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Message: <blockquote data-quote="RossKean" data-source="post: 1450432" data-attributes="member: 19880">I agree that a steering head bearing that is too loose can be a problem with respect to stability - not to mention that the bearings can be more easily damaged by rough roads hammering the bearings into the races.Not on my FJR but on my new-to-me 2017 BMW F700GS, the stock tapered steering head bearing was tightened too much by the original owner.  It didn't feel especially tight when riding but it felt like I was riding on the top of a hump in the middle of the road and the bike kept falling off to one side or the other.  Not dangerously extreme but there was a feeling that something wasn't right and more than an artifact of it being a very different motorcycle than my FJR..  With the bearing too tight, the wheel stayed where it was pointed instead of naturally returning to center.  This meant that I was constantly correcting when riding at low speed.  Too tight is as bad as too loose.  Once I set it at the correct torque, it felt like a new bike.</blockquote>