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Buell Forum » Big, Bad & Dirty (Buell XB12X Ulysses Adventure Board) » BB&D Archives » Archive through April 01, 2014 » Steering head bearings « Previous Next »

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Deeds
Posted on Friday, March 21, 2014 - 05:29 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Failed a state inspection;steering head bearings need to be replaced. $340 job at the shop. How urgent is this issue? Before the inspection, I never noticed any foul play. '07 XBX

(Message edited by Deeds on March 21, 2014)
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Natexlh1000
Posted on Friday, March 21, 2014 - 08:33 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

They must be really terrible for an inspector to notice.
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Swampy
Posted on Friday, March 21, 2014 - 09:14 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I am really curious how they checked for worn steering head bearings.
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Etennuly
Posted on Friday, March 21, 2014 - 09:21 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Wow. What you would notice would be as you go from coasting to braking with the front brake, a looseness as the forks move back under braking torque. You would feel it in the bars. It would have to be quite bad to notice it.

I wonder if your mechanic was picking up on the front rotor pulsing. It can make the same feeling with the Uly's long suspension travel.

Sit on your bike, engine off in neutral, holding the front brake rock the bike back and forth to see if you feel a looseness or hear a clicking from that area.

Do the bars rotate left and right smoothly? You can get a little feel if they need retorqued. I have heard of rusted bearings on a couple of bikes. Given that they turn so little I cannot imagine a mechanic picking that up.

If you were to go to a HD Buell dealer for an inspection, and they said that a pulsing in the front brake was not safe, have them come back here to have "normal" explained to them. I argued mine for the entire duration of my warranty and ended up buying my own new rotor to fix the problem.
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Deeds
Posted on Friday, March 21, 2014 - 11:47 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I think I might pick it up and weigh my options before making a decision. Like I said, I've never noticed any notchyness or roughness when I turn the bars, even when I propped up the front end by the exhaust to sand my rotors the other week. They might've picked up on the front rotor pulse, but I am not too sure if they even ride the bike when inspecting.
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Jessemc
Posted on Saturday, March 22, 2014 - 06:21 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Your story reminds me of an experience I had some years ago,

My Suzuki VX800 with around 17K on the odometer "failed" an inspection because of "bad" swingarm bushings. I hadn't noticed any problem, but I had arrived for inspection an hour before quitting time and the guy who booked the job indicated that the mechanic wouldn't be pleased to have to do an inspection so late in the day. No kidding! He was a big guy and he used his considerable heft to find "play" in the swingarm. I ordered a set of bushings before I left and told him I'd take care of it.

I tested it later and there was no play in the swingarm and the swingarm bolt was torqued correctly. So, I picked up the bushings when they arrived, put them on the shelf and did nothing to the swingarm, and returned about 6 weeks later for re-inspection. The bike passed this time although the mechanic told me that, even though it was better than before, there was still some play in the swingarm! Even though I had liked the shop, that was my last inspection there.

Six months later, armed with the new bushings and new bearings in case they might be needed, I dropped the swingarm to grease the shaft. The bearings were fine, the bushings were in perfect shape with no scoring of any sort, and the new Suzuki bushings even felt a tiniest bit looser on the swingarm shaft. A local machinist confirmed the "looser" feeling but calipered the gaps and the new and old bushings were identical. Moral of the story: sometimes the mechanic is going to fail a bike, just because they can.
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Ourdee
Posted on Saturday, March 22, 2014 - 12:12 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Sounds like one of those $340 to do nothing scams. Would be a chance for a news agency to check on abuses of the inspection program in your state. They document and secretly mark the parts on your machine. You take it back and pay the $340, get the passed bike back and they check to see if work was performed.

The inspector should always have separate sleeping arrangements from the mechanic.
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Woodnbow
Posted on Saturday, March 22, 2014 - 12:16 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I'm glad Colorado doesn't foist this nonsense on us...
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Deeds
Posted on Saturday, March 22, 2014 - 12:34 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Alright, I might've been a bit too hasty. I got it home in one piece and upon closer inspection, they do seem like they need to be replaced. I guess I had never noticed it before because notchiness can only be felt at almost full lock. Very little saddle time since I bought it a month ago might have something to do with it, too.

Anyway, I bought a new set of AllBalls and once they come in, I will decide how to proceed.
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Sharkguy
Posted on Sunday, March 23, 2014 - 08:14 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Deeds, I would try re-torquing your head bearing first. My bike started to have a vague "wandering" feeling, it also would make a slight clicking noise if you pushed it in the garage then grabbed a handful of front brake. After following a procedure on here to re-torque the head bearing it was fine. You can do a search for it or maybe someone on here will respond with the procedure. Did you order the tapered bearing set or the stock?
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Deeds
Posted on Monday, March 24, 2014 - 04:51 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I got the tapered set from All Balls. I might have an inmate who's familiar with Ulysses and head bearing changes to help me swap out mine.
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Ourdee
Posted on Monday, March 24, 2014 - 09:50 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

My lower bearings were rusted bad when I changed them. It took some work to get the lower one out. When you put it back together, use extra grease.
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Pontlee77
Posted on Wednesday, March 26, 2014 - 03:08 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

put them in the freezer the day before installing wont be a miracle but helps a bit.
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Goldtooth
Posted on Thursday, March 27, 2014 - 11:08 am:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

Just put in the all balls bearings. Way better
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Deeds
Posted on Thursday, March 27, 2014 - 05:44 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

What size allen wrench is required for the steering stem bolt? Looks to be around a 12mm, but I want to be sure before I start collecting the right tools.
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Natexlh1000
Posted on Friday, March 28, 2014 - 02:38 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I don't think it's metric.
The suspension bits are Japanese and therefore metric but the chassis bits are SAE.
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Djohnk
Posted on Friday, March 28, 2014 - 06:41 pm:   Edit Post Delete Post View Post/Check IP Print Post    Move Post (Custodian/Admin Only) Ban Poster IP (Custodian/Admin only)

I also put in the all balls. Work great.

Had to use heat to remove the old (there are some notches so you can carefully pound them out with a punch or screwdriver), froze the new b4 I installed them.
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