Clonking from somewhere around the head stock?

[nurse]

Hi folks

Not been around for sometime. Got promoted at work and life has got so crazy I barely have time to breathe somedays.

Anywho, bike has been laid up for a while with a bit of an oil leak, which 4 clutch cover gaskets later and countless types of sealant permutations seems to finally be cured (dear lord please let it be cured!!).

The net result is I have finally been out on the FJ at last, yay!

However I have noticed what can only be described as a 'clonk' from around the head stock area.  It could be from the area of the mudguard though, I'm not 100% certain. 
I installed Randys fork valves about 200-300 miles ago and a fork brace about 100 miles ago.
It's the same clonk regardless of speed although it's louder when faster.  It's not a new sound if I'm honest it did it even before these upgrades.
Any ideas what it could be?  Should I worry?  Had a fiddle when stationary but can't see anything obvious, any suggestions of how I could test it in the garage?? It always does it on speed bumps or going up a raised kerb!
Does any one else's bike do it?

[big r]

Have you checked the bearings in the steering head? I had something similar and found that the bearings were loose. Big R

[movenon]

From your description it does sound like your head bearing adjustment might be a good place to start.  You might get down to the adjustment nut and give it another 1/4 turn and see if the clunk gets quieter.  That will give you some direction to go if it is in the head bearing area.
Hopefully it is just an adjustment.  My advice is just do 1/4 turn at a time, you might have to repeat the process if the noise gets better but not gone.

Congrats on the promotion and glad you are getting some time to work on the bike.
George

[FJ_Hooligan]

However I have noticed what can only be described as a 'clonk' from around the head stock area.  It could be from the area of the mudguard though, I'm not 100% certain. 
It always does it on speed bumps or going up a raised kerb!

Looks like it's only doing it when the forks compress?  What kind of fork springs do you have?

I had something similar; when I would compress the forks I would get a "clunk" somewhere up front.  After adjusting/checking bearings and anything I could think of, I came to the conclusion that it was probably the fork springs bowing under compression and popping the inside of the fork tube.

This was back when I used progressive fork springs.  These are long springs that only require a short (<1 inch) spacer for preload.  Since switching to straight rate springs which are shorter and require about a 5 inch spacer, the cluck has gone away.  I figure the shorter springs are less prone to bowing than the longer progressives.

[Country Joe]

Nurse,
I can relate about the shortage of free time arising from a promotion. I am grateful for a good job, but sometimes........

Anyway, I had a clonking sound from the front-end, mine turned out to be broken tabs on the front fender section. I thought it was the steering head bearings as well. I found the broken tabs when  I tore down the front end to service the bearings and rebuild the forks. I bought some .125" thick ABS sheet and ABS glue, I built new tabs for the front fender section and doubled up the thickness of the clamping area around the bolt holes for the fork brace. I used some JB Weld plastic repair material to level out the under side of the fender where it had been overtightened and left indentions from the mounting lugs on the fork legs. It has held together for about 8 months, but that hasn't meant a lot of miles.

Joe

[red]

Hi folks
Not been around for sometime. Got promoted at work and life has got so crazy I barely have time to breathe somedays.
I have noticed what can only be described as a 'clonk' from around the head stock area.  It could be from the area of the mudguard though, I'm not 100% certain. 
It's the same clonk regardless of speed although it's louder when faster.  It's not a new sound if I'm honest it did it even before these upgrades.
Any ideas what it could be?  Should I worry?  Had a fiddle when stationary but can't see anything obvious, any suggestions of how I could test it in the garage?? It always does it on speed bumps or going up a raised kerb!  Does any one else's bike do it?

Nurse,

Congrats on the promotion!  Got a bike assistant?  Lock the front brake firmly, and have somebody push and pull the bike, forward and rearward.  If you hear (or feel) the clunk in the handlebars then, the fork head bearings would be the first place to look.  With the bike on the center stand, have your assistant sit on the back of the bike, and levitate the front end a bit.  The steering head should be free to turn, lock-to-lock, with no "notches" or mechanical noises.  I do not recommend simply re-tightening the center nut on the fork, although that may seem to "fix" the problem somewhat.  It is very possible that one bearing (or more) has disintegrated in there.  The resulting metal chips could lock the steering at any time, and that seldom ends well. 

If the fork bearings are at fault, you have one good choice, and one excellent choice.  You can remove the old bearings, clean up everything, and replace whatever has gone bad.  Races should not be "dented" or discolored, and any metal chips that you may find probably came from important places.  Clean and check everything.  Even better, you can removed the old bearings and races, and replace them with new tapered roller bearings, which are far stronger than OEM stuff.  The difference in prices would be fairly small for the best bearings, and you will be happy with this "one and done" fix.  If the bottom OEM race is damaged, you would be stuck for replacing it anyway, so then tapered rollers would be the real trick.  You can find sources for the bearings here, or maybe somebody can chime in with that.  There are also good DIY pix and more information here.  Beyond the DIY approach, Plan B would be to have an ace bike mechanic do the work, if you are too busy, but those are your options, for the steering head.

If you can not find any problem in the steering head with the Push-Pull and Rotate tests, you should investigate further.  Check the front calipers, fork hardware, handlebar hardware, and axle.  Let us know what you may find.

