ST1300 Front end squeak

I had the identical sound on my 2009 this month. I loosened the four bolts on the fork that pinch the axle to the forks, and retightened. This eliminated the squeal. Same sympton - independent of engine speed and braking.

Good luck.
 
Here's an outside curve ball: Could it be air coming under the windshield and causing the dash trim squeal? Pretty annoying on mine until I figured it out and corrected it. There is a small gap between the black dash trim and the nose cowl that wind would get into and cause a whistling noise.
 
1300Granger said:
I had the identical sound on my 2009 this month. I loosened the four bolts on the fork that pinch the axle to the forks, and retightened. This eliminated the squeal. Same sympton - independent of engine speed and braking.
Click to expand...

If that is the case, it suggests that something on the axle bolt wasn't clamped properly and that something was turning when it shouldn't be. That is useful information that the sound matches what @esdinges was describing.

The only things that could have been rotating against the forks to cause the squeal are the axle itself or the left and right spacing collars.

I hope that you re-torqued the main axle bolt ? I assume that you did, but you didn't say - so for other looking in: just undoing and retightening the axle pinch bolts will not solve the problem. I agree that the noise might be made to go away for a while, but if the collars and bearings were not clamped tightly against the right fork leg - which is one reason why the collars might be turning - they will still not be clamped together after re-tightening the pinch bolts.

Alternatively, if it was the axle itself that was turning, then the pinch bolts were not torqued properly. But as the axle was turning forward, (that is anticlockwise viewed from the left hand side of the bike) it would have been unscrewing itself in relation to the main axle bolt on the right hand side. So even if it was originally torqued correctly, it wont be now.

The answer is to undo the pinch bolts, slacken the axle bolt and follow the correct sequence from the start.
 
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After much delay, the squeal is gone!!!

Thanks to everyone who has responded on this thread. I would also like to thank Mr. Larry (IGOFAR) for his help over the phone as well. It is amazing how much Larry knows about the ST1300s. Larry had pointed out some issues common to the ST and was very detailed in his communication on how to correct the front end alignment issues that I thought was just part of the bike. He along with the animation posted / linked by member jfheath shed a lot of light on the installation process of installing the front axel the correct way.
What I discovered was my front axel would not easily slid in, between the forks, with the front tire removed. There was some misalignment issues as the axel would literally have to be pounded in and out for removal and installation. Larry informed that this would cause the bike to track to one side if hand were removed while riding. This has always been the case since I purchased the bike in 2006 and jus thought that was the way it was. Also, once the wheel was removed, I discovered that the left hand dust seal was "chewed up". I have attached a photo. Apparently, the left hand spacer was installed backwards (the narrow end was inboard). The axel when viewed on the left side of the bike was protruding approximately 1/8 of an inch.
Once the wheel, brakes and fender where removed, I used Larry's advice on how to adjust the alignment of the forks for easy axel installation and alignment. (Removing the hard brake lines between the forks was key for this) Checked all mating surfaces were free of any burrs as well as the condition of the wheel bearings. All were smooth and free of defects. I waited about a week for my replacement dust seal to arrive and installed.
I used the animation posted linked by member jfheath, in conjunction with the Honda Service manual and installed the axel to the front wheel.
This morning I finally had an opportunity to take the bike out for a ride. There was absolutely no noise coming from the wheel (rode for 1 hours and 30 miles). What was amazing was, aside from the lack of squealing noise, is how the bike handled. After aligning the fork/axel relationship, the bike handled like it was on autopilot. Absolutely no pull to one side and just felt amazing!
I feel like I have a new ride!
Now if I could just do something about the heat coming from the engine onto my lower legs and ankles ...
 

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  • Front Wheel LH Dust Seal.JPG
    Front Wheel LH Dust Seal.JPG
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Good job finding your problem.
Good luck with the heat. I've tried all the known tricks on here and still find it's too much for my liking. I think I reduced the heat a little, but it's still warms my legs. Perfect for spring and fall riding around here though. :)
 
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