Front wheel wobble

[Roadrunner]

I am having trouble with the front wheel wobble. I have changed the oil in the forks. Ifound the rear shocks leaking oil and replaced them with progressive air shocks and the front wheel still wobbles mostly at low speeds and in a turn. Can any one help?

[doug of so fla]

Very common problem with the XII. How many mi on XII, And what tires do you have on it & air psi ?? Mostly it is caused by this or a combination of a couple of things and most common is the stem bearing assembly needs adjustment, fairly easy fix. E-mail me andI can give you a step by step.

[gearheadfla]

Have you done the stem bearing adjustment? Search it here, also how is the front tire and what kind is it? Put the bike on the center stand the lift the front tire off the ground and support the bike under the engine, be careful of the pipes, i suggest a 2x4 laying flat on a jack, give the tire a good shack and look for looseness in the wheel bearings. I would say 85% of the time it's a stem bearing adjustment problem, kinda the most common reason for a low speed wobble. Mine had one and I didn't even know it until Doug of s fla told me how to test it, buy taking my hands off the grips while decelerating then give the right grip a smack down from the top and BE READY TO GRAB THE BARS if it starts to wobble. I did and it did, I adjusted the bearing to Doug's instructions and now can ride hands free as long as the road will let me. I started to get a wobble back when my front tire was more or less spent, put a new tire on and smooth as glass again. Also check the bolt on the fork brace, I have seen the work them self's back a touch. But stem bearing and tire is the place to start. I run a Dunlop E-3 and 40 lbs of air. If you get the bearing too tight then it will want to wonder around in the lane at highway speeds, trial and error thing.

[Roadrunner]

I checked the stearing head ,it was ok. I retourqued the front end. The manual calls for 32# pounds of air but I am told I need 40#. Whuch is correct?

[vxiirider]

I have always run 40# and have had no problem with front end wobble or cupping of the tire.

[biggersm]

I'm not sure what air pressure you are talking about, tire or shocks?

If talking about the tires the front tire according to the dealer service manual is 32 psi (but you can experiment up to what the sidewall pressure recommends). Rear tire pressure is supposed to be 40 psi.

If you were talking about the air in the front shocks than you should only go as high 5.7 to 8.5 psi (strongly recommend a low pressure pump such as a bicycle pump).

I would consider finishing the Progressive set up with springs up front (and never worry about air pressure), or for a little more money consider the Gold Valve Emulators (see David's post).

If talking about the tightening the stem nut some people get it confused with the stem lock nut (not saying you did but it might be news to someone). I hope the picture will help. By the way, most people don't need the special tool but instead opt to punch the stem nut around with a nail punch, screw driver or similiar item.

[Roadrunner]

I was talking about he front tire.

[debron]

I've found 40 psi in the front tire to make for a really harsh ride so I run 38. That 2 lbs makes a difference. But I have 5 air gages and they all read different, so I really don't know what my pressures are. I go by my Kawasaki/Progressive micro gage.

[doug of so fla]

32psi in front tire is to low, it will make the tire break down and cup and wear to soon. 38 to 40 will work on most tires usually the mfg of the tire will put the correct psi on the side of the tire that you should use.

[gearheadfla]

Nut A in Doug's pic has been a pain for me, three times now I have found it finger tight, the latest being last night after our 80mph blast down the Turnpike coming home from Leesburg, I can always tell when it has worked loose when I stop with all front brake, (wore my rear pads out over the weekend following Harleys) lol It clunks and I feel it in the bars, sure enough it was finger tight again, this time I'm using med strength Lock-Tight on the top nut. BTW, on the 80mph blast, I was leading the pack of Harleys, just sayin.

[wyofisher]

My low speed steering wobble was a delaminating rear tire.

My high speed steering wobble was worn out and loose steering head bearings, and worn out front shock oil.

[suzib6sw]

Jim.. That finger tight nut... If it keeps going like that, despite the locktite on the upper nut.. Wouldn't that tend to indicate that the bearings or the races are collapsing?...
Had the same issue with a suzuki Bandit 600 .. well lots of owners did.. it became notchy , just smack in the middle with the wheel straight ahead... VERY scary when turning and the wheel pauses

Pete

[gearheadfla]

Jim.. That finger tight nut... If it keeps going like that, despite the locktite on the upper nut.. Wouldn't that tend to indicate that the bearings or the races are collapsing?...
Had the same issue with a suzuki Bandit 600 .. well lots of owners did.. it became notchy , just smack in the middle with the wheel straight ahead... VERY scary when turning and the wheel pauses

Pete

I checked the bearings when I did the makeover last year, they are good to go, this is the nut just under the bars behind the plastic cover, I use of all things, clear finger nail polish on it last time to lock it and so far it hasn't backed off again. I have never had a wobble problem after I adjusted it using Doug's method of checking and tightening about 4 years ago.