[newhampshire]

I have a buddy with a brand new GW - it has had that head shake -hands on or off the bars - from day one - dealer has tried new tire and torqueing the head bearings - no help - he has washed his hands of it saying the shake is "inherited" whatever that means - I see from postings that some have had success with the All Balls - anybody have any success with anything without a major tear down / re build - or does he just start one thing then another - My '04 hasnt had a problem at all - hoping...........kenny

 

[Pigeon Roost]

do a search

 

[Arn Butt Bill]

Sometimes tire pressure helps.
Sometimes a different tire brand helps.
Sometimes tapered roller bearings.
Sometimes if you adjust your preload properly.
Some folks upgrade their suspension.

The only wobble I ever had was from a bad set of Metzelers and when my preload was too low.
My stock suspension wore out at 50,000 miles and I replaced it with Traxxion springs at 60,000 (or so) miles. I'm wobble-free and have a very comfortable ride. Stock bearings are still in the head and I run Metzelers.

 

[Red]

I had a new '04 that I let Honda screw with for almost 6 months. They couldn't fix it. Honda said it was my bike and my problem.

I now have a '06. It had the same "new bike" wobble. I gave in early and had the tappered head bearings installed. It solved the wobble but the front tire is wearing bad. I think some of these bikes have bad frames from the factory! If they don't know how to weld them, I doubt they can set them up in a jig correctly 100% of the time either! :x

 

[GL03]

could be the back tire, front, rims, balance? They all add to the equation. My third front tire now created a slight wobble at 32 mph. None before! 18,000 miles. Have to check my steering bearing for torque yet. But was fine until new tire!

 

[IR Harry]

Some do, some don't. Local dealer has one on the floor brand new they checked while doing the PDI. Wobbled. Put on new front tire and wheel. Less wobble, but still there. And I have one with 80K miles, still smooth as silk. Go figure. Most of the Traxxon upgrades have taken care of those that did wobble. But some are happy with different tires, tapered head bearings, fork spring changes, or just facing east.

 

[Red]

Most of the Traxxon upgrades have taken care of those that did wobble.

A $38. set of head bearings takes care of/hides the wobble! LOL... Don't need to spend $2,200 to hide it. :wink:

 

[5Ross]

Most of the Traxxon upgrades have taken care of those that did wobble.

A $38. set of head bearings takes care of/hides the wobble! LOL... Don't need to spend $2,200 to hide it. :wink:

Gee Red, I am glad soemone agrees with me... LOL>

Ross

 

[kevin burton]

Fit All Balls steering stem bearings & send the bill to Mother Honda & see if they will pay up.
If fitting these bearings cures the wobble people have, surely it proves the stock bearings are defective & Mother Honda should foot the bill.

 

[Red]

Fit All Balls steering stem bearings & send the bill to Mother Honda & see if they will pay up.
If fitting these bearings cures the wobble people have, surely it proves the stock bearings are defective & Mother Honda should foot the bill.

In my opinion the OEM head bearings isn't the problem. There's another problem, the tappered bearings just cover it up. I've had a few 18's. Most of them have been silky smooth. Two shook when new. Didn't find the cause on either one.

If you have to look for a wobble, you don't have a wobble problem.

Just My Opinion....

 

[Jack D]

I gained my hands on or off wobble when I installed new tires (no brand mentioned). Reinstalling the previous front tire completely cured the wobble but I had to put the new front tire back on for the cross country trip I was making. I tried over torquing the stock bearings, traxxion fork springs with the forks in the stock position in the triple clamps and tapered bearings torqued to the value that gave the correct pull on a spring gauge as per the manual. The thing that made the best (and only)improvement was the fork springs. YMMV, everybody else's has. I have new tires waiting to be installed. I hope the hands on wobble then goes away. I don't worry about the hands off deceleration wobble as I seldom decelerate with my hands off of the grips and I have had that on other Hondas.

 

[Roadie]

A $38. set of head bearings takes care of/hides the wobble! LOL... Don't need to spend $2,200 to hide it. :wink:

The suspension upgrade doesn't hide it, it cures it...but that's really just the icing on the cake with the upgrades, because the bike after the upgrade just works,rides so much better on any type of road, going fast or going slow, riding solo or two up, it's superior to the stock setup and makes the GL1800 just so much more fun to ride...but that's just my experence :lol:

BTW, it doesn't have to cost 2200 to have it either, if you know how to turn a wrench.

