Repacking steering and swingarm bearings

[aspen60]

Hey, just got done with my 16000 mile oil change and I noticed in the manual it said to repack the steering and swingarm bearings. My question is is this somthing I I can do myself? The bike has yet to go to the dealer for anything, I've done all the oil changes and tire changes myself. even took the tires off the wheels and reinstalled on my own, Iv'e had the bike up on the jack and done the steering handle bar swing, can't feel any thing loose. It acts like its supposed to. I did notice today when i got off the Interstate and was braking pretty hard I got a slight vibration in the front wheel. Really don't want to take it to the dealer and leave it for two weeks like they want,(or spend way more money than I have to fix it)

[V7Goose]

I'd bet a case of beer that your steering head bearings are loose. This is VERY common within 10,000 miles of new on these bikes, and the chattering you feel on front braking is a prime indicator, especially if the road surface was a little rough right there.

 

The official procedure to adjust those bearings is a LOT of work, but there is a shortcut that will let you take care of it in about 10 minutes. See the tech library for the shortcut to sneak under the steering head cover and tap the ring nuts with a screwdriver to tighten them up. Once done, I have not had a problem with them becoming loose again very soon. DO keep them adjusted correctly or you will be forced to tear it down to replace the bearings much sooner than you would like!

 

I cannot give you any personal advice or pointers on the swing arm bearings, as I have not yet tried to check those on my bike (but they are WAY over due at 80,000 miles). Maybe I'll get around to them soon . . .

Goose

[aspen60]

Thanks Goose, i'll give the little nut under the bars a little nudge and see if that helps. Guess I won't worry about the swingarm bearings just yet. Thanks again.

[BuddyRich]

The swing arm bearings are a real pain. You have to take the swing arm off according to the manual. Which I did. I seem to remember it being a several hour job. They were in good shape once I got to them though.

[V7Goose]

Thanks Goose, i'll give the little nut under the bars a little nudge and see if that helps. Guess I won't worry about the swingarm bearings just yet. Thanks again.

The cap nut under the bars will do nothing to adjust the bearings - at most it simply pushes the steering head cover down on top of the ring nuts to act as a lock. Read the tech library to see how to do this.

Goose

[Bummer]

The swing arm bearings aren't as bad as the book makes it sound.

 

Pick the bike up and pull the wheel. I let it set on my Carbon One stand. This is one of the times those legs come in real handy.

 

Remove the pumpkin with drive shaft. The speed sensor's wire just pulls out of its hooked keepers, then slips back in when you're done. I loosened the bolts on the brake line clamps and left the clamps in place. The brake line doesn't have to be removed from the bike, just disconnected from the swing arm. The shock has to come out, but the rest can just dangle.

 

The chrome caps have to come off of the ends where the swing arm bolts live. To gain adequate access you need to unbolt the exhaust pipe Y from the head, loosen the bolts that connect it to the front pipe, and swing it out. I didn't remove mine, but it wouldn't have been much more work. Both sides must be done. Be sure to take the battery area side covers off to make this easier.

 

The left side bolt, and the nut on the right, are under 72 lb/ft torque. I used an impact to get them off, mostly because I have one. 1 3/16" socket, I believe. Pull the bolts and the swing arm comes out to the rear. It takes a bit of diagonal jostling to get it out, then back in. Nothing particularly severe.

 

I popped the seals out with a screwdriver. It caused a little distortion to the flat outer surface of the seal, but didn't distort the part that actually seals on the metal sleeves. A little tap with a ball peen when putting them back in flattened the slight bump back out. I've done it twice with the same seals. I'll probably replace them next time, mostly just because.

 

The bearings are caged rollers and pop right out. Clean 'em up and re-grease. I used way too much Moly60. (I always use plenty - it's not really that expensive and I don't mind using most of a tube on the combined headset/swingarm job.) Make sure to press grease into the gaps at the ends of the bearings so it'll be inside, not just on the surface.

