front end

[schnowz]

Steve
 You could be right, though I can't feel any bearing slop when tweaking the 
wheel. It's possible I damaged the hub last time I changed them. It spins 
freely when on the axle but I have never been able to turn the inner races 
on the fronts by hand, as my fingers just slip on the races. Not sure if 
this normal.
   I use precision shafting and minature ball bearings to balance them. I 
used to use Drill rod but found that it wasn't perfectly straight which 
prevents you from getting a good balance. I am pretty anal about balancing 
and saw the weights into 1/8 chunks if I have too. But it has never been as 
good as it was when I first got the bike with the factory balance. 
(different wheel - this wheel came from a bike that was laid down) Back then 
high speed was perfectly smooth and felt like 60.
  I don't have a dial test indicator to check runout, so I just hold a 
screwdriver on the jackstand against both the rim and tire. It didn't seem 
too bad but it's hard to be sure.
 The buzz from the front is numbing my right hand which has never happened 
before - supposed to be leaving on a trip next week ..


> Date: Sun, 18 May 2008 12:38:04 -0400
> From: "Steve Northrop" <blackgpz at rochester.rr.com>
> Subject: Re: Front fork strength
> To: <gpzlist at micapeak.com>
> Message-ID: <000801c8b905$90dee180$6900a8c0 at DB3HB511>
> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
> reply-type=response
>
>>>The wheel bearings only have 35,000 miles on them so they should be good.
>
> Not so sure about that Pete. For as cheap and easy as they are to replace, 
> I
> think I would to eliminate another variable. I'll assume you've checked 
> the
> wheel for out-of-round (up & down) as well as wobble (side to side). Also, 
> I
> don't think you can get a good balance using the bearings in the wheels. 
> The
> seals drag too much to give consistent results, especially with the front
> tire because it weighs so little compared to the rear. Stick a rod through
> the middle and suspend it in a pair of well lubed seal-less bearings for
> accuracy of less than 1/2 a stick-on weight.
>
> Steve in Western NY
> '96 GPZ1100
> '02 Daytona 955i
> '08 KLR 650
> "You Can't Fix Stupid", Ron White
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "schnowz" <schnowz at localnet.com>
> To: <gpzlist at micapeak.com>
> Sent: Saturday, May 17, 2008 10:14 PM
> Subject: RE: Front fork strength
>
>
>> More good suspension stuff here..
>> For some reason I couldnt  find a link to it on the GPZlist web page..
>>
>> http://list.gpz1100.com/gear/suspension.htm
>>
>> On another subject
>> Mounted a new front tire today and though it's a big improvement there is
>> still some something not quite right. Still some patter on the front. I
>> had the wheel off and tire changed in 30 mins but took another hour to
>> balance it..
>> The wheel bearings only have 35,000 miles on them so they should be good.
>> Couldn't feel any slop anyway.
>> May have to get another front wheel and try that.
>> What are the symptoms of worn fork bushings? Any other ideas.
>>
>>   Pete Staniforth
>>
>>
>>> Ped, They are probably "Wilbers" which what I have fitted.
>>>
>>> For any one upgrading to a zx12 rear shock I suggest also fitting the 
>>> dog
>>> bones shock linkages from a zzr1100, any model. They are shorter than 
>>> the
>>> Gpz and lift the back end up about an inch above stock and therefore
>>> quicken
>>> the steering.
>>>
>>> Steve
>>>
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> End of GPZList Digest, Vol 18, Issue 15
> ***************************************
>