I jumped a curb, so what? (({wobble}))

[mikochu]

Hey folks,

A couple of months ago, I jumped a curb on the 9er. I was riding with others and didn't notice the median. Luckily it was a shallow curb and I was going fast enough to keep it up straight, right? :001_smile: We got to our destination, and afterwards, I noticed the front wheel would wobble at 110+ mph. I let off to 80mph the rest of the way home. Before I got home, I tested for the wobble at 110+ mph and it was nowhere to be found. I checked the wheels visually and saw nothing noticeably wrong. Some avid riders said the road I was on was bad, but I've never noticed the issue before, ever. I have yet to re-test for the wobble, but I'll try to soon. However, it seemed odd that it was there and went away.

Could it have been a fluke? Anyone experience something like this?

...After that night, I haven't rode the bike until yesterday. Before that, it got to a point where I felt like selling the bike. I had an opportunity to buy a nice leather riding jacket and I gave it up because I didn't know what I wanted to do with the 9er. However, riding it yesterday made me very happy. One thing I noticed is the only modification on my introduction thread's to-do list that has not been done is the RC51 fork conversion...UH OH! I really need to re-test for that wobble...

[Pacojerte]

hey mike... i think bmiller still has a rc51 front end for sale............


i would take the front rim to a shop and have it spun on a balancer

[Bigdaa]

I don't think it's a fluke, especially since you nailed a curb right before it started to act up. You gotta jack the front end up, spin, observe and repeat. Look for binding in the forks also. Look for dented rims. Look for missing balancing weights.

[mcromo44]

1
Dial the rim with a mag mounted indicator. Even if nothing bad is found, proceed to 2
2
Get the front end elevated, I use jackstands with small blocks of wood sandwiched under the front motor mounts.
3
Remove wheel, calipers and fork tube assemblies.
4
Check steering head bearings very carefully. ( the whack might have shifted a race) I mean take the steering head apart and visually examine the bearings, especially the races.
5
Reassemble.

I doubt a tube or the tubes bent, 43 mm tubes are quite stiff. IMO there's a greater chance of something else being wrong that the above checks will discover. Keep in mind that the factory torque for the top triple clamp is only 16 ft #, so it's possible that if the fasteners were a bit relaxed that the upper clamp got knocked a hair out of square with the bottom, without anything actually getting bent. So, a careful reassembly of everything might be the fix !

[sbeau1960]

It's bent.

[BMiller]

Originally Posted by Pacojerte

hey mike... i think bmiller still has a rc51 front end for sale............

Whole front end is sold. Thanks for the plug though.

[Tiger1050]

Billy, How's those Brakes.

[mikochu]

It's been a while since I've been on this site, but just an FYI, there doesn't seem to be any damage. I guess it was just the road I was on. *shrug*


...also, I did pick up that leather jacket. http://www.alpinestars.com/Dragster_.../p/310248.html

[Sniper]

Going down a curb is ok. Going up a curb is a definate no-no.

It's that "pounds per square" inch thing that gets you every time.

[Pvster]

Originally Posted by Sniper

It's that "pounds per square" inch thing that gets you every time.

thats what she said...