d3nch Posted May 25, 2009 Posted May 25, 2009 Hi,Ive noticed a slight wobble from the front of my bike occasionally when riding. The bike is a Kawasaki Er500. I bought the bike 3 or so weeks ago, and before then it has sat a while. However, when I picked it up, I got it MOT'ed and it passed with no advisories. When accelerating I dont tend to notice the problem, probably, because I've got other things to worry about, but when slowing down (without breaking) and when leaning the bike slightly, i get a slight left right left right judder from the handle bars. Sometimes you can even notice it doing it by looking at the clocks - again, I try not to spend all my time looking down though. The bike sits quite happily a 70 and is nice and smooth, just when rolling to slow down, or leaning in some corners, i get this wobble. I have checked tyre pressure, condition of tyre, and the wheel nuts. They all seem ok. I'm wondering if because the bike has sat for a while, the bearings may be up the creek. I know that I have not bent the front wheel by hitting anything, and I assume that if it was bent when I bought the bike it wouldn't have passed and MOT?Any Ideas? I have contacted my mechanic, he has advised me not to ride it, and he is taking a look Tuesday. (there goes the bank hol fun)CheersD3nch Quote
Guest Posted May 25, 2009 Posted May 25, 2009 I have checked tyre pressure, condition of tyre, and the wheel nuts. They all seem ok. I'm wondering if because the bike has sat for a while, the bearings may be up the creek. D3nch check the allen bolts holding the bars onand the bolts holding the forks.also put the bike on the centre stand and get someone to sit on the seat lifting the front off the ground.grab the wheel at the 3 and 9 o'clock and push pull, there should be no movement, if so the wheel bearing needs replaced, also turn the bars lock to lock (full left to full right) there should be no notchiness.. otherwise the head bearing needs replaced, go for needle bearings they don't suffer from this..you'll probably find its one of these.. all easily fixed.. Quote
d3nch Posted May 25, 2009 Author Posted May 25, 2009 awesome, thanks for the advice...Its not looking toooo serious then....I'll let you know what it was when i get it fixed...Cheers,D3nch Quote
Roadtorque Posted May 26, 2009 Posted May 26, 2009 Have a look at the road surface you ride on,, some roads have ridges & ripples in the direction of travel, these can cause the bars to twitch, same with the edge of the white lines, it becomes more noticable as tyres wear,,,Find a nice bit of smooth road & see if it's still there Quote
d3nch Posted May 27, 2009 Author Posted May 27, 2009 Right....Took it to the mechanic and he did all the checks, and found nothing wrong. He said there is no play anywhere, and nothing is loose. He suspects it could be the tyre, either being out of balance, or having a ply or wire snapped? He said there is nothing on there thats unsafe, so to ride it, keep an eye on it, and try and work out exactily when it does it, e.g. speed, lean, road surface. (at the moment it has done it on lots of different roads, so I'm trying to rule out surface.)Im looking at changing my tyres pretty soon also, as the current ones are starting to crack. Hopefully that will solve the problem...D3nch Quote
Colin the Bear Posted May 27, 2009 Posted May 27, 2009 It 'll be the tyre. If it's old enough to have started cracking it's way past its sell by date. Unlike car tyres a bike tyre can have legal tread on it but give poor performance due to the wear pattern changing the profile. I wouldn't ride a bike with perished tyres. I'd be getting some new ones. Pronto Quote
d3nch Posted May 28, 2009 Author Posted May 28, 2009 It 'll be the tyre. If it's old enough to have started cracking it's way past its sell by date. Unlike car tyres a bike tyre can have legal tread on it but give poor performance due to the wear pattern changing the profile. I wouldn't ride a bike with perished tyres. I'd be getting some new ones. Pronto Yea I did that on my 125, as they were cracked... It doesnt supprise me its the tyres, The bike has sat (outside) for a good 6 months before I had it. The previous owner drove it 2 miles to work and 2 miles back before it went off the road with messed up carbs. My mechanic is sorting out a set of Dunlops £155 all in. He tells me they have a harder compound in the middle, but softer on the outside for better cornering. He said it was possible to put a 140/70/17 (standard 130/70/17) on the rear to give me a bit more to play with if I wanted... I wasn't so sure whether to or not... D3nch Quote
Voodoo Posted May 28, 2009 Posted May 28, 2009 He said it was possible to put a 140/70/17 (standard 130/70/17) on the rear to give me a bit more to play with if I wanted... I wasn't so sure whether to or not... D3nch Wouldn't bother, especially if your trying to locate a problem. Quote
d3nch Posted May 28, 2009 Author Posted May 28, 2009 yea tbh, i agree with what was said in another topic:the manufactures know whats best for the bike, so i'll stick with that!Cheers for the help D3nch Quote
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