Steering alignment

mixalis82

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Hello all,

Right off the bat, my bike is a Yamaha 600 04'.

I seem to have a problem that appeared a few days ago during my summer vacation.

Cutting to the chase, the problem lies with my steering, I dont know how to put it exactly (not a native english speaker - also at work atm, gotta be fast:p), and now when I drive, I need to hold the steering (wheel?:p) slightly to the right in order to go straight.

I visited several Yamaha dealers after mine told me that this was caused due to the parking posistion the bike holds (stand being on the left side of the bike) and he actually locked the front wheel with his leg while pushing the stearing the other way as to align it (like I used to do with my bike 20 years ago:p). It seemed to work, but only for a few hours, where the steering was back to where it was prior to my visit to the dealership..

Another one told me about a possible front suspension system (forks) issue..

Anyone ever experienced something similar, is there some info I could use to detect the problem my self? I dont want to pay some dealership for a new steer or worse if its just in need of a bit screwing..

Thanks in advance.
 

FZ6-ZN

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It could be a simple fix, I don't know everything about it, maybe someone else can chime in with exact instructions. I think what happens is the forks turn inside the clamps. You only need to loosen the clamps till they "popped" and then torque the clamps. If it rides fine thereafter, i'd bet that the problem is fixed. If you're going to be loosening the triples, you will probably want to have it on the centre stand and supported. However, I don't think you have to loosen them all that much, you may be able to do one at a time and not have the fork move up the triples. Like I said, I have never done this, just know people that had the same problem after a crash.

FZ6-ZN
 

mixalis82

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Well that seems to be a possible solution, even though I wouldn't know the first thing about loosening the triples and such. If I was to just do what the mechanic did as I described earlier, and lock the front wheel while agressively adjusting the steering to the original position, would I hear a "lock" sound, if there is one (for indication that the forks went in place)?

thanks once again :D
 

mstewar1

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My bike got knocked over and this happened to me.

The previous poster was on the right track with loosening the fork crown bolts.

Here's how I did it:
Put the bike on the center stand.

--> Make a note -- take a picture or just eyeball it and remember -- of how much of your fork tubes are sticking out from your upper crown. Mine were level with the upper crown. This is important because when you undo the crown bolts your fork tubes are going to be able to move freely up and down. You'll want them to be in the same location (at the same height) when you're done unless you want to monkey about with the steering geometry.

Loosen the pinch bolts at the four crown locations -- top left and right, lower crown left and right. Don't back 'em all the way out, just get them loose enough so that you can easily work with the fork. You'll know if you've got them too loose as the fork will flop about, sliding up through the crowns, making it too difficult to do what you need to do.

If it's way out of alignment and you can see what you're doing from the front of the bike, then you can make lateral adjustments while you're standing with the wheel between your legs. (yep, just like you did on your bike as a kid...)
I got onto the seat and made the adjustments from there. I don't know how tall you are, but I was able to tap the front wheel with my foot to persuade it.

You'll definitely want to get on the seat to, at least, check your work. Just be cautious when you're getting on and off the bike while the bolts are loose as you can easily put your weight on the front wheel and then --- whooooop, there go your fork legs, right on through the crowns. Not a big deal, you just push them back down. But you get the point...

Once you've got it where you need it, torque the pinch bolts back to spec.

The reason that you'll want to undo all four bolts is that any one of them left tight will cause a tight spot and, essentially, a pivot point. If that's the one that's "causing" or holding it in the crooked attitude, you'll just be fighting for the desired end-result.
 

mixalis82

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Well, I'll better get going then, seems like a bit of a handful for me at least, as my mechanical skills and know-how are not top notch (not even:p)

Would have gotten to it ealier but I was forced to bed due to a ninja striken flew, didn't see it coming.

Thanks Again, all you guys for chipping in.!
 

mstewar1

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I'd encourage you to at least give it a shot. Ask a mechanically-inclined friend to come help/watch. Take your time.

The required tools are really only a, if I recall correctly, 6mm allan wrench (might be a 5) -- best if you use a socket so that you can put it on both a ratchet for disassembly and a torque wrench for assembly.

You're really only loosening four bolts.

I understand your trepidation but there's nothing quite like the feeling of accomplishment once you start to gain a real understanding of how to work on YOUR bike. You can get the manual for your bike on this site. And Sears is a great place to get the tools you need. You can do it.

