Front Axle Frustration

[Bones]

Do you have panniers and/or a rack fitted by chance. My bike had weird handling once that was so bad I swore something was loose in the front end, the bike would wobble while riding and felt unstable while cornering. Turned out to be a broken indicator mount on one side where the rack mounts up to causing the rack to wobble when riding and sending that wobble to the front end. The more weight on the back the worse the wobble.

[Mark Olson]

Ok.  The front end was reassembled.
The stem nut was torqued to 36 ft. Lbs, then I relaxed the nut, and retorqued it to 2.2. ft. lbs.
Wobble problem is still there!
1- new tire
2- fresh fork oil
3- new fork springs
4- regreased steering head and wheel bearings
This condition emerged slowly over the last 1500 miles and now head shakes at low speeds so much, I don't want to ride it.
My gut tells me it's the steering head bearing, gonna retorque em.  This time on center stand with the tire touching pavement.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

The retorque is supposed to be 26 ft. lbs.

[ribbert]

The retorque is supposed to be 26 ft. lbs.

Mark, I don't have a manual to refer to but are you sure?  That seems like a very high value for a tapered bearing.

Noel

[a.graham52]

The retorque is supposed to be 26 ft. lbs.

Mark, I don't have a manual to refer to but are you sure?  That seems like a very high value for a tapered bearing.

Noel

That sounds to me like a good initial torque. Then loosen and hand tight. That's what I think

[ribbert]

The retorque is supposed to be 26 ft. lbs.

Mark, I don't have a manual to refer to but are you sure?  That seems like a very high value for a tapered bearing.

Noel

That sounds to me like a good initial torque. Then loosen and hand tight. That's what I think

He's suggesting the RE torque (the final setting) should 26 ft lbs, not the initial nip up.

For those that wish to set the load with a torque wrench, fine, but you certainly don't need one to set the initial nip up only then to set the final adjustment by hand.

Noel

[Tuneforkfreak]

Never assume a new tire is flawless. Watch this  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeiO2pSVY8Q

[Yamahammer1200]

My manual says retorque to 2.2 ft. lbs, that's 26.4 in. lbs.  Initial torque is 36 ft. lbs.
I amped my initial torque to 38 ft. lbs, we'll see if that makes any difference.

[FJ_Hooligan]

Where do you get a torque wrench that's accurate at 2.2 ft-lb?

I've always heard they were least accurate at the lowest and highest ranges.

[a.graham52]

You need a torque wrench (prob a 1/4 drive) designed for inchlbs. I have one that has a max of around 360 inch lbs

[ribbert]

Where do you get a torque wrench that's accurate at 2.2 ft-lb?

I've have these two little fellas:



They measure in INCH/pounds. 2.2 ft/lbs would be 26 on one of these. The one on the left is American made and measures US inches, the other one imperial inches.

But that's not the point. The instruction to apply a torque value in this instance is typical of much of the procedural information to be found in workshop manuals - overkill. Such as removing the fairing to check the valves and then explaining the most difficult way to remove it and I'm sure there are many more examples.

All workshop manuals suffer from this, it is not in an engineers vocabulary to say "nip up, backoff, feel, whisker, bee's dick, tad ....." it has to be the result of a calculation and have a value.
Giving such a low value is silly enough, taking it to a decimal point is ridiculous.

For as long as they have been writing these tomes, the mechanics for whom they are written have used them for little more than specifications for this very reason. At one point I had 30 -40 of them sitting on the shelf, it is common to all of them, car manuals are worse.

Hooli's right, trying to measure that on a standard wrench is not going to be accurate anyway, particularly that pesky .2 

Noel

[Mark Olson]

The retorque is supposed to be 26 ft. lbs.

Mark, I don't have a manual to refer to but are you sure?  That seems like a very high value for a tapered bearing.

Noel

That sounds to me like a good initial torque. Then loosen and hand tight. That's what I think

He's suggesting the RE torque (the final setting) should 26 ft lbs, not the initial nip up.

For those that wish to set the load with a torque wrench, fine, but you certainly don't need one to set the initial nip up only then to set the final adjustment by hand.

Noel

ahhh shit... yes it should be 26 inch lbs. for the retorque snuggie.  My fault ... typo.. 

because he has access to a tool this can be done. Other wise do the bar turn bounce test when you are done and see where it ends up.

[Yamahammer1200]

I use this little fella.
It's a click type used for gun smithing.
Went for an 80 mile run.  No change.
I have no bags or top box.
The best way to describe the wobble:  extend your hands like you are gripping the bars,
Now rotate them like you're pedaling a small bicycle. Your head bobbles side to side, the equal, but opposite reaction to the movement of the front end.
This begins as soon as I am rolling, gets most annoying around 15 mph, then largely disappears above 35 mph.
You still feel something at higher speeds, a tap through the grips and pegs.  Almost like a stuck link in the chain or a rock stuck in your tire.
Applying brakes makes no difference in the oscillations.

[a.graham52]

Put the bike on the center stand and Jack the front wheel off the ground. I use a floor jack and gently lift the exhaust. Spin the front wheel by hand. Does it wobble up and down. Or side to side? Does the rim wobble or is it just the tire. Take a screw driver and touch your fork with the shafts so the tip is over the tire. This may help u see the wobble as it goes around.. if there is one

[ribbert]

This begins as soon as I am rolling, gets most annoying around 15 mph......

At those speeds I can't imagine it being anything but the wheel/tyre/something loose.

As previously suggested, check the wheel is true. With the wheel elevated, grab it top and bottom and rock it with reasonable force to see if there is any free play.

Noel

[Yamahammer1200]

Thanks.  Will do.
This wobble is throwing off the accuracy of my bottle rocket launcher when I'm out huntin' wabbits.