The Gawd-Awful Wobble

[ringadingh]

My 66 Yamaha had a steering damper knob as well, It worked and was a simple fix. However in this day and age Im not sure if a manufacturer could get away with installing that type of a fix.
I think its easier for them to pretend that there is no problem.
Im surprised though that it has carried on through so many years of production without being addressed.

[dennis49]

The question still stands some do some don't. Like in my experiment I removed all torque from the bolt and still had no wobble at cruising speed and at deceleration. There are tons of bikes with so many variables added to the front ends with larger lowers, windshields; fairings ext. all which can affect the handling of the bikes. People don’t understand that you can’t always just change designs without affecting something.

It all boils down to this the bike is actually being steered by the rear wheel when the bike is stable, if the bike is not in perfect alignment with the front tire, then momentum will try to straighten the wheel by pushing against the edge of the contact patch causing problems. This is why in my honest opinion the problem is only being masked by over torque, dampeners and on and on.

I have had one Wing and it never had a wobble, nor have any of my Harleys I agree this actual problem, I need no convincing of this. All I am saying is the wobble is not caused by the torque of the tree clamp bolt. These frames are mass produced and there can and to me obviously are alignment problems with some of these Nomads. Most of my friends ride Harleys and not one of them have a wobble problem, could this be because of tighter manufacturing standards and frame design, I would assume this to be the case.

I purchased my Nomad because of a co worker who has had three Vulcan’s and non of his have ever had a wobble problem even after changing tires, this is why I will never be convinced that this is just some normal phenomenon with the torque of the triple clamp on only some Nomads or should I say Vulcans.

[thedude]

Well, here's an update to my wobble. After having the service performed, I rode the bike home and only had a very slight wobble only on decel without hands on bars at around 35 to 40. I rode the bike to work today and the slight wobble is now way more pronounced. I experimented and it happens around mainly 35 to 40 mph on both decel and acceleration. It gets bad enough that the feeling is if you don't grab the bars the bike may go domn. Not as violent as before the service, but definitely still there. I guess I'll take it back to the Harley dealer to see what they say since I just paid them to fix the wobble. If they want to try again on their dime, I will let them. If not, I will sell the bike. I love this bike, but I can't seem to enjoy riding it when all I wan to do is see if it will wobble if I let go of the bars. Yeah, I know, "don't let go of the bars and deal with it." Easier said than done. I don't want a bike that wobbles, period! Very bummed right now. I was really hoping I didn't waste $$$ just to still have a wobble, but I did. Ugh!

[ringadingh]

Dude, I know how you feel about your wobble, its aggravating that for some it doesn't seem to get fixed. Take it back and ask them to tighten the bearings some more. My only concern with doing this is that you could be shortening the life of the bearings and races by doing this.
In my case its a nuisance to have to pull off the fairing and everything else to get at the bearings. I'll give it another attempt the next week or so and see if I can fix it. I know installing a new tire usually corrects it for a while, but thats not the right fix in my mind.

[cactusjack]

I guess I'll take it back to the Harley dealer to see what they say since I just paid them to fix the wobble. If they want to try again on their dime, I will let them. If not, I will sell the bike.

I'm sorry to hear this. Too bad you're aren't closer, I'm sure I could fix the wobble for you.

[thedude]

Originally Posted by cactusjack

I'm sorry to hear this. Too bad you're aren't closer, I'm sure I could fix the wobble for you.

Yeah, I wish I was closer. :) Thanks for the thought.

[thedude]

I've decided to just live with the wobble, and try to stop even thinking about it. I was going to have them tighten the steering some more, but after putting it up on a lift, I decided no. I lifted the front end, pushed the bars to one side, and they no longer fell and banged the stops. It took much more pressure than before to move the bars, so I don't want to tighten any more.