Erdoc48
Site Supporter
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2009
- Messages
- 1,441
- Age
- 59
- Location
- Myrtle Beach, SC/ Sometimes Colorado
- Bike
- 94/00/04 STs, FSC600
I got to work this afternoon- disassembly was pretty easy using an impact gun to loosen everything- then removing the steering shaft was also easy (had to get a 30 mm socket at Lowes)- removing the races from the stem was also easy using the Motion Pro race puller I bought months ago- I used a Dremel to cut the lower race from the steering shaft- loads of sparks but trying to tap it off wasn’t happening. So here’s the dilemma:
-when I installed the lower race, it seemed not to seat properly- I have a Motion Pro race press tool but it wasn’t long enough to accommodate the tightening nuts on the top and bottom- I tapped the new race (lower) using a hammer and the part of the tool that fit the race in an attempt to seat it- not good enough so I used the puller to remove it and try to reinstall it. Now, it’s seated (tapped a bit, then used the proper elements of the tool with a slightly longer threaded rod, washers, and large nuts to effectively make a press - these I got from Ace some time ago. Seemed to seat well and is below the outer rim of the steering head (meanwhile, the upper race was actually easy and quick to install and evenly seated- that just was hammered home and no issues)). In the front of the lower stem, it seems a little deeper than at the back, maybe a depth difference of 1-2 mm so not much. I placed the stem back in with the new bearing on it, and no issues. So it a slightly imperfect seating of the race but seems to function normally with the new bearing (obviously not tightened to spec yet). I tried several methods to seat the race just a little better including the press method, using the old race inverted to hammer it home (but I didn‘t want to use a screwdriver or chisel to hammer it out of fear of damaging the new race. No dice on any of the 3.
Question: Am I overthinking this and I can reassemble everything in the AM, or do I need again to pull the race in an attempt to ‘make it perfect’?
I don’t want to tear this down again after it’s all reassembled. The whole thing was precipitated by a ‘groink’ sound from the front end and it was suggested that maybe the steering bearings were toast. Actually the OEM bearings were in very good shape / lots of decent looking grease for 50K miles (I’m assuming never changed by the prior owner). Makes me think it’s an inherent sound in the forks I can live with if I know the steering bearings are good and well greased.
-when I installed the lower race, it seemed not to seat properly- I have a Motion Pro race press tool but it wasn’t long enough to accommodate the tightening nuts on the top and bottom- I tapped the new race (lower) using a hammer and the part of the tool that fit the race in an attempt to seat it- not good enough so I used the puller to remove it and try to reinstall it. Now, it’s seated (tapped a bit, then used the proper elements of the tool with a slightly longer threaded rod, washers, and large nuts to effectively make a press - these I got from Ace some time ago. Seemed to seat well and is below the outer rim of the steering head (meanwhile, the upper race was actually easy and quick to install and evenly seated- that just was hammered home and no issues)). In the front of the lower stem, it seems a little deeper than at the back, maybe a depth difference of 1-2 mm so not much. I placed the stem back in with the new bearing on it, and no issues. So it a slightly imperfect seating of the race but seems to function normally with the new bearing (obviously not tightened to spec yet). I tried several methods to seat the race just a little better including the press method, using the old race inverted to hammer it home (but I didn‘t want to use a screwdriver or chisel to hammer it out of fear of damaging the new race. No dice on any of the 3.
Question: Am I overthinking this and I can reassemble everything in the AM, or do I need again to pull the race in an attempt to ‘make it perfect’?
I don’t want to tear this down again after it’s all reassembled. The whole thing was precipitated by a ‘groink’ sound from the front end and it was suggested that maybe the steering bearings were toast. Actually the OEM bearings were in very good shape / lots of decent looking grease for 50K miles (I’m assuming never changed by the prior owner). Makes me think it’s an inherent sound in the forks I can live with if I know the steering bearings are good and well greased.
