bike feels wiggly... need help

[dozer520]

guys, i've been gleaning info off of alot of you trying to find answer to my handling woes... read about how tires help and so on. i keep trying but i'm not there yet.

 

when i cross an uneven road surface the bike feels wiggly. i feel it basically at all speeds. its like the bike is hinged in the middle. i have the super fork brace on and a new shinko tour master up front, i'll be putting a new rear shinko on this week. maybe that will help. i've tried all tire pressures and it helps a touch but not enough. i'm convinced something is wrong with the front forks..i've looked for cracks in the frame and don't see any. i've put over 2k miles on the bike and love it but this wiggle is killing me and if i could get this resolved then the bike would be perfect.

 

i know the bike went down at some point. the tell tale highway bar crack in the plastic elbow, the crack in the right fairing and so on. i've noticed the handle bars are cocked to the left a touch and it is likely because of bike going down, i noticed that when i removed the front tire that i thought the right front fork was twisted a touch thus making the bolt hard to remove and reinstall since the alignment was off a bit. i also hear some clunking or some kind of looseness in the fork tubes when i bounce the front end gently when its on the rear stand, but when i grab and twist everything it all feels solid.

 

if i have to put a whole new front end on there, i will. i can't trust the way this thing feels although it does feel pretty good in the curves, but to switch lanes is like gambling with your life.

 

i don't know if anybody is close to me that can coach me or give me some counsel or if there is a tech day that i can get some experts to take a look. any suggestions??

[dynodon]

have you checked the bolts on the triple tree? REbuilt the forks and/or checked/changed the oil? Checked the steering head bearing tightness?

 

Also, inspect the rear suspension, these have been known to dry out and the bearings can cause some handling problems.

 

Seems like you need to go through it from one end to the other and do a full inspection/rebuild/lube etc.

[Rosie1965]

I would definitely get that new rear tire on before digging too deep. Tires will do funny things.

[dingy]

...i have the super fork brace on...

 

...i noticed that when i removed the front tire that i thought the right front fork was twisted a touch thus making the bolt hard to remove and reinstall since the alignment was off a bit...

 

The 2 statements you made shown above may be related, but probably not the source of your handling concerns. Next time, if there is one, when you pull the front axle out, loosen the 4 cap screws holding the fork brace on. Then insert axle & tighten. Then retighten the fork brace cap screws. There is enough play in the fork brace to cause the mis-alignment issue with the axle.

 

If you have a car floor jack, I would suggest you raise the front wheel off the ground & see if you can feel any play in the front end. Do this by putting bike on center stand then place a board thet will fit between the front headers on the jack and slowly raise it up till the rear tire just touches. Be careful here, if you go to far the bike can tip over. With the rear tire just touching the bike should be fairly stable so you can jostle the front end around. One way to see if steering head bearings are loose is to let bounce against the stop and see iff it rebounds much, it shouldn't. But it also should go over to stop freely. It's a fine line between tight & loose.

 

While I am at it, I do sell a wrench to aid in tightening the bearings to where they should be. Shamless plug.

 

http://www.venturerider.org/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=3327&title=steering-head-bearing-ring-nut-wrench&cat=7

 

Gary

 

[bkuhr]

Pic looks weird with truck on the back seat, is this upsetting balance?

Also agree replace rear tire before getting carried away

[Krusher]

I had the same feeling when I first got mine, and found that the steering head bearings were too tight. Every groove of the pavement sent her in a new direction, and you had to hold on to the bars for dear life. Using the method described by Dingy above, I loosened it a bit and it made a world of difference. That, in addition to 2 new dunlops, and progressive fork springs made her a sweet riding beast. She will run straight for miles without touching the bars. (Not that I would ever recommend or condone that type of behavior.)

[GaryZ]

I would definitely get that new rear tire on before digging too deep. Tires will do funny things.

 

 

I had an Elite II on the front and rear when I bought my VR. They had good tread and I just rode it. However, each time I would change lanes on the interstate (there is a joint between lanes) the bike would do a jump/jerk that was frankly frightening.

Because of a previous experience I suspected the tires. I replaced the rear first and the problem was gone. I figure the tires were old enough that they were getting hard.

[RedRider]

+1 on double checking the fork brace. Any misalignment in a fork brace will cause problems. As a test, take it off and see how it does. While it won't be as stable in turns without the brace, it should handle just fine on the straights. At least this will tell you where to look.

 

RR

[FuzzyRSTD]

I would definitely get that new rear tire on before digging too deep. Tires will do funny things.

 

I agree 100% and would recommend Avon Venoms for your bike. I have them and love the feel and handling, Bigg Difference.

 

Fuzzy

[SilvrT]

I would definitely get that new rear tire on before digging too deep. Tires will do funny things.

 

As others have stated, a worn rear tire will make the scoot wiggle all over. If, after replacing the tire, the wiggling is still happening, it's probably either front end bearings or swing arm bushings or fork brace/fork mis-alignment.

 

Change the tire first!

 

[bongobobny]

I see by your profile it's an '83. Carefuly check the frame at the rear shock for cracks. This is a known problem for that year only. They changed the design in '84...

