Have any of you "galloped", accelerating out of a turn at high speed?

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You're doing about 45 or 50 and take an exit to get on the freeway and it's a progressive, 45 degree turn to go 65 to 70mph. While accelerating, my handlebar will mildly wiggle back and forth with the accelerating to the point I'd rather back off of the throttle to prevent a much worse outcome.
I have tapered bearings. While on the center stand I checked for any play in the of the front wheel and forks in case with it being loose would cause intermittent stability while riding. My tire has 300 miles on it and properly inflated, but not ruling out the possibility it can still be the tire.
Could it be after the new tire was mounted to the rim and installed on the forks, it wasn't done with the right technique? Is it possible to mess up putting the wheel on, where the handle bar shake will happen.
Hopefully my fork springs could use some more pre-load, putting an inch and a half piece of pvc underneath the fork cap that I've ready about.
Who else has had high speed slight handle bar shake or galloped through a turn while accelerating?
 

Andrew Shadow

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If this only started after you had the front tire replaced you have nothing to loose by checking to make sure that the front wheel was put back on correctly. There is a specific installation procedure that can cause problems if not followed. It may not be what is causing your problem but it is a quick check worth doing if only to eliminate this. You can find the procedure here.
 
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If this only started after you had the front tire replaced you have nothing to loose by checking to make sure that the front wheel was put back on correctly. There is a specific installation procedure that can cause problems if not followed. It may not be what is causing your problem but it is a quick check worth doing if only to eliminate this. You can find the procedure here.
And that is what I like about this forum. You don't have to do it all by yourself. After a couple of hours of looking searching forums for symptoms I ended up writing a carefully crafted story and got a link that helped with a procedure. I will do that later today, before ride to make sure the forks are good.

@DeanR It is not an Avon Storm. I'm double dark with a 175/60R-16 Goodyear Assurance Fuel Max SL in the back and a Bridgestone Rear Battlax BT45H 110/80H-18 Blackwall Tire in the front. Reason why I didn't mention this configuration is because the symptom wasn't always present. It could have been a tire pressure thing.

I hope the fix is the method for installation of the wheel before mentioned.

 
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I'd plan on an R&R of the forks.
There is no doubt at 25 years old with OE fork springs that something needs to be done inside the forks. The last time I had them apart and fresh fork oil change was a little over 2 years ago so we'll just have to see.
 

Andrew Shadow

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And that is what I like about this forum. You don't have to do it all by yourself. After a couple of hours of looking searching forums for symptoms I ended up writing a carefully crafted story and got a link that helped with a procedure. I will do that later today, before ride to make sure the forks are good.

I hope the fix is the method for installation of the wheel before mentioned.

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You did not mention in your original post what type of bike you had so I didn't realize that you were talking about an ST1100 until now when I saw it under your avitar. The front wheel procedure that I linked to is for the ST1300- not an ST1100.
 
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It's okay. At least having tried that method on my bike caused me to utilize squeezing the brakes at some point. I figure if it aligned the tire better before I tightened it down at the last point made the most logical sense.
 

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Have you re-torqued the steering head bearings since you last changed them? If they are too tight they can cause a wallowing sensation at certain speeds
 
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I've read a number of articles that say that running tires on a bike that are not recommended by the mfr (such as darkside tires) can lead to handling problems. I've also read a lot of posts here from guys who run car tires on their ST's that they have had no problems. Since the profile of the car vs. mc tires is so significantly different, I would suspect that it is possible your bike does not like the front tire. A more difficult fix than aligning the front forks would be to beg/borrow/steal (just kidding re the last) a mc tire in good condition and try it on the front wheel to see if that cures the wiggle.
 

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Not sure any of the conventional advice will be of much use. Honda didn't design the bike with DDS-ing in mind. I'd say most bets are off.


-Jeff
 
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Have you re-torqued the steering head bearings since you last changed them? If they are too tight they can cause a wallowing sensation at certain speeds
They were installed at a shop before I bought it.
 
