Rear Wheel Wobble

[cowboyup3371]

Scott,

Swingarm bearings are not the reason for the wheel wobble. Wheel bearings maybe, but not the swingarm and/or the bearings.

You might want to do as Dave suggested and perform wheel runout check; tape a piece of metal or plastic next to the wheel edge, next to the polished surface, and then spin the wheel. Watch to see if there is any wobble. That will help you decide if it's the wheel or the tire that's wobbling. I assume it's the tire, due to inconsistencies in the way the tire fits on the wheel, or maybe the tire is just out of round some. At any rate, you first need to isolate the problem to the root cause.

Good luck

Thanks Ed; I more or less did that yesterday and found the tire moved but not the wheel. How does a tire get out of round especially if it was used one year then sat in the garage the next while the bike was rebuilt? Could the weather changes affect the rubber enough to cause this?

[Nessism]

Most likely Scott, the tire was never properly seated on the rim, or maybe it's just a bad tire. I doubt it got worse with time, most likely you just didn't notice the wobble.

[cowboyup3371]

Would the correct fix be to reseat the tire or replace it knowing it has maybe 1500 miles on it?

[Nessism]

I think reseating the tire wouldn't hurt. Clean the rim really good on the inside and use real tire lube when you go to seat the bead. It often takes upwards of 60 psi to seat the tire. Don't think I'd go beyond this though without some further study.

[bonanzadave]

I then put the sharpie on the wheel too but it stayed on all the way around so I don't think there's anything wrong with the wheel itself.

That tells me your wheel/bearings/swingarm are OK

maybe the tire is just out of round some.

and so is mine. Ive been trying to isolate a high speed wobble and wheel/tire runout is one thing Ive been checking. My rim is pretty true but Ive checked 3 rear tires and all three have slight runout when mounted and spun on that same wheel. I think we need some measurements. Are we talking 1/32"(which is about what mine is) or 1/2" (which is probably unacceptable).

FWIW: Dont want to stray from the topic at hand... but check to make sure your chain does not have a frozen link which can cause the swingarm to flex.

[cowboyup3371]

I rode the bike over to Steve's tonight, he was the one who mounted the tires for me, to have another look at things. We found the rubber cushions inside of the sprocket holder were not as fully seated as I thought I placed them. After reseating them, we re-installed the wheel but sadly, it did not greatly improve the wobble; it did improve how the wheel sits in the swing arm though. Neither of us have a dial gauge to test the run out right now but I will look at picking up something at Harbor Freight (I found a gauge and mount for about $30).

I rode the bike home tonight and did not feel a large problem with it so I'll try to ride into work tomorrow. I also think I'll look at buying a new rear tire soon however.

[tkent02]

I have skimmed this thread yet again, I'm pretty sure there is still no mention of whether or not the concentric cirlces on the tire are equidistant from the rim at all points. You know, the tiny circles put on both sides of the tire just so you can check if the tire is on the bead straight, all the way around the wheel. You have to take a few minutes, maybe a light and some reading glasses, and look carefully at the circles, all the way around both sides of each tire. If there are 4 1/2 circles visible, it should be the same 4 1/2 all the around, on both sides of the tire. Sometimes in cold weather it' difficult to get them popped on straight, all the way around, on both sides. Hence the circles.

It's just one of many things that can easily be skipped if you are in a hurry, or if someone else mounts your tires. Kind of like using the wrong size wheel bearings for the axle, or using leaky brake lines. I'm pretty sure GSX1000E wouldn't send his friend or his daugther out on a bike like this.

[cowboyup3371]

Steve is the one who mounted them and he has personally checked them three times in the last week - the tire is seated with the reference line even all around the tire

[tkent02]

Steve is the one who mounted them and he has personally checked them three times in the last week - the tire is seated with the reference line even all around the tire

Have you checked them yourself with adequate lighting and adequate time?? If you have, I would suspect a tire that has been damaged before, maybe forced over a rim without the other side being down in the well properly, maybe it has been forced onto the wrong sized wheel.

I have seen this on my truck, new tire much worse out of round than yours, of course they put it on the rear right so I'd have the least chance of finding it. I found it.

[cowboyup3371]

Have you checked them yourself with adequate lighting and adequate time?? If you have, I would suspect a tire that has been damaged before, maybe forced over a rim without the other side being down in the well properly, maybe it has been forced onto the wrong sized wheel.

I have seen this on my truck, new tire much worse out of round than yours, of course they put it on the rear right so I'd have the least chance of finding it. I found it.

I was standing over his shoulder as he shone the light around and pointed it out to me, all three times. I asked him three times just to cover that base.

[GSX1000E]

Is it one of those junk Avon tires and the plies have separated? Have you (Steve) carefully inspected the wheel bearings to see if they were damaged upon installation?

[Carter Turk]

I was wondering too what kind of tire it is. Kenda, Chin thing, Shinko?

[cowboyup3371]

The tires are Shinko Tourmaster 230s bought two years ago and only have 1 season on them since the bike was torn down last summer. I also looked all three of the wheel bearings, two in the wheel one in the sprocket carrier, over (felt them too) when I reinstalled the wheels on the bike.

Today's ride to work went well with no wobbling felt during the ride and the only problem seen by my glasses fogging up (shield was great). I have a couple of good curves to take, a semi-sloping right hander at 50 and the other at 40 on a sharp downhill left on the way to work (right-hander obviously on the way back up). The bike handled both very well without any movement that I felt.

Like I said earlier, I'll get a new tire next month (have tags to pay on all vehicles this next weekend first) and will change out the bearings for good measure.

[rustybronco]

The outside wheel runout may not be the same as the inside where the tire seats. Check the inside while the tire is off. Probably isn't the problem but it can't hurt to check.

The chain binding idea was a good one.

[posplayr]

It's just one of many things that can easily be skipped if you are in a hurry, or if someone else mounts your tires. Kind of like using the wrong size wheel bearings for the axle, or using leaky brake lines. I'm pretty sure GSX1000E wouldn't send his friend or his daugther out on a bike like this.

This one still gives me a warm feeling when I discovered it following purchase.