rmarkr
New member
A quick write-up on my experience. All disclaimers apply, use at your own risk.
The symptom I experienced was a pronounced notch in the steering in the straight ahead position. Also, if I took my hands off the bars the wheel would rock in and out of the notch, and became scary if not stopped. I surmise that the vibration may have something to do with the wear, and it appears to be a known issue. The lower bearing outer race had grooves at each roller that can be felt.
The job was easy, but I needed a few tools beyond the standard setup:
30mm socket
12mm allen key
Min 8" length of pipe with about a 30mm ID
Flat ended punch about 8" long.
I bought the bearings from Napa ($21 each) Bearing # 320/28 X(J) (both)
Remove the seat and tupperware
Disconnect the -ve battery terminal
Remove the front mudguard and horn
Remove the air intake
Remove and hang the brake caliper, remove ABS sensor
Jack up the front end, secure the bike and pull the wheel and fork brace,
Release the clamps and drop the forks out. I marked their position, in order to rotate them 180 degrees on refitting
Snip the ties securing the wiring to the bars, unclip the cables from their plastic supports. There is no need to disconnect the cables or wiring.
Remove the switch panel, bar clamps and secure the bars up and out of the way - I used a bungee around the windscreen.
Remove the nut securing the top triple clamp with the 30mm socket.
The triple clamp will have the ignition switch wiring attached
Slacken the grub screw (Part #5) with the 12mm allen key (it locks the adjuster)
Unscrew the adjuster (part #6, it will have the upper bearing race attached) and the lower clamp and stem will drop out
There are two holes in both the lower clamp and upper bearing carrier (adjuster) to punch (5mm) the bearings off - but there is a very thin and soft metal dust plate under the bearings that the punch will damage.
Order a new pair with the bearings. Part # 7 but they look different - see pic:
Punch the two bearing shells out of the steering head - carefully.
Freeze the new shells and tap them into the steering head. I found a large socket to use as a drift. Make sure they are properly seated and the right way around - you'll be tapping on the narrower lip of the bearing shell
Heat the inner races in boiling water, Fit the dust covers, and tap the bearings onto the stem and upper carrier. Use the pipe to drift the race onto the stem and a socket for the bearing carrier
Grease up the bearings thoroughly, I used wheel bearing grease.
Now it is a matter of reversing the disassembly procedure. Insert the lower clamp and screw on the adjuster (and bearing). Over-tighten it a little, and then back it off to provide just a little friction. Tighten up the grub screw, refit the top clamp, slide the forks back in and tighten the lower clamp bolts (4) Tighten the top clamp (30mm) nut and then the upper fork clamp bolts, Inset the wheel and tighten up the axle before bolting up the fork brace. Fit the brake caliper (now is the time to replace pads) and ABS sensor Connect the battery, refit the bars, air snorkel and tupperware. Secure the wiring and cables.
Check that all fastners are in and tight, check the brakes and brake light and do a test ride.
It took me about 4 hours, but I had some other little issues to deal with.
.
The symptom I experienced was a pronounced notch in the steering in the straight ahead position. Also, if I took my hands off the bars the wheel would rock in and out of the notch, and became scary if not stopped. I surmise that the vibration may have something to do with the wear, and it appears to be a known issue. The lower bearing outer race had grooves at each roller that can be felt.
The job was easy, but I needed a few tools beyond the standard setup:
30mm socket
12mm allen key
Min 8" length of pipe with about a 30mm ID
Flat ended punch about 8" long.
I bought the bearings from Napa ($21 each) Bearing # 320/28 X(J) (both)
Remove the seat and tupperware
Disconnect the -ve battery terminal
Remove the front mudguard and horn
Remove the air intake
Remove and hang the brake caliper, remove ABS sensor
Jack up the front end, secure the bike and pull the wheel and fork brace,
Release the clamps and drop the forks out. I marked their position, in order to rotate them 180 degrees on refitting
Snip the ties securing the wiring to the bars, unclip the cables from their plastic supports. There is no need to disconnect the cables or wiring.
Remove the switch panel, bar clamps and secure the bars up and out of the way - I used a bungee around the windscreen.
Remove the nut securing the top triple clamp with the 30mm socket.
The triple clamp will have the ignition switch wiring attached
Slacken the grub screw (Part #5) with the 12mm allen key (it locks the adjuster)
Unscrew the adjuster (part #6, it will have the upper bearing race attached) and the lower clamp and stem will drop out
There are two holes in both the lower clamp and upper bearing carrier (adjuster) to punch (5mm) the bearings off - but there is a very thin and soft metal dust plate under the bearings that the punch will damage.
Order a new pair with the bearings. Part # 7 but they look different - see pic:
Punch the two bearing shells out of the steering head - carefully.
Freeze the new shells and tap them into the steering head. I found a large socket to use as a drift. Make sure they are properly seated and the right way around - you'll be tapping on the narrower lip of the bearing shell
Heat the inner races in boiling water, Fit the dust covers, and tap the bearings onto the stem and upper carrier. Use the pipe to drift the race onto the stem and a socket for the bearing carrier
Grease up the bearings thoroughly, I used wheel bearing grease.
Now it is a matter of reversing the disassembly procedure. Insert the lower clamp and screw on the adjuster (and bearing). Over-tighten it a little, and then back it off to provide just a little friction. Tighten up the grub screw, refit the top clamp, slide the forks back in and tighten the lower clamp bolts (4) Tighten the top clamp (30mm) nut and then the upper fork clamp bolts, Inset the wheel and tighten up the axle before bolting up the fork brace. Fit the brake caliper (now is the time to replace pads) and ABS sensor Connect the battery, refit the bars, air snorkel and tupperware. Secure the wiring and cables.
Check that all fastners are in and tight, check the brakes and brake light and do a test ride.
It took me about 4 hours, but I had some other little issues to deal with.
.
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