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No more headshake

Joined
Mar 27, 2003
Messages
442
Reaction score
0
Location
College Station, TX
First Name
Chris
Last Name
Conrey
I finally got around to working on the bike this weekend. I had ordered a tapered roller steering head bearing conversion kit as well as some front brake pads from Dennis Kirk about a month ago. I also took this opportunity to finally install some braided stainless front brake lines I got on close out from Arizon Motorsports a while back.

I wanted to do the conversion simply because my headshake issues were getting worse with time and I felt like it was the main cause of the bad cupping I had on my old front tire. I tore the bike down Saturday and found the upper bearing to have very little lube one it from the factory and the outer bearing race had nice shiny dimples worn into it where the ball bearings normally ride. I guess the harmonics of the bike allow the balls to rock back and forth in these dimples and induce the shake. Anyway, I pulled the old bearings off the stem and drove out the old races from the steering head followed by installing new races and new bearings. I packed the new bearings with some Honda 60% moly grease. That is some seriously slick stuff! Then I reassembled the steering stem assembly.

Next came the cleaning. Since I've been using the bike as my primary commuter, my fork tubes and brakes were particularly filthy. I took some extra time to scrub everything down good before reinstalling the fork tubes and the brakes. The calipers now look like new and with the new pads and braided brake lines, I have great lever feel and stopping power. Those 12 year old lines must have been swelling quite a bit to make that big of a difference. ;-)

Now the bike is clean, serviced and ready for another year of commuting duty... :-( I hope I can squeeze in a few weekend rides here and there. I'll definitely feel more confident riding now that the sinister headshake is gone. :-) I still need to squeeze in some time for a valve clearance check, but my gaskets were in Houston, so I didn't attempt that this weekend. Guess I'll have to save that one for later. Whoopee... :roll:

Hope to make it to some weekend events this fall. See y'all around. :-)
 
Taking care of your bike's maintenance sure feels good, doesn't it? Might seem like a **** while you're up to your elbows in it, but when you can actually feel everything working right, it makes it all worthwhile. 8-)

Speaking of which, I've got a chain that needs to be cleaned and lubed...
 
I've been trying to get to it all summer, but I've had something going on pretty much every weekend. I'm glad I finally got it done. Speaking of a ****, the brakes were a real pain to bleed this time for some reason. I've rebuilt entire brake systems and replaced ABS hydraulic control units on cars that took less time to bleed than my VFR did this weekend. I only had two calipers to bleed for crying out loud! :angryfir: Maybe I'm just losing my touch. Or maybe it was a little too late at night and my patience had already worn thin, but the pain was definitely worth the rewards I'm getting in the braking department. No more SpongeBob brake lever. :-D I can't wait to go for a ride on my next open weekend. :mrgreen:
 
AggieVFR said:
... I can't wait to go for a ride on my next open weekend. :mrgreen:

Hope to see you soon then, Chris - there will be a number of planned TWT rides and some informal ones occuring most weekends now that fall is just around the corner. 8-)
 
I think he is bluffing!!! He won't really get out and ride. All this talk of maintenance is a ruse... :-P

I'll believe it when he shows up for a bike night or ride ;-)

Adios,
 
Yeah headshake bites, my Dyna had it right at 80 mph whenever I hit any little bump. I'm glad I found a solution or I was about to sell it after only having it 3 months.

A little more torque on the head bearing and different front tire and now it's stable to red line. :)

Now come out and ride!
 
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