Did you replace steering head bearings?

[Nick J]

Aside from a bit of play in the steering head, how do you know if the bearings are ready to be replaced? I don't have ANY play in my steering head, but the bike does seem to steer a little too easy. If I put it on the center stand and sit on the back of the seat raising the front wheel off the ground, the handlebars steer very easy with no tension what so ever. It's like if I could spin the handlebars around, they would spin forever. But like I said, there is absolutely no wobble in the steering head and I haven't noticed any difference in the driveability of the bike. Do you think I should take it apart and check the bearings out? I have just over 16,000 miles on it.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Just had it replaced last Friday night, plus purchased some Race Tech Springs and had them installed at the sametime, with heavier weight oil.
Total cost, parts and labor out the door.......$400

 

[Pyro]

Aside from a bit of play in the steering head, how do you know if the bearings are ready to be replaced? I don't have ANY play in my steering head, but the bike does seem to steer a little too easy. If I put it on the center stand and sit on the back of the seat raising the front wheel off the ground, the handlebars steer very easy with no tension what so ever. It's like if I could spin the handlebars around, they would spin forever. But like I said, there is absolutely no wobble in the steering head and I haven't noticed any difference in the driveability of the bike. Do you think I should take it apart and check the bearings out? I have just over 16,000 miles on it.

What I did, when I was very far from home, is put the bike on the centre stand and get a friend to push the back end down. If I grabed on to my forks and i could move them from front to back a little, maybe 1/4" or so. I'd say if your forks move at all it's a problem...

 

[Nick J]

What I did, when I was very far from home, is put the bike on the centre stand and get a friend to push the back end down. If I grabed on to my forks and i could move them from front to back a little, maybe 1/4" or so. I'd say if your forks move at all it's a problem...

Forks don't move front to back at all. Shouldn't there be at least a little resistance when turning the handlebars?

 

[regder]

Mine started clunking over bumps at around 12k km, finally got around to replacing them at 16 or 17k km and the bottom was completely corroded and pitted, the top bearings could have been cleaned up. Either way, replaced with all balls and they have been fine since which has been about 25k km and plenty of rain

 

[clsfly]

Mine were toast at 4900 miles, looks like the seal failed and would let moisture in. They were rusted, pitted and the ball bearing retainer was broken. replaced with roller bearings (All Balls), new seals and greased them well.

 

[Cochiez]

Where are you guys getting the all balls?

 

[04fizzer]

I replaced mine at 9000 miles, and boy did they need it!

 

[04fizzer]

Mine were toast at 4900 miles, looks like the seal failed and would let moisture in. They were rusted, pitted and the ball bearing retainer was broken. replaced with roller bearings (All Balls), new seals and greased them well.

They're not actually seals, they're just shields.

 

[08fz6]

Where are you guys getting the all balls?

any parts unlimited dealer can get them for you:

Parts Unlimited > STREET 2010

 

[MarinaFazer]

any parts unlimited dealer can get them for you:

Parts Unlimited > STREET 2010

I ordered them online and brought them in to the shop that did my steering.

 

[herbis]

Yup, mine were shot (corroded) at 10,000,the 04 t0 06 used ball races,06 on use taper rollers that fit straight in,Yamaha don't supply the earlier kit anymore.
the same but cheaper option if your seals are still ok is to replace the stock ball bearings with tapered bearings. here are the code numbers:

32005 for the top and

32006 for the lower bearing.

The code numbers are the same for Koyo and SKF

 

[racing_fan]

I have just had a call from my dealer that my bike failed its MOT caz the steering head bearings needs replacing...£220 is the cost quoted

Isn't that a bit too much??

 

[tjhess74]

i bought my 08 with just over 9k miles on it. i replaced the bearings with all balls tapered because the stock ones were low on grease and showing some corrosion (not near as bad as the pics in this thread!). the bearings were around $35 (available through my local dealership). the job took two hours, only the dash panels were removed (in terms of body panels), and i used a large flat tip screwdriver with a hammer to adjust the castle nut. with the new tapered bearings, it takes VERY LITTLE preload, so a few quick taps with the hammer was all it needed to set.

my 08 concours14 had bad ball bearing at 46k miles...it got the all balls treatent as well!

220 pounds? my brain convertor is rusty, but yes, thats too much.

 

[04fizzer]

I have just had a call from my dealer that my bike failed its MOT caz the steering head bearings needs replacing...£220 is the cost quoted

Isn't that a bit too much??

For all intents and purposes, $440?! That's insane!

Like the most recent post says, the bearings cost $35. That's $400 in labor! I'd either do it yourself, or find a new shop.

 

[Maverick]

I have 48K km on my 2007 and have not done them yet. I check then a couple of times a year and so far they seem fine. Looking at some of the pictures, the ones that go bad - really go bad... is it really obvious at that point, when you put the bike on the stand and push pull the forks back and frontward?

 

[04fizzer]

I have 48K km on my 2007 and have not done them yet. I check then a couple of times a year and so far they seem fine. Looking at some of the pictures, the ones that go bad - really go bad... is it really obvious at that point, when you put the bike on the stand and push pull the forks back and frontward?

I noticed it more while riding down the highway. It felt to me like it wanted to go into a tank slapper.

 

[Awin]

how to check the steering head bearings condition?
do we nid special tools to open the steerings for visual check or juz by feeling it throu riding?

 

[Smersh]

how to check the steering head bearings condition?
do we nid special tools to open the steerings for visual check or juz by feeling it throu riding?

If you have a centerstand, it's easy - get your bike on the centerstand, get your buddy to push down on the tail, so that the front wheel lifts up in the air. Sit down in front of the bike facing it, grab shock absorbers on both sides as low as possible, and try pull it toward yoruself/push away to see if there is any wobble. If you feel click, it's probably a good time to replace it.
If you don't have a centerstand, you need to get the front wheel up in the air somehow - use a jack or something - ask buddy to not only push down, but also hold the bike from falling on its side.

The symptoms i had while riding was clicking when breaking, wobbling, when riding at 30-40 mph and removing both hands (be very careful testing this one, unless you want to replace entire bike ), and weird feel in turns, like the bike wanted to turn more than i was pushing it to.

 

[wolfe1down]

I replaced mine at 6500kms. I have an '05, and it felt like the front end was clattering. Almost like going over a set of railway tracks at fast speed. The feeling evened out when hitting highway speeds, but was really noticeable on acceleration.

I replaced them with All Balls Roller Bearings. Awesome part, and cheap!

Edit: This is an older post (originally) but the symptoms and advice are good for anyone thinking their bearings are shot...