Fxdb Front end

[benjo]

Hi guys. Wondering if anyone can help me out with this issue. I bought a brand new 2010 Fxdb 5 months ago and when i rode out could feel a grinding coming from the front end when taking bends. Spoke to the Dealer who said it was caused by the new scorcher tyres that come stock with this years Bobs and that it should settle down as the bike breaks in. After around 4 weeks the grinding lessened and it all felt great.As the 4 weeks passed i felt that there was something wrong with the front end in that it felt "off centre"(can't bring myself to say the word bent!!). I took it back to the dealer i purchased from and he took it for a ride and said the bike was perfect so i left it for 3 weeks but still felt that it was off, so i took it to another dealer(number 2) who said the front end was fine but the bars could be slightly bent(i have V rod drag bars on it). Took it back to dealer no 1 who took another look and changed the bars for me on warranty and told me they were less than 1 cm off centre.Thought that that would fix the problem but no- it still feels like my left hand is on a slightly different level to my right.
Could it be my bearings, my front forks or something else i can suggest when i take it back to them again?Bike hasn't been nudged or dropped, and i know that front ends don't just bend by themselves. At an absolute loss what it could be and would welcome any ideas.Can't stand an off-centre bike!!! Thanks Guys

 

[Hoople]

When you are going down a Straight level road, can you look down at the front wheel and see that the WHEEL (not bars) is pointed straight down the road.

Is the the imaginary centerline of the tire in line with the imaginary centerline of the frame.
On my bike, I can look over the bars and look down at the front tire and see the relationship of the front tire to the frame.

Are they in line as your going straight down a straight level road. That is the first piece of geometry you must establish.

 

[benjo]

G'day Hoople...Thx for the response. When i'm going down a straight flat road and standing on pegs looking down can see that the forks are slightly 'slanted' to one side-that is when the wheel is exactly straight. Is this a bent(there i'll use the word!) front fork or could the bearings be off. As i said when the bike was brand new there was a grinding that i've never felt on a harley or other bike before and couldn't understand how this could be something to do with the new scorcher tyres. My first thought was bearings...

 

[Hoople]

Glad to help if I can. Are you saying that you can actually see that the TIRE is rolling down the road in a STRAIGHT path in relationship to the frame,, BUT the FORKS are NOT straight in relationship to the TIRE..?

If you want to get to the bottom of your problem, this is what you have to do. I want you to jack or lift the front wheel off the ground. Take a putty knife and push back the brake pads back into the calipers a little bit so the pads no longer rub or are in contact with the front rotor. I want nothing in contact with the front wheel that will inhibit it's movement or make any noise as the wheel is rotated.. Once you do that, you should be able to spin the front wheel as if it was a precision flywheel. When you spin the front wheel you should NOT hear ANY grinding or crackling of the bearings. There should be NO side play of the wheel within the fork. Hold back the bars and wiggle the wheel side to side. As long as the brake pads are NOT rubbing or touching the rotor, the wheel and tire should turn like a precision flywheel and be as smooth as glass.

If you hear anything or see any play that just "does not look or seem right to you", it's because it is NOT right and something is wrong. With the pads retracted, that wheel should be quiet when it turns.
Place the palm of you hand on the tire and rotate the wheel slowly. If the bearings are bad you will even feel it in the palm of your hand. You will hear a gritty sound coming from the hub area. You should NOT feel the bearings grinding in the palm of you hand.

While you are it, look are the runout of the tire and wheel as you spin it . Vertical "Hop" and side to side "wiggle" should be next to nothing. A laced wheel has more acceptable run out (.030") but a cast wheel should be near perfect. Check it and be critical. Does the wheel look square within the fork legs? Imagine for a moment that the front axle was 3 feet long and hung out 18" on each side. Would that imaginary 3' axle be at 90* to the frame when the wheel is straight ahead. Mentally remove the bars and risers from the picture. We will deal with those later. For the moment we are only looking at the relationship of the Tire.. to the forks,, to the frame.

Sorry for all the capital letters, but those capital words I am stressing. I am not there with you to see and feel those bearings with my own hands & eyes. I am stressing those words because they are important. Like in VERY important.

I am curious what you find.

 

[david26]

I am deff not telling u the dealer is right. I am a firm believer in the fact the guy that rides the bike knows better about what his bike is doin more then a tech that rides it down the road and back but i have never noticed any front end wobble in my front end but had my brother inlaw (evil crocht rocket rider) ride it home for me one day and all he did was complain about the front end wobble.

Dave

 

[Hoople]

I am a firm believer in the fact the guy that rides the bike knows better about what his bike is doin more then a tech that rides it down the road and back but i have never noticed any front end wobble in my front end but had my brother inlaw (evil crocht rocket rider) ride it home for me one day and all he did was complain about the front end wobble.

Dave

So now the question remains. Is there a problem in your front end or not? Someone other than yourself says there is,, but you don't feel it.

Think of your Brother-in-law as the customer and your the dealership. He (customer) rides the bike and says there is a problem and your saying you (dealership) don't feel any wrong.

Have you ever seen a dealership INSIST there is a problem when the customer seems to be Happy?

Humm....So who is right?

 

[david26]

I am parinoid about enough about my bike I dont need anymore thought in my head. Sure now on the way home I start feeling a crazy wobble. I think my brother inlaw has never been on anything other then crotch rockets never been on anything that did have some kind of fairing on it


Dave

 

[Hoople]

My guess would be your fine. Metric rockets have sensitive steering in comparison to our bikes. I would not worry about it. You will know when something is not what it should be.

 

[david26]

Benjo just hit me if u are still feeling the wobble I think I would go to the dealer that said they dont feel it and tell them u would like to take a new bike for a test drive and see if u feel the same thing in a new bike if u do it prob normal and if u dont then tell them it needs to be fixed.

Dave

 

[benjo]

Well i think the best thing i can do is take it back to dealer no 2 who said they could feel the problem(they said it must be the bars but they thought they were after market(they are in fact v rod drag bars))-tell them the bars have been changed and the prob still exists and ask them to do Hopples test.
Hopples right. When was the last time the dealership insisted theres a problem on a 50/50 scenario?
Cheers for the ammo Hopple -I will let you know the out come of all this. If its definitly not the bearings then going to have to get them to take apart and re assemble the front end again. David i have never felt the feeling before on any other bike. Its like a grinding/vibration not really a wobble and only when going round bends.....As well as the sensation that its a little out.