Are these two problems related?

1992 K75RT. I have noticed two problems in the last month and wonder if they
are related. The first problem is tire wear on the front tire[ michelin macadam].
It is wearing down much more on the left side as viewed from being on the bike.
The second problem is the steering has developed a "Notch" very close to center.
Whether the front tire is on or off the ground, when I move the steering from
side to side, it clicks into what feels like a notch. The bike feels fine on the road,
but is it possible that the forks are pointing 1 or 2 degrees off dead center because it settles into that notch? The very first thing that I noticed was that
the instrument cluster was closer to the fairing on the right side than the left than
it used to be. I suspect that the problem is in the steering head bearings. I don't
want to replace the tire until the cause of the tire wear is fixed. Thanks for
any ideas.

My opinion is that the 2 issues are not related.
Issue 1: Every BMW which I have ever owned has exhibited the problem with the front tire wearing on the left side. The dealer gave me some bs about the crown on the road, and how it will cause the tire to wear more on the crowned side. You will no doubt hear that dubious answer on this forum. To which I answer: why does not the rear tire, which follows so closely behind the front, wear the same way? No answer. Also, my buddy and I both equipped our bikes with new tires, his a Honda Valkyrie, me a R1150RT, we ride from Chicago to Prince George, BC and back, on the same roads, alternating between left track and right. After 10,000 combined miles, 1 tire, the R1150RT front is worn on the left. The other 3 are normal...why? I don't know. Just don't accept the crown answer.
Issue 2: I think you are right, you have a head bearing with a flat spot.
Cheers!

Thanks for your reply. Both tires were installed at the same time by the last
owner . There are now approx. 5,000 miles on them, the rear shows no
abnormal wear. I did do a search for other threads about tire wear and there
are plenty of opinions, everything from the crown on the road, to the bike not
being loaded evenly, to "It's normal because BMW's are heavier on one
than the other with the drive shaft being only on one side.
I am not sure if this bike has a steering damper. The clymers manual says that
it located within the steering head if it has one. Some K75's had them , some didn't. According to Clymers, the damper "Provides friction to damp any steering
and fork action over 1 degree". If this bike does have the steering damper, could
this be the "Notch" that I feel ?. It would be nice if I only thing I need is a new
front tire.

DRUDOLPH148006 said:

Thanks for your reply. Both tires were installed at the same time by the last
owner . There are now approx. 5,000 miles on them, the rear shows no
abnormal wear. I did do a search for other threads about tire wear and there
are plenty of opinions, everything from the crown on the road, to the bike not
being loaded evenly, to "It's normal because BMW's are heavier on one
than the other with the drive shaft being only on one side.
I am not sure if this bike has a steering damper. The clymers manual says that
it located within the steering head if it has one. Some K75's had them , some didn't. According to Clymers, the damper "Provides friction to damp any steering
and fork action over 1 degree". If this bike does have the steering damper, could
this be the "Notch" that I feel ?. It would be nice if I only thing I need is a new
front tire.

Click to expand...

It is my understanding that the bearing and dampener are separate items. Your bearings do sound worn. You will need to replace those. To find out if you have a dampening system, I know one of them on the K75x and maybe some others will have two allen bolts on the side of the steering column. You can't miss them. they look like they are in the middle of nowhere and when you take them out, they will be pointed on the end.

Good luck. And take lots of video whilst you change your bearings. It's on my list for next winter.

FWIW

I did look for the bolts, being the RT model, it's difficult to see what's between
the gas tank and the fairing. The bolts that I can see go to the braces that
hold the fairing in place. If you have the damper on yours, then I assume you
would have mentioned if you also felt the "Notch'. Thanks for the reply.

I don't think this has anything to do with the "Notch" in the steering or the instrument
panel no longer being centered, but I didn't notice these things until after
I pulled the forks out to replace the fork seals. The forks were removed and
replaced one at a time.

As an update. I put the bike out in the driveway in the sun and raised the bike
so the front tire could be rotated to get a better look at it. The wear on the left side
seems to be mainly in the area about 10 inches each side of the valve stem.
There are no weights on it as there are on the back wheel. I checked the tire
date and it is 2001. I was able to contact the former owner and it seems that
there are more miles than originally thought on the tires.
My best guess is that it has been out of ballance for awhile and it has actually
given good mileage for the years it has been on the bike. Will look into getting
a new set of tires.
The only problem then is the steering head bearings.
Thank you for your ideas.
I think I will spend an hour each month and really look the bike over. The loss
of the wheel weight and the tire date are things I should have noticed long
ago.

Suggestion; when you put new tires on (Bridgestones BT45s are great on my K); try balancing with Dyna Beads---better than using weights, IMO.

Good to know you narrowed your problem down to the steering head bearings; good luck with that task.

I checked the tire date and it is 2001.

Click to expand...

Tires that old can exhibit all kinds of funky behavior and wear, they are notorious for going from merely worn to showing cord in as little as between gas fillups (don't ask me how I know...)


You might want to re-shoe the bike when replacing the steering head bearing

Ted; The previous owner did not own the bike in 2001, but did have them
installed, so it must be a case of these tires sitting in a warehouse for a few
years. This is a question I would bring up if ordering tires online, that you will
not accept tires with a manufacture date over one year old. Your right about
tires looking good one month and showing much more wear the next, the front
tire started showing wear right at the same time I noticed the notch in the steering, and assumed that there must be a relationship between the two, but
it just happened that two things happened around the same time.