| Author | Message | ||
     Lloydxt |
I can hear a click on heavy breaking when I squeeze the brake lever and when I let it go. Is this the steering bearing or a brake issue? Thanks in advance | ||
| H2opatrol |
Is it under hard braking? Mine would click under hard compression and click again when I let off. Turned out to be neck bearings. | ||
| Tootal |
+1 on steering head bearings. Try loosening the lower clamp bolts on the triple trees. Remove handlebars. ( just set them down on a towel laying on the breather cover) Loosen the clamp bolt on the steering head nut. ( the chrome round allen nut) Now break loose the allen nut and retighten to factory torque specs. Tighten the clamp bolt. Tighten the lower triple tree clamp bolts. Install handlebars. If you still have the clicking sound then you need to replace the bearings. (Message edited by tootal on February 08, 2011) | ||
| Closetbueller |
check the torque of the caliper to the fork also. That is what caused the clicking on our 09 XT | ||
| Lloydxt |
Yes, fairly hard braking. Its one click when Im squeezing the brake lever and then one click when I let go. | ||
| Desert_bird |
... brake light switch in the housing of the lever? | ||
| Druelly |
Mine clicks every time I put any type of pressure on the lever. It has done that since my first ride on the bike. I bought it new with 6 miles if my memory serves me correctly (probably not). Druelly | ||
| Froggy |
The click noise can be a dozen things, see if you can listen closely to see where its coming from. It could easily be the switch, but it very well could be loose head bearings or something with the caliper and rotor. | ||
| Lloydxt |
Mine sounds like its at the steering head. It just started the other day. Im gonna try Tootal's & Closetbueller's suggestions this weekend. If I indeed do have to change the bearings, is it necessary to have the 3 tools in the manual (backing plate, race installer and forgot the other)? | ||
| Scottykrein |
My clicking was from a loose harness under the flyscreen. | ||
| H2opatrol |
Sounds exactly like what mine was doing, any update? | ||
| Portero72 |
Mine did something similar. A loosening of triple tree/front axle bolts and a 'settling' cleared everything up. | ||
| Etennuly |
My '06 X did the same thing back at around 8000 miles. Re-torqued the steering head bearings and it has been good since. That Tootal guy has it nailed!  | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
Steering head bearings need to be replaced. I have a post about this in the archives. Tipsy | ||
| Tootal |
That Tootal guy has it nailed!  | ||
| Blake |
Tipsy, Why would you say they need replaced?  I agree that they may need adjusted for proper preload. But not replaced. | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
Try adjusting them. If that works, have at it. Mine were shot. Tipsy | ||
| Gringo |
you guys scare me. i took my 09 xt in for regular service at 3k kilometers and when i got it back i had a clicking sound on applying front brake. like the rotor was chattering, nothing serious but different. now i gotta investigate. should mention that it seems to have stopped whatever it was, but i will investigate anyhoo. | ||
| Tipsymcstagger |
Chatter is not a word I would use to describe the sound of a failing or improperly torqued steering head bearing. In my case, as the front suspension was compressed under braking, there was a singular "click." Once stopped, as the forks would extend (unload), I would hear another singular "click." I would also hear the click while manually maneuvering into my parking spot (engine not running) which required turning the bars lock to lock. Again, just a singular "click" approaching each lock. Tipsy | ||
| Uly_man |
XB head race/stearing head bearings are ball race and not the normal taper roller type as on most bikes. As such they are not adjustable for wear and a mistake many make. Like any ball race bearing even minor wear will effect performance. | ||
| Etennuly |
XB head race/stearing head bearings are ball race and not the normal taper roller type as on most bikes. As such they are not adjustable for wear and a mistake many make. Like any ball race bearing even minor wear will effect performance Isn't it odd then that this adjustment would even be in the service manual.  | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
When you adjust the torque of the head bolt, you're just taking out slack, right? Is there a spacer in there like the axles have? | ||
| Lloydxt |
Thanks Tootal, I did the adjustment and click stopped. We will see for how long. I just got a set of bearings just in case from American Sportbike. | ||
| Tootal |
The bearings are called "high wall" or thrust bearings. They are made to work in only one direction and when you have two of them facing each other with the high wall to the outside they act like a thrust bearing in two directions. There isn't a spacer between them, you just tighten them to a torque spec. We use the same style bearings back to back to control thrust on a feed water pump for a boiler. They are much larger but same design and they work well. The pumps are five stage and pump 350 degree water at 750 psi! That stuff always amazed me. I mean, who was the first guy to figure out you can do that and then figure out how!! They were a lot smarter than me!!  | ||
| Lloydxt |
So I did the steering adjustment and re-torqued the rotor which seemed to work for a couple weeks then it just kind of got all sloppy in there. So last weekend I replaced the bearings. Harley quoted me 4 hrs labor but it only takes about 2 (not as difficult as I thought it was gonna be). I was gonna use the socket method for installation but came up with this...  I took the inner race and bearings out of the old bearing and used the outside race to tap them in.  Now Im sure Im not the first to do this but wanted to throw it out there because it worked out great! ...and no, I didnt take off the front module like the book says  |
