Author |
Message |
Ironhead1977
| Posted on Sunday, February 06, 2011 - 05:30 pm: |
|
Just as info, if your hands start becoming numb due to vibration in the handle bars,check the front wheel bearings. I have been fighting numbing hands for a while with no success. I pulled the front wheel to spoon on a tire and found the bearings slightly notchy. New bearings and no more numb hands. Just rolling the tire mounted on the bike, the bearings felt smooth. It was only when the rim was removed could the bad bearings be felt. |
Electraglider_1997
| Posted on Monday, February 07, 2011 - 09:44 am: |
|
Could of just been the tire you removed. A cupped front tire can be the cause all kinds of vibration. I had a very badly cupped D616 on my bike and rode out to Homecoming in 08 and I literally bounced out and back. When I finally changed that tire it was as if I had a brand new bike. Also, many here go on and on about notchy bearings and replacing them. Probably all you needed to do was pop the outer seal and add grease and then reapply the seal. Certainly easier, and more economical than throwing out a perfectly good set of bearings. It's one thing if a bearing has completely crapped out and certainly another when it just becomes a bit stiff. The first time I took my back wheel off at 5,000 mile on my 06' ULY I was certain the bearing was bad because it was hard to turn, so I took the wheel to the dealer to show them and they ordered new bearings. While waiting for the bearings I popped the outer seals and finger smeared in grease and then put the wheel back on the bike and rode it. When the dealer called to tell me the bearings were in I took the wheel back off and noticed the bearings that I had greased felt like brand new bearings and I really didn't want to replace them at that point but went ahead and had the dealer do it under warranty anyways. Now once per season I've removed both wheels, popped the outer seals and added grease and this has worked for my bike for 30,000+ miles on the front wheel original bearings and 25,000+ miles on the rear wheel bearings that were unnecessarily replaced under warranty. I've only written all this because Ironhead has attributed the vibration solely to the front wheel bearings without considering that he also changed the front tire at the same time. Was it the bearing or the tire, that is the question. One change at a time next go around and you may save a few bucks in the bargain. |
Ironhead1977
| Posted on Monday, February 07, 2011 - 06:20 pm: |
|
A large part could have been the tire. I am just glad the hand numbing was cured.I was about ready to go to something else. This was not just a little numb,It was extremely painfull after about 30 miles. |
Swampy
| Posted on Monday, February 07, 2011 - 06:56 pm: |
|
A new set of tires is just so satisfying, sort of like a great hair cut, knowing full well where you are going back for more when the time is right. |
Gunut75
| Posted on Monday, February 07, 2011 - 11:28 pm: |
|
Swampy..........Amen to that! |
Conchop
| Posted on Friday, February 11, 2011 - 11:29 pm: |
|
Here's something different - I've always had a vibe problem in my handlebars. BUT I had my bars pulled back. One day, for no real reason, I moved the bars up forward and a lot of the vibes went away. Then I accidentally dropped the bike on the driveway. Old dirt bike trick , never tighten the bars and levers too tight. The bars got knocked forward some more. Its a new bike. After all this time and all the old school tricks! Whammo - fixed. Not quite a gold wing but much better. The only thing I can think of is the harmonics are directed vertically or in line with the angle of the fork and can go along with the flow of the fork. Once the bars are pulled back, an oscillation seems to set in at an angle. Hillbilly eng gin eeeeering at its best. try setting your bars forward, see what happens. good luck - the vibe problem is like the old lawnmower - sux! |
Captclutch
| Posted on Sunday, February 13, 2011 - 08:44 am: |
|
there's surgery to fix that...Had it done on both hands now I'm good as new. |
Crusty
| Posted on Sunday, February 13, 2011 - 09:02 am: |
|
I think I'd rather move the bars forward than get my wrists sliced. But that's just me. |
Treadmarks
| Posted on Sunday, February 13, 2011 - 09:43 am: |
|
Try FASST FLEXX bars. I bought a set of these for the uly but instead I installed them on my hyper. I will eventully get another set for the uly, because they work. |
Zac4mac
| Posted on Sunday, February 13, 2011 - 11:02 am: |
|
Put 4-6 oz of birdshot in a heavy ziplock, roll it up and stick one in each bar-end. The shot absorbs shock like a dead-blow hammer. Your hands and arms will thank you. Zack |
Conchop
| Posted on Monday, February 14, 2011 - 04:07 pm: |
|
It was warm enough for a 70 plus mile outback greenlaning expedition yesterday. Riding in the outback on little one lane 1st and 2nd gear roads were always the worst on my Uly. Shook like a bad lawnmower until I repositioned the bars. It was the first time I've had the Uly out for a long ride since I dropped her in the driveway and had the bars re-adjusted by default [ or de-fall ] - She's a new bike= not quite a gold wing but one hell of a lot more drivable now. Handlebar weights and silicon filled bars did not make as much of an improvement as adjusting the bar position did. PS - the primary chain adjustment helps a lot too. But the real deal is the bar position IMHO. |
Ejc
| Posted on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 - 01:04 pm: |
|
A Bar Snake helped me quite a bit. |
|