wind effects

[joedrum]

ok ...went riding today ...it rathet obvious to me...the hooch bike gets in trouble almost everytime under hard throttle .....srrms to me a bike should get better at speed instead of worse.....im thinking the vetter fsring hooch has or even honfa faring both take the weight and burn more gas at speed cause the wind is actually lifting the bike ogf the atground along with going down the road....seems to mr speed should at least keep thr weight of bike front wheel the same as sitting still.....maybe this is the biggest favtor why crotch rockets handle so much better.....so im thinking it might br my best move to redo faring shape...or membet 4444 had a crotch rocket faring in stalled on his 1100 ...looked good.....but it it seems to me ...it might be a super safty thing to do ....comments please

 

[slabghost]

You may be right but without a wind tunnel to test it's just best guessing as to what's better or worse. Adapting more recent design bodywork may indeed help but few have the protection from wind that you have now.

 

[dan filipi]

What are you feeling under power?

 

[joedrum]

death wooble light on front forks .....seems bikes to be pushed down some on forks at speed ....nor lifted up...

 

[dan filipi]

Well, geometry of the bike is changed with different final drive, swingarm, rear and front wheel, no fork brace, different engine.... I suppose.

Is the front wheel and tire assembly spin or at least bubble balanced?

 

[mcgovern61]

Joe, I had a high speed wobble with my Vetter faring. I could be wrong, but it doesn't look like you have a fork brace on hooch. With the weight of the faring, you really need the fork brace.

My wobble was from slightly loose steering head bearing (less than 1/4 turn) and my front springs were/are shot. Adding up to 14 lbs of air to the front forks helps a bit.

 

[Denver]

Wheel bearings can make the front end have some bad feelings as well. :wave:

 

[desertrefugee]

I agree with the general consensus here. The faring is not causing your issues. And I wouldn't be too quick to suggest a fork brace until everything else is been optimized. If you are having issues straight line and smooth pavement, a fork brace will probably not help you. Better to confirm bearings and fork damping are operating normally. It's even possible from bad acting swingarm geometry to create headshake conditions.

I added a fork brace to my 78 and saw very little difference (like basically none) in handling.

Whatever it is I hope you get it sorted out. Death wobbles and tank slappers are no joke.

 

[slabghost]

I'd check the steering bearings and look for any flat spots on the rollers. Wait a minute. This being a 78 it may have ball bearings.If so. The bearings are not that expensive. Probably best to just replace them and go from there.

 

[Ansimp]

+1 on the Vetter ( windjammer 3) not being a problem in my experience at 105mph (GPS) on the Rats Nest coming down the Black Hills ( SD ) to Newcastle Wy trying to keep up with my brother Kim on his 2012 Road King :hihihi:

 

[ekvh]

Longer swingarm does change the rake and trail a little bit, but you'd think the length would help. I've found two things contribute to the high speed wobble on mine. One was worn swingarm bearings on just one side. The other was fork tubes not being exactly the same height in the triples.

A lot of possible causes. Hope you find it. Finding a set of 1200 forks would be nice.

 

[Omega Man]

I'm with V(and the others) on this Joe, new head bearings cured my slow speed wobble. Never had a problem at higher speeds. Could be the handlebar bearings but a quick Google search finds them unavailable at this time. :?

~O~

 

[joedrum]

hmmmmm ok great posts.....ive been dealing with this awhile....tripple tree bearing are great so is wheel and bearing ......springs are quite stout in forks .....now as eric said swingarm bearing arr also tight and no slop....being a 1000 frame rear wheel center is adjustable andhas been....all the loose enfs stuff is done well......there is slight off set in 1200 final drive set up...but this is true on 1200s stock too...this might be a contributor.....this is the only thing i know for sure not right......the hooched out bike is in a class all its own .....seems like right now it has no equal.....

so my next move may be to look into possible rear wheel move to make tracking perfect.....it might be ok by honda to havr this off ......but i dont salt flat riders have off tracking going on .....

 

[Ansimp]

I am inclined to think that is steering head bearing pressures, as the Rats Nest started doing this wobble when I remove my hands from the bars when I am slowing down ( if I set the throttle lock/cruise I don't have a problem atm) and the Valkyrie is doing the same thing. As the steering head bearings have been replaced recently ( that's what the dealer invoice says) I am inclined to think that it is an adjustment issue on both bikes.

 

[joedrum]

i really havr no problem with bike unless under hard throttle....it seems to ride no hands quite well......but i am going to stiffen forks with a fender fork brace combined mod .....a bike like this just cant have such a problem with its power it has.......seems to me a bike shoulf get better at speef not worse......thats my goal here....

 

[jpwinger]

Maybe dyna beads in front and rear tiers would help if the problem is just at certain speeds or just over certain speeds. Just a thought. And with the car tier on rear you may need to use a little more than for a smaller tier. Jerry

 

[joedrum]

jerry it seems fine really and handles great in all normal conditions ...just in hard thottle it goes woobly

 

[dan filipi]

Have you tried different tire air pressures?

 

[joedrum]

yes it seems car tire likes 40 plus air or its spongey....front tire wearing great ....its up there in pressure too but lrss than 40......i really think it mote about weight tranfer to the tear of bike unfer hard thtottle...as oppose to something wrong adjusted.......but who knows just trying to collect opinions to consider a direction to fix it wildness under thtottle.....right in the power zone of third gear it gets funky......

 

[Fstsix]

Had some rear wobble a few times just over 100mph , thought it was my Car tire and air pressure , tried different air pressures and still felt like it was swaying in the rear removed it and put a Motorcycle tire back on still did a couple times , Guess what ? For the first time last summer i took my Windscreen off for a couple months and went Naked ! haha...Well No wobble at 100 + with Shield off....Got hit in the forehead with my first Japanese Beetle or something massive !! Maybe a bird !! haha , Anyway must be some aerodynamic push on the front steering transferring to the rear, Checked the steering head and rear shock bushings were ok also . Joe Could be your fairing, Burt Monroe had to put his Head Up on his Indian :BigGrin: