I felt the front tire wobble at less than 10 mph before I even left the driveway. We rechecked the balance, no change. Broke the beads and rotated the tire 180, rebalanced, still no change.

I contacted Avon by phone and politely explained the problem I was having and asked for their help. After documenting via email what we did (mount, balance then dismount, rotate and balance) I had a new front tire in two days. No wobbling with that one.

Contact Michelin directly and see if they will help. You might be surprised.

--G

 

[Chiefblueman]

My experience is similar to Bounce and Fontanaman. I have PR2's with about 9k mi. on them. The front is visibly cupped and I had a wobble decelerating from 50mph or so, hands off bars or light one hand grip. I rebuilt the forks, installed AK20's, 1.0 fork springs, replaced shock with Penske 8983. Settings for reb and comp per Lee @ Traxxion Dynamics. I also serviced and adjusted steering head bearings. Rode the bike about 100 mi and readjusted the steering head bearings. No tire change. Now on the exact stretch of road where I first encountered the wobble the bike is rock solid decelerating from 60+ mph, hands off bars. I don't know if any one thing corrected this or a combination of things, but it's not necessarily the tire. Aa was said, a new tire may mask the wobble for a while if there are other issues. I'd definitely be looking at head bearings and fork issues.

 

[SLK50]

Right train, wrong track. Adjusting stem bearings or suspension settings

will mask problems created by the tires.

 

[BigFJR]

So..... new set of P2's and it's totally resolved. Dead solid on decel at all speeds. Much thanks for all the input.

 

[odot]

Good you got it solved....but, they'll probably leak......

jes' sayin'