[FJ_Hooligan]

Even better, you can removed the old bearings and races, and replace them with new tapered roller bearings, which are far stronger than OEM stuff.  The difference in prices would be fairly small for the best bearings, and you will be happy with this "one and done" fix.  If the bottom OEM race is damaged, you would be stuck for replacing it anyway, so then tapered rollers would be the real trick. 

Red,
You seem to be implying that the FJ does not have tapered roller bearings.  Both of mine do!

[movenon]

Even better, you can removed the old bearings and races, and replace them with new tapered roller bearings, which are far stronger than OEM stuff.  The difference in prices would be fairly small for the best bearings, and you will be happy with this "one and done" fix.  If the bottom OEM race is damaged, you would be stuck for replacing it anyway, so then tapered rollers would be the real trick.

Red,
You seem to be implying that the FJ does not have tapered roller bearings.  Both of mine do!

Mine are tapered upper and lower (I think all FJ's are).  Installed new ones with races a while back.  Adjusted as per Yamaha factory.  They still needed adjustment after they were installed and run on the road.  Just 1/8 to 1/4 more of a turn and no noise.  As a note make sure you use the rubber gasket and install the castellated head nuts on correctly. There is an up and down side. Check the Yamaha service manual.

If you can't find anything external then I would still just adjust the head bearing to see if it go's away.  If it does then when you get time pull the stem out and do an inspection, lube or bearing and seat replace as required.  I have to warn you, the bottom race is not easy to change.  You will earn an FJ merit badge when you get that done.    Top race and bearing are easy.
George

[nurse]

hi folks

Thanks for the kind words!  Was in no way looking for kudos on the job thing but felt I should at least offer some token explanation for my prolonged absence from the forum. Nice to see some familiar names and some new ones!

Well I have had a go at rocking and moving and generally trying to assess for play in the bearings and I couldn't see/feel much (by much I mean anything!)  The ol girl only has 6k easy miles on it so I would be suprised if that was the problem.  Haven't had the chance to look at tightening anything as I need a bit more time and to have a peak at the Haynes manual before undertaking any task requiring the application of my snap ons!

Random question what do you bikes sound like if you hit a speed hump/kerb/unwelcome family member?
Just trying to get a bit of a baseline as I have only ever ridden one FJ (this one!)

Thanks in advance for you thoughts.

[Dogsbestfriend]

The last front end clonk I had was when I had left the disc lock on. Check those front end bearings though.  My 1990 is currently making random gentle clonking noises while being ridden and no I did remove the disc lock this time. The side stand has a bit of play in its pivot and I suspect that it is flapping about in the breeze. Not sure what an FJ can get up to on the Beaufort scale but trees move past rapidly. Anyway I might re bush it but will probably just grease it and stuff some O rings in there. Good luck with yours.

[TexasDave]

The last front end clonk I had was when I had left the disc lock on. Check those front end bearings though.  My 1990 is currently making random gentle clonking noises while being ridden and no I did remove the disc lock this time. The side stand has a bit of play in its pivot and I suspect that it is flapping about in the breeze. Not sure what an FJ can get up to on the Beaufort scale but trees move past rapidly. Anyway I might re bush it but will probably just grease it and stuff some O rings in there. Good luck with yours.

I thought a disc lock would be a very good idea to prevent my bike being rolled off. I went to the local motorcycle shop to purchase one. "Sorry said the owner I used to carry them but not anymore." Why not I asked? "To many guys leaving the bar and forgetting they were on there and damaging their bikes" Well I replied I don't drink so order me one anyway. After receiving it and being old and maybe forgetful I thought I would put a reminder on it. Tied one end of a yellow nylon rope to the lock. Put a loop on the other end and made it long enough to reach my handle bars. Now when I install it on the brake disc I put the loop on my throttle to remind me it is on there. After I take it off I just wind the rope around the lock and stick it in my pocket. When I get so old I forget to put the loop on my handle bars I know now it is time to quit riding.  Dave  

[movenon]

"Random question what do you bikes sound like if you hit a speed hump/kerb/unwelcome family member?
Just trying to get a bit of a baseline as I have only ever ridden one FJ (this one!)"

Mine makes no clunking, clicking or banging.  The head bearings by feel on the forks etc can feel tight and still make a noise upon impact with a curb or bump. At least that's my experience with 2 different bikes.

I assume the 10mm bolt in the bottom of the fork tubes are tight as you mentioned that you upgraded the suspension and that the tulip looking bell that go's on the bottom of the dampner tube was installed facing the correct direction .  Seeds of doubt.... .
George

[ribbert]

I thought from previous occasions when this was brought up that it was common.

Mine has "clonked" for 80,000kms, it's not head stem bearings. For one, I know mine are adjusted and two, they don't make a sound like that.
I'm used to it, I don't hear it any more, that is until some bastard mentioned it a few days back in the middle of a trip and I had to listen to it for next few thousand Km's, thanks a lot.

Noel

[X-Ray]

Heh heh good one Noel! Funny how that happens eh? 

[Bones]

Mine makes a clonk sound going over speed humps as well, steering head bearings were tightened, fairing has been off and checked, forks have been apart for new seals and checked , so not sure what it is, I just don't worry about it anymore.