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I've read a number of articles that say that running tires on a bike that are not recommended by the mfr (such as darkside tires) can lead to handling problems. I've also read a lot of posts here from guys who run car tires on their ST's that they have had no problems. Since the profile of the car vs. mc tires is so significantly different, I would suspect that it is possible your bike does not like the front tire. A more difficult fix than aligning the front forks would be to beg/borrow/steal (just kidding re the last) a mc tire in good condition and try it on the front wheel to see if that cures the wiggle.
Ran exactly the same tire for 31k miles. It would develop a slight wiggle accelerating out of a turn if it was lower on air.
 
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I have attempted some element of realigning the rim in the forks. Will give it the run around tomorrow and let you know what happened.
 
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I have a 91st1100 and have experienced this as well and also cornering while application of the brake. Retorqued head bearings and it helped... Not totally gone. Also tire pressure is a big contributor to this problem.

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It would probably help the overall performance of bike to refresh the suspension. Having experienced the difference between a weak factory suspension and a tuned or improved one... there is no going back. The tire wear problems went away on my 1100 and get much better mileage, the bike handles like a sport bike around curves and is very planted... no head shake, no surprises.
 
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I have a 91st1100 and have experienced this as well and also cornering while application of the brake. Retorqued head bearings and it helped... Not totally gone. Also tire pressure is a big contributor to this problem.

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Thanks for stopping by, I remember with 2 to 3 psi short of properly inflated the handlebars would slightly wiggle on a straight away at high speed. My ride yesterday was awesome, compared to the way it's been. Not riding many bikes, I remember a ride on a friends Hayabusa and the suspension from yesterdays experience reminded me of that. I don't know when I'll be able to get the springs out to take a look at them, but after 25 years of taking bumps and 2up, will probably need to do something about that. I will also have to research how to know my fork springs are performing. They don't travel too far when I push them down, they don't stick and they're not bouncy. I have a nice ride now, don't know if anything needs to be replaced. I'm away from my tools at the moment.
 

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Not sure any of the conventional advice will be of much use. Honda didn't design the bike with DDS-ing in mind. I'd say most bets are off.
+1

What do you mean by realigning the rim in the forks? And as the last thing you've done, how did that apparently fix the problem? I'm really curious about this DDS issue. TIA

John
 
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+1

What do you mean by realigning the rim in the forks? And as the last thing you've done, how did that apparently fix the problem? I'm really curious about this DDS issue. TIA

John
I followed this recommendation from earlier in this post https://www.st-owners.com/forums/showthread.php?76553-ST1300-Bike-Pulls-to-the-Right
For whatever reason when I followed it, I found that the pinch bolts weren't as tight as they should be. I also, when reinstalling the wheel after the new tire was mounted, never squeezed the brakes to hold the wheel in alignment before the axle bolt was tightened. I doubt though, there is a reason to do this as the races are responsible for where rim aligns between the forks. I could be wrong, I just don't know to the contrary.

I have also ordered these from ebay.

seal and dust cover
http://www.ebay.com/itm/All-Balls-56-132-Fork-Oil-Dust-Seal-Repair-Rebuild-Kit-/181794687317?fits=Model:ST1100&hash=item2a53cec955&vxp=mtr

bushing and spring clips
http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-All-Balls-Fork-Bushing-Kit-HONDA-KAWASAKI-SUZUKI-CBR-GOLDWING-VULCAN-/151597448361?fits=Model:ST1100&hash=item234be97ca9&vxp=mtr
I feel after 67000 miles they should be replaced when I inspect them rather then the time spent opening and cleaning them only to say, "Yep, those need to be replaced." Than have them replaced at a later time, and risk riding with less than satisfactory suspension. I could not, however, find anything for the anti dive overhaul, despite best efforts, any help would be appreciated.
 
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John OoSTerhuis

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Re: anti-dive overhaul -- look at the schematic in the service manual. Take the unit apart, inspect and replace damaged and worn parts. On mine, the lip of the piston had a piece of its seal that had broken off and was no longer fully seating/sealing. YMMV

John
 
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