[dozer520]

 

I had an Elite II on the front and rear when I bought my VR. They had good tread and I just rode it. However, each time I would change lanes on the interstate (there is a joint between lanes) the bike would do a jump/jerk that was frankly frightening.

Because of a previous experience I suspected the tires. I replaced the rear first and the problem was gone. I figure the tires were old enough that they were getting hard.

 

what you described with the lane change is dead on! i can run 80- 90mph on a staight flat road and feel pretty good, trying to pass a tractor trailor at 75-80mph is like scaring the bejesus out of me. bike snakes and feels horrible. i can even throw the bike in the curves at 5-60mph and feel pretty good, but i can't handle a gentle sweeper at 75-80... gets squirelly then. the bike came with a 130 rear tire which may not be helping at all. new tire is on its way, i'll change it and report back. the back tire is close to smooth in the middle but when you get out towards where you ride in a curve its cupped pretty good, worn pretty uneven on the outer areas.

 

i bought dingy's wrench and greased the kneck bearings and torqued them when i first got the bike. i went through the whole overtighten process and the bike tracked left and right like 2-3' down the road. after messing that up i loosened it up and i believe i have it right, jacked the front end up and the kneck seems and feels right to me, i retightened a half turn and the other day and that made it too tight again so i backed it off a bit and seems good. does anyone actually use the manual spec for the kneck as its crazy light??? or do you guys go by feel?

 

i've looked for cracks down by the shock, don't see any. i've torqued the frame bolts on the right side. i've drained fork oil and i have the progressive springs that came with the bike. i'm running 1" spacers and 10wt oil 5.5" down with front forks collapsed.

 

i checked all the bolts in the triple tree and they are tight, i don't feel any bearing play in the front or rear. i tightened the swing arm bolt. i yanked on the back end side to side and don't feel any slop. the front feels solid when i jcak the front up and pull side to side and up/down.

 

the only thing that seems off is when i put the bike on the rear stand and put my hands on the fork tubes at the seals and lift the bike up and bounce it slightly it feels like something is a bit loose inside the fork, i hear a noise coming from inside the tube when i bounce it slightly. maybe i can get some pics or a video of it. and how i think the triple tree is turned slighly to the left when i ride down the rode.

 

oh and the trunk was a circus trick that didn't make it more than 50 miles. too much turbulance on the back of my head.

[KIC]

One thing you should check is on the right side of the lower triple tree. ( Left side from the front looking back) There are the two rubber spacers. If you can get your fingers down there, see if the spacers are equally tight up against the lower triple tree.

 

I found when putting my forks back in, that there is a wiring section with a connection that fits up into a "groove like area next to the neck tube. If that isn't perfect, My lowers didn't "seat" right and firm, and wasn't cinching the rubber spacer tight. The right side was tight the left side was slightly loose and could spin. It took a few seconds to determine why.

 

That would have made some type of glitch in the handling I am sure. I only found that by accident when I ran my fingers down there to make sure things were clear. If I would have tightened the upper bolts, the forks,triple tree would have been kinked. Once I moved it to where it was supposed to be, it cinched right up.

 

Just a thought...

Edited March 23, 2013 by KIC

[sarges46]

So then I am guessing that you have the tire pressures up to (or slightly less) the rating on the tire and not what the manual says?

 

Low tires are killers for handling and combine that with worn out ones...yikes.

 

Did I see that you checked the rear and front axles to make sure they are not loose somehow. Or wheel bearings.

[easy-rogere]

My bike shakes or wiggles at slow speeds but once I get above 30 or so no hands straight line or even leaning into curves is possible. However I have notice that when I "shake" the handle bars while bike is setting still it give me a "wiggle or shake of the front end" back to me through the handle bars.

 

I have seen the discussion for the "brace" and to be honest the ride is not as scary as yours as lane changes is not a problem. I changed the tire on the front and stopped the bad wiggle I had and the back tire while good tread wise is an old Dunlap 491 but since the "vibration or wiggle" is from shaking the front handle bars I doubt my issue is with the back tire.

 

Nothing is more important than trusting your bike good luck on finding your problem mine may be the brace or bearings starting to go but I still trust the bike so guess will play the waiting game for now.

[Brake Pad]

tighten the bolts on the seat, then check your air pressure on the front shocks

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Sounds like loose or worn swingarm bushings to me....whenever I hear the term 'hinge in the middle' this is exactly the way it feels when the swingarm is not tracking true.

 

While leaned over in a curve, any little bump or up and down oscillation will upset the handling...and crossing over longitudinal lines in the pavement is a 'wiggly' event.

 

To check for swingarm play, you have to raise the rear of the bike, disconnect the shock (or shocks) and feel for any sideplay in the entire wheel/swingarm assembly.

 

Good luck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Marcarl]

I would be pulling your forks apart, if you hear something in there, somebody has been there and not got things together the way they should be. Not saying it's your problem, but it will be an issue, and you should clear up the knowns before getting to the unknowns. If it's an 83, it will be time to do the swing arm, it needs to come completely apart, cleaned and greased. Also, you say that the bars seem slightly off, when you have the forks off, it's a good time to get the measuring tape out and check to see where and how they are off, or if you are off, and then determine what the best coarse of action might be to correct the problem if there is one.