 

[Red]

A $38. set of head bearings takes care of/hides the wobble! LOL... Don't need to spend $2,200 to hide it. :wink:

The suspension upgrade doesn't hide it, it cures it...but that's really just the icing on the cake with the upgrades, because the bike after the upgrade just works,rides so much better on any type of road, going fast or going slow, riding solo or two up, it's superior to the stock setup and makes the GL1800 just so much more fun to ride...but that's just my experence :lol:

I'm curious why they install the tapered bearings instead of just using a upgraded ball bearing set with the trax upgrade. The 1800 handles so much better at slow speeds with the OEM balls. Do they install the tapered bearings to make sure the wobble is hidden? Maybe they install the rollers to get that dang jarring/hammering out of the front end which the rollers accomplish.

I've gotten used to the sluggishness of the roller bearings compared to the balls. When I ride someone elses 1800 with stock head bearings I can really tell the difference at parking lot speeds. I just think the tappered bearings hide a multitude of problems with the 1800 suspension or frame. To me the tapered bearings make the 1800 frt end feel 200 pounds heavier or like the frt tire is 15lbs low with air.

I would probably enjoy a trx setup. I just won't spend the money on a bike I won't keep that long. They handle and ride good enough for my 25-30,000 miles a year.

 

[Roadie]

Red
Maybe the steering is a bit slower with some who have the All Balls because they have them torqued too tight. I have mine set at 22.5ftlbs and I can't tell any difference in the steering effort between my bike and my friends brand new 06. Besides I don't think the decel wobble is caused by the steering bearing, rather the decel wobble is because the stock forks are nearly bottomed out with just the rider sitting on the bike. Any motorcycle will most likely wobble if you ride it with the forks bottomed out. Raise the front end up with some fork spring that can support the weight of this bike and most wobble problems will be gone. I have upgraded four 1800's that used to wobble on decel with suspension upgrades and all four are cured of the decel wobble.

 

[leaddog11]

I'm not as think as you drunk I am!!!

 

[Cal-D]

Why do some bikes wobble and some not. I have a theory, has anyone watched the Hands on History video where the guy follows an 1800 through the Marysville factory ? One thing struck me as funny in that video, remember where the guy checks the frame for alignment ? He said the frame was still warm from welding and if the alignment bar did not fit they would put the frame into a press and force it into alignment. I also remember Honda said not to hook up the rear suspension after frame re-welds until the frame cooled so as not to hurt the weld. Maybe this re-aligning of a hot frame in the factory has something to do with it. I wonder if there is any way to find out how many frames have been tweaked and how they correlate to the wobblers.

I could be totally in left field but that is just a theory.

 

[Dive Master]

A set of Avons cured mine. Sure the dealer changed out the front. Have him try the back and not the lops.

 

[rooksd1]

Try a different front wheel.

 

[mudbug]

ONCE AGAIN THE "WOBBLE" AS EVERYONE CALLS IT, is inherent in all two wheeled modes of transportation, some do it at high speed some do it a low speed, some do it upon deceleration. Did you ever watch the "Last Indian"? he tells you why it happens. Remember in the old days msot bikes had a steering damper, that is what is was for. Spend your money on what you want. Now Red's problems have been well documented he is the exception, I think his is caused by his wallet being too fat and throws the bike off balance. JMHO, no flames please.

 

[LarryM]

Why do some bikes wobble and some not. I have a theory, has anyone watched the Hands on History video where the guy follows an 1800 through the Marysville factory ? One thing struck me as funny in that video, remember where the guy checks the frame for alignment ? He said the frame was still warm from welding and if the alignment bar did not fit they would put the frame into a press and force it into alignment. I also remember Honda said not to hook up the rear suspension after frame re-welds until the frame cooled so as not to hurt the weld. Maybe this re-aligning of a hot frame in the factory has something to do with it. I wonder if there is any way to find out how many frames have been tweaked and how they correlate to the wobblers.

I could be totally in left field but that is just a theory.

Although it may seem odd to see a precision welded piece need that kind of treatment, all motorcyle frames go through an alignment process after they are welded whether they are tube steel or aluminum. Welding distorts the metal and sometimes they have to be tweaked back into position. If this was something out of the ordinary, they sure wouldn't let a TV film crew see it.