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Front fork bearing

Started by bobrk1, April 16, 2022, 03:25:42 AM

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bobrk1

I have  a  12 limited  with  78k  on it I've  done  the  lift and  slam the  handlebars  to  the  side  like  the  manual  said  years  ago  and  it  seems  ok stopping  quickly . Just  wondering  if  I  should  pull  front  end  apart  and  check  bearing  or wait  until  100k.

SP33DY

The service schedule calls for lubing the bearings at 40,000 miles and adjusting at 50,000 and 100,000 miles.

barny7655

depends on what roads your riding on , as to condition of the bearing cups ,rough roads ,should show pitting ,as the bearing is just used in a semi circle ,it doesnt wear the way it was designed to be used for ,if doubting it pull it apart and while your there replace it , clean all the excess grease , re lube with a good marine wheel bearing grease your right to go ,off road bikes over the yrs have replaced head neck bearings all the time , i use timkins, or any good bearing , SKF, there are alot of good bearings out there ,lets us know the out come ?
riding since 62, BSA bantum the first bike

mkd

bobrk1, neck bearings can develope a tick and may be noticeable when rotating the handlebars full right to left or vice versa. the tick developes when the bearings become loose and the front steering post chucks front to back in the bearing races from braking and riding .Eventually the chucking developes into a flat spot in the race and can be felt. More prone to happen on the fl springers but can happen on any bike. I would position my bike up on the craftsman jack so the front end is clear of the ground, swing the front end right to left and get a feel for how free moving it is.Then tighten the neck bearings a bit at a time and check for increase resistance as i rotated the handlebars full right to left . Once i felt a slight amount resistance i would stop. Another way is to check the fall away with the bike on the jiffy stand. by rotating the bars to the left from center you can compare when the front end falls to the lock.My fl springer was easy to test this way because the front end was so heavy. When the front end is adjusted take it out for a ride and see how it turns as compared from before . Another observation for all three of my fl's was when rolling to a stop from speed i would put a very lite grip on the bars and see as it coasts down from speed if the front end starts to shimmy. My 88 Fl did this as well as my  98 fl springer and I was able to eliminate the shimmy by a slight adjustment to the neck bearings. You will know if you get the bearings too tight but by adding a small amount of resistance to the in air front swing you can get it pretty close. i always thought too loose was more harm than a bit tight. once i was happy with the final swing adjustment i greased the bearings. I had manuals for all my bikes and the procedures for adjusting the friont ends were all written in detail. Removing cables and break lines so everything was free swinging. Found by paying attention to detailalot of what the manual stated wasn't necessary to follow.