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Front end feels a little squirmish, remedy?

Spiff

Spiff

Forum Mentor
Hi there good folks!
I took my recent project bike (83 GSX1100ES) out for a short blast after doing some slight carb work and to check for oil leaks and other stuff....

The bike was cruising along good so I went and pushed it pretty good through some sharp turns and fast sweepers but I noticed the front end felt a bit squirmish and was wallowing or something, not sure it just didn't "feel right" compared to my other bike.
I ran my GS750 the same route a couple of weeks ago and I'm 99% sure it behaved perfectly.
So the only differences are the GS has progressive springs, a tarozzi fork brace and bridgestone tires. But the GS behaved real good before installing the fork brace too.
The GSX front end is stock with the spring preload and damper setting stock. It also has some asian tyres i've never heard of, and I think they're old.
Front fork seals was replaced some weeks ago so oil is good. It's the same oil in the gs too.

So where do I go from here?
I think the stock settings are 1 on the spring preload and 2 on the dampening adjuster if I remember correctly.

PS: I know some newer springs or progressive springs would probably make a great improvement but I need to work with what I currently have now so please keep that out of the discussion. (for now)
 
Could be in the front end , but also check your swing arm bearings, they will make a bike wallow and want to standup in a turn.
 
Could also be the old no-name tire -- I think it would be well worth replacing the rubber in any case.
 
bwringer said:
Could also be the old no-name tire -- I think it would be well worth replacing the rubber in any case.
Click to expand...

I know, I'm just not sure if I'm keeping the bike thats why I've been holding of on it.
But okay I'm gonna check the air pressure 'cause I've totally forgotten about it and I'll also check the swingarm bearing.

But I'm thinking, I'm around 88-90kg, probably closer to a 95-100 kg depending on the amount of riding gear. These bikes are probably set up for lighter people stock am I right?

The little knob on the bottom of the fork controls damper REbound am I right?
And this controls how fast the fork returns to it's stock position ?
The spring preload just compresses the spring more, so turning it in increases the preload and stiffens up the front fork right?
Should these two be set somewhere in relation to each other?
 
Bizarre. You complain about its handling, get good feedback, and then defer to doubts about keeping the bike. What is the logic in this agenda?
 
Spiff said:
Hi there good folks!

PS: I know some newer springs or progressive springs would probably make a great improvement but I need to work with what I currently have now so please keep that out of the discussion. (for now)
Click to expand...

By leaving out this critical component, the advice you got so far is about it. You will only get so far in the attempt of fixing your situation.
 
GS1150Pilot said:
Bizarre. You complain about its handling, get good feedback, and then defer to doubts about keeping the bike. What is the logic in this agenda?
Click to expand...

Well, I got the bike dirt cheap and the plan was to fix it and use it this season as a 2-up bike for me and my gf since my GS got cafe'd while I save up some money for a newer ride, problem is there is a guy selling a pretty clean Hayabusa a couple of blocks down from me now, which is sporty, and it can carry 2 persons with more comfort than a pure sport bike which I was planning on buying. So now I'm in kind of in a clinch her, do I sell it now and hopefully make a small profit or at least get my money back to partially fund the 'busa or do I hold off and save money and buy a 'busa next year whitout a loan. Or do I buy it and have three bikes:-\\\ My girl would go nuts but probably only for a short while :p
Anyways I don't want to sell a bike with handling issues, and I doubt it's gonna sell the instant I put out an ad so I wan't it to ride good while I have it 'cause even though it's no beauty I still got a big grin when I took it for a test ride the other day. Just a few small fixes and technically it's good!

mrbill5491 said:
By leaving out this critical component, the advice you got so far is about it. You will only get so far in the attempt of fixing your situation.
Click to expand...

Thanks, we'll see what I do


Big T said:
Ditto

Do your tires come with a date stamp?
Click to expand...

Yes, I believe so but I can't remember what they said.
 
Well, you're definitely going to need new tires if you don't want to sell an unsafe bike, and there are multiple other points you need to consider. If you want a Busa, get a Busa. Everyone and his uncle has one of those, but hell, if that's your cuppa, drink up.
 
Spiff said:
The little knob on the bottom of the fork controls damper REbound am I right?
And this controls how fast the fork returns to it's stock position ?
The spring preload just compresses the spring more, so turning it in increases the preload and stiffens up the front fork right?
Should these two be set somewhere in relation to each other?
Click to expand...

NO. The adjustment on the bottom of the fork is compression damping.
 
slayer61 said:
NO. The adjustment on the bottom of the fork is compression damping.
Click to expand...

Are you sure? The stuff I've read says these bikes have rebound damping :confused:

GS1150Pilot said:
If you want a Busa, get a Busa. Everyone and his uncle has one of those, but hell, if that's your cuppa, drink up.
Click to expand...

Maybe in your part of the world, not here.... I have considered the balckbird also, but I think it looks dated, I've considered the zx14 but that's way out of my price league, so that leaves the busa...

Charlie G said:
Have you tried playing with the adjustment of the rear shocks?
Click to expand...

No not yet, I haven't had the time to do anything yet. I got some hours time off tomorrow to play around with...


I just noticed in the manual that recommended fork oil is 15W. I used 10 since that was what came with the bike. Should I replace with 15 ?
 
If you truly want to fix the handling, you should do the following. And do it all, not just some of it:
Replace the front springs with either Progressive or Sonic springs.
Replace the fluid with 15W fork oil.
Replace the tires with fresh, current tires. Avon RoadRiders are a favorite for price vs. performance.
Anything less will yield unsatisfactory handling.
 
Spiff said:
Are you sure? The stuff I've read says these bikes have rebound damping :confused:?
Click to expand...

Copied from the motorcyclist website...
Fork Rebound
Most rebound adjusters for the fork are located on the fork cap. Note that Showa components often use stepless adjusters, indicated by the punch marks, one on the adjuster and another adjacent. To find the baseline settings, run the adjuster all the way clockwise and then turn outthe specified amount. On most new Hondas, the baseline setting is found by turning the adjuster all the way in and then back out until the punch marks align, and then out a farther full turn. Useful increments for this type of fork are often a quarter or an eighth turn. Incidentally, the word "ten" on the label has nothing to do with the number of adjustments; it signifies "tension," which is just another way of describing rebound damping.


Fork Compression
Front-end compression clickers are almost always found on the bottom of the fork leg. Showa 's compression setup is stepless (as with rebound), and the baseline setting is often all the way in plus one turn beyond the first alignment of the punch marks.


Read more: http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/howto/adjust_motorcycle_suspension/#ixzz30JMd26gv
 
If you look at the photograph below, from the Race-Tech website, you could see how an adjustment at the bottom of the fork leg tunes your compression damping.
3-8-500.jpg
 
I checked the air pressure today and found only half of what was supposed to be in the rear tyre. So I pumped it up and that made all the difference, handles much better now. I suspect thats what caused the bike to feel like it did.
Also set suspension sag properly, its stiffer now in the front, haven't messed with dampening yet, thats still on setting 2.

Tyres are old LongCheng, made in Taiwan! Heard of it? Thought so.... :rolleyes:
Rear tyre dot code reads 515 and front reads 186, so they're real old! Still goes like stink though! Also makes lots of pretty white smoke when doing burnouts :D

Steering bearing is good! I tried to check the rear swingarm but I'm a little uncertain about the result.
I put it on the center stand and held the bike with one arm while trying to move the swingarm with my other, but the whole bike wanted to move around so I'm not sure if I saw slack or if I just imagined it...
 
Unless you know that your tire pressure was good, it is pointless to wonder why your bike doesn't handle. Low tires feel like crap, especially on the front.
 
If you want good information from the internet, don't ask questions. Just post mistakes.

Good information here.
 
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