 

When you put it all back together, pull the rubber boot off of the engine, where it stayed, and put it on the swing arm. It's much easier to put the boot on the engine with the swing arm on, than it is to get it onto the swing arm once it's in place.

 

Torque the left side bolt first. Pay special attention to the right side bolt/nut combo. Do NOT put the nut on until you have the bolt torqued. It uses an allen and only takes around 5.5 lb/ft of torque. The nut goes on and is torqued last.

 

Be sure to lube the u-joint and drive shaft spline. Pop the shaft out of the pumpkin and lube that end too. Give the pumpkin to wheel splines a good wipe and some fresh lube too. If it's been a while, pull the center of the wheel and lube the pins too.

 

Takes most of a day, working alone.

 

Oh, and when you're trying to tighten the headset bearings, don't forget to loosen the allen bolts that clamp the top of the tree to the fork tubes. The nuts won't actually tighten unless you do. I have an allen wrench I cut off short, just for this. That way I don't have to move the fairing.

[Seaking]

I just got home after a 7,400 mile road trip through the USA.. Stopped at a few spots and had my neck bearings looked at and adjusted by a friend in Dallas (huge improvement, thanks Goose!) and had two dealers in Maine look at them also while up there searching for a new front tire.. Both dealership mechanics had the same opinion about how this quick and easy fix should be done as they know it's something people do to tide them over until they can afford the big fix.. both said the fork pinch bolts at the top should also be loosened at the same time as the top tree nut before turning the two lock nuts.. Whether this is true or make sense I do not honestly know..

 

However, one shop, my fun shop who seem to be happy to help me with my warranty work (I'm Canadian with a US bike) offered me a deal I couldn't refuse.. If you're going to go through all that work to 're-pack' the bearings, why not just replace them? Yes, it's extra coins for new bearings but they should last much longer, especially if the neck has been as loose as my used bike has been.. and tightened more than once.. For me this is basically a 'better safe than sorry' approach..

 

Though bad bearings can be done under warranty work, the unfortunate part is that you won't be able to tell if it's going to be 'warranty' until you pull the bearings to look at them.. So they quoted me a super good price for the job just in case it can't be done as warranty.. For me this works as it will give me the peace of mind of finally knowing that my neck bearings are finally safe and proper and I have the high probability that this will be warranty in the end anyway.. Gotta love it.. This shop has been super tops for me..

 

If only the two shops in MY city were half as competent or helpful, wow.. Last two times I took my bike in for any work, I ended up with missing parts and hardware by the time I got home and discovered un-torqued nuts and bolts.. not to mention non-functions systems on the bike.. shoddy work.. sigh.

 

So another road trip into the USA for me.. =)

[wizard]

I never understood why some would go to all of the work involved to repack the neck bearings every couple thousand miles. I will tighten the front end when it needs it, and when they need replacing, then I'll I will go through all the work involved to get to em. It makes for more riding time, but, then again, I live in California.

[Seaking]

I never understood why some would go to all of the work involved to repack the neck bearings every couple thousand miles. I will tighten the front end when it needs it, and when they need replacing, then I'll I will go through all the work involved to get to em. It makes for more riding time, but, then again, I live in California.

 

I wasn't sure if you were bragging or complaining there for a moment... lol

[wizard]

You gotta understand,,, letting people know that you live in California is embarrassing, but at the same time, it's really nice to be able to ride all year long...

[Seaking]

You gotta understand,,, letting people know that you live in California is embarrassing, but at the same time, it's really nice to be able to ride all year long...

 

I hear ya.. we left here over two weeks ago it was 40'f and wet.. then 2 days later it was sooo hot down in South Carolina on our way to Key West and Dallas.. and we're back and it's again in the 40's and wet again.. and rain fog wet.

 

Year round riding huh? I need to find a cost effective way to get my bike past the snow belt to get some of that year round riding lol