Shaking on the handlebars??

[my98xplorer]

I put some of the cafe style bars on my bike about 3 weeks ago. I was riding down the road through some construction, and i hit a pretty good bump in the road. The handlebars started shaking violently and wouldnt stop. I had to slow down to about 10mph then it calmed down and then i was able to speed back up. This only happens when i hit a decent size bump. I would think that if i bent my rim, it would always shake, is that a correct assumption? Any other ideas?

[Robert Corrie]

Steering head or wheel bearings may be shot.Low air pressure in tires too.

[Anonymous]

Vibration

xplorer:
Has this effect happened before, before you put the bars on?
I hit a rock at sixty & the front end vibrated side to side violently, but the front was obviously flat...steering head bearings sound like they broke...it is possible if the impact is enough...check the rim too. My guess is things are busted up now.
____________________________________Rick.....

[my98xplorer]

Re: Vibration

Has this effect happened before, before you put the bars on?



I havent had this happen before i put the bars on. Like i said, i didnt think it was the rim since it didnt do it all the time. I will put it on the center stand and check though.

[Motorcyclemodeller]

I have clubman super drop bars on my GS, and I used to get headshake like you described..........it can get pretty violent with basically clip-ons.

I solved this with 2 modifications:

1. At speed, air gets under the motor and starts to lift the bike giving you a sort of powersteering. This does not work on overloaded pick-ups or motorcycles.
I installed an aftermarket belly pan (chin spoiler) the air forces the bike down which leaves the tire firmly contacted with the ground.

2. The forks have way to much flex, the axel is too thin, and the forks are too thin and closely spaced on the triples.
Install a fork brace, it is a must on these bikes. After you put on one you will swear you are riding a completely different bike. The front end will now function as one over the bumps. If you can find an old double hoop superbike brace, they are the best. But the newer Teleflex braces are good to.

This is of course after you checked everything as the guys mentioned above first.

Hope this helps,

Dr. Dre

[argonsagas]

Tire soft and bent rim are possible, and should be checked, but it is almost guaranteed that the steering head bearings are not right.

With the bike on the centrestand, lift the front wheel by hand, (or you may need to use a board to provide leverage,) and check for vertical play or any noise at all...there should be no play and no noise.

[pidgey]

Re: Shaking on the handlebars??

I put some of the cafe style bars on my bike about 3 weeks ago. I was riding down the road through some construction, and i hit a pretty good bump in the road. The handlebars started shaking violently and wouldnt stop. I had to slow down to about 10mph then it calmed down and then i was able to speed back up. This only happens when i hit a decent size bump. I would think that if i bent my rim, it would always shake, is that a correct assumption? Any other ideas?

Same thing happened to me in a construction zone, it was dark and I hit a piece of metal debris, which gave me a slow speed front end wobble.
Thought I'd buggered something up, but a re-balancing of the front tire fixed it. Guess I was lucky......... 8)