Standard disclaimers apply... ;o)
 

mixalis82

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So, just to clarify before I do anything nuts,

Snap1.png


These are the bolts that I have to loosen right?

And that means that I have to remove the front cowlings too right?

Thanks :D and excuse my "not knowing stuff even if it concerns my own damn bike" :p

Mike
 

mstewar1

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The image didn't load for me. Maybe it's because I'm at work. I'll check it again tonight when I get home.

You shouldn't have to take off the cowlings to do this adjustment. I had to do this on my bike and was able to get to the four crown bolts with all of the plastic in place. Granted, you may have to maneuver the wrench so that you can get to a bolt here or there, but it doesn't require any extreme gymnastics to get it done.
 
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mstewar1

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There are actually only four bolts that you'll need to loosen. Bolt #1 in the image appears to be centrally located, perhaps near the steering head. You don't have to touch that one. That one appears as if it would loosen the fork assembly from the frame and we don't want to do that for this operation. Only the four that hold the fork tubes into the crowns.
 

mixalis82

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ok, just got it from a similar thread, these four then ..

6673d1218499687-alignment-handlebars-front-wheel-forkbolts.jpg


and now something that I forgot to add back when I opened the thread. The steering can go both ways out of alignment (both left and right). That doesn't change the problems nature does it?

Anyway, thanks a lot! mstewar1, you saved me a lot on fuel (running to and from various dealerships) and not needed payments.
 

mstewar1

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Yes, exactly, those are the bolts you're dealing with. And yes again, the steering can get knocked out of alignment in either direction.

Remembering to torque the bolts to spec once you've got it straight is vital to your safety, so please be sure to do that.

Now here's the here's the kicker: the spec for the bolts is usually such that it's tight enough to hold everything together, but it's also "loose" enough, such that, instead of causing the fork tubes to get bent in some kind of accident or tip over incident, it allows them to turn, as you've experienced here. It's by design.

The bolts must not be over-tightened because there are things inside the fork that need to be able to slide up and down easily. If we over-tighten the pinch bolts, we run the risk of causing the internals of the fork to not function properly and that would be bad.

But the bright side of all of this is that once you've had to deal with it, if it happens again, it won't be that traumatic -- you'll know exactly how to set 'em straight again.

I'm happy to help and hope you're able to get this sorted without some outlay of cash to a dealer.

michael
 

mixalis82

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and something as a sidenote, is a torque wrench really needed for this type of work (in order to know how much I need to tighten, close to yamaha specs) or I can do it without one? they are quite expensive from what i gather.

Thanks, I know, I've busted your chops over this but I'm feeling a bit better with all that know-how already.
 

mstewar1

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As I mentioned before about the fork tubes and such, getting these bolts torqued correctly is pretty important.

What you might do is get them tight, don't overdo it (um yeah, I know, how to judge that one...) and then ride your bike to a shop or dealer and -- after chatting up a tech -- ask them if they'd mind checking the tension on the bolts. I'm not advocating riding your bike with a loose fork! There's no way for me to know how to tell you how tight to get them, so be careful! If you get them a little too tight and then have them checked right away, that'd be better than a little loose. But still, get them checked directly.

It'd be really good on your part if you know what the torque spec is on those bolts when you ask him/her to check them. :eek:) It's in the manual.

No worries on the questions. I'm happy to help others learn. Please do be careful and double-check your work. If you take your time, I'm sure you'll do just fine.
 
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mixalis82

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Well, I came through with the task and all seems to be well. The steering is nicely aligned and with a normal amount of effort. When I got to the dealrship to have a look at the tension though, the guy there took it for a ride around the block and told me that it's ok, but I had to check it in sometime cause something on the plaque? below the steering is our of order (meaning that It needs to be straightened out cause it went crooked from a possible drop of my bike- when it all started).

He said that its no big deal, other than the bike if you let the steering go, "dives" to the left a bit which could cause problem in the far future.

At any rate, Thanks for all the help, I got quite the know how since I opened this thread :)
 
F

formula154

So, just to clarify before I do anything nuts,

Snap1.png


These are the bolts that I have to loosen right?

And that means that I have to remove the front cowlings too right?

Thanks :D and excuse my \"not knowing stuff even if it concerns my own damn bike\" :p

Mike

Thanks :D and excuse my "not knowing stuff even if it concerns my own damn bike" :p

The most knowlegable bike mechanic knew nothing about bikes untill he started learning about them.:thumbup:
 
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