Vibration

[graysky]

Hey guys,

I need some help with the vibration problem. I've searched and read as many of the posts as I could find about this.

My problem is that I can only ride about 7 to 20 miles before my right wrist starts to get sore, then tingly, then numb. If I stop for a couple of minutes and shake out my wrist, it gets better, but as soon as I start riding, it comes right back.

The bike is a 09 and I bought it new in July of 2010 and put about 1450 miles on it and I figured it would get better over time. I was wrong. I replaced the grips with gel Pro Grips and added HVMP heavy bar ends. No improvement. I synced the throttle bodies, made sure the chain is adjusted right and torqued the engine mount bolts. No help. The bars vibrate at any rpm above idle and 6K + is worse, especially at WOT.

In comparison, my sons 06, with Scorpion cans, only has the normal vib at 5 to 6K, smooth everywhere else. He's ridden it and said he thought the vibes were pretty bad.

So, if anyone has any ideas, I'd like to hear them because a for sale sign is next as its no fun to ride.

 

[skooter65]

From my experience; The "numb-hand" and "sore-wrist" were result of slight vibration coupled with poor wrist position with the stock bars. The latter being the main culprit. Before you sell, I would suggest popping on a set of aftermarket bars. I have tried the FZ1 swap, a set of Pro-Taper, and a set of Renthal Street bars; all of which drastically improved the ride comfort. In the end I stuck with the Rethal's as they fit my stature and riding position best. Also, Renthal (& Pro-Taper) use a Cross-bar design which all but eliminates the vibrations at my hands.

 

[DownrangeFuture]

Yep, I usually notice when my wrists/hands are sore that my knees aren't in the tank. Generally just a little tighter sqeeze takes the pressure off and I'm good again.

Other than that, and what was suggested, I'd make sure stuff is tightened down properly. I run the Rizoma handlebars myself. They helped alot with the vibrations.

 

[graysky]

From my experience; The "numb-hand" and "sore-wrist" were result of slight vibration coupled with poor wrist position with the stock bars. The latter being the main culprit. Before you sell, I would suggest popping on a set of aftermarket bars. I have tried the FZ1 swap, a set of Pro-Taper, and a set of Renthal Street bars; all of which drastically improved the ride comfort. In the end I stuck with the Rethal's as they fit my stature and riding position best. Also, Renthal (& Pro-Taper) use a Cross-bar design which all but eliminates the vibrations at my hands.

Thanks.

I forgot to include that I changed the stock bars for stock FZ6R bars, which have less sweep. They are more comfortable, but the vibs persist.

 

[Motogiro]

My experience and perception of tingly hand is always the right hand and never my left hand. I attribute that to holding the throttle in a specific position and not from vibration. I would say when I'm conscious of my grip and relax it a little the tingly hand goes away. I think it has to do with blood flow more than anything else. Like when you sit on your leg funny and your foot or leg fall asleep. That's blood flow. It's your body's way of telling you circulation has been interrupted. I believe that's why those "Cramp Buster" levers are so successful. If you are only experiencing it in your right hand it's probably not just your riding position. Try to change how you grip.

 

[cap'n]

All of the usual solutions break down when you say your son's bike is totally fine and even he agrees yours isn't. There, I am stumped, unless it's the scorpion cans. Maybe switch them to your bike for a weekend...?

 

[Erci]

You already have one of the best bars for comfort, imo and the heavy bar ends.. so we know that's not the issue.

1. Check that top clamp is properly torqued. Front 2 bolts should be tightened first in an alternating pattern so that the lip of the clamp makes contact with the upper crown. Then tighten the rear bolts in the alternating pattern. All bolts should be torqued to 17 foot pounds.

2. As has been mentioned, make an effort not to grip the bar too tight.. use your knees against the tank and your core to hold yourself in place.

3. How good are your riding gloves? Have you tried riding another bike with same gloves on for 20 miles?

I can't deny that FZ6 is somewhat buzzy, but I have no issues riding it for 5-6 hours and the more experiences I gained the less vibes I would feel (loosened up my grip on the bars).

 

[graysky]

All of the usual solutions break down when you say your son's bike is totally fine and even he agrees yours isn't. There, I am stumped, unless it's the scorpion cans. Maybe switch them to your bike for a weekend...?

Actually had a local shop recommend the same thing, Its a lot of work, so I'm thinking of just taking the muffler off and firing it up straight and see if helps the vibs. I guess pissing off my crappy neighbors will be a freebie bonus.

 

[Powerman]

I had a similar problem with my 08. I loosened all the engine mounts to let the engine settle in the cradle then re-torqued them all. Now I only have the small buzz at 5k rpm.

 

[McLovin]

I had the same issue, bad vibs, numb hands. Its no fun.

These are the steps I took to fix this issue.

Loosen your arms, elbows and your grip. When you get on the freeway shake your arms to feel that they are completely relaxed. Huge difference if you use your legs to squeeze the tank and take the entire weight off your arms.

Adjust your throttle slack, give it some slack! This will make a huge difference. The shorter the slack, the tighter the spring will feel. I like my throttle tight so I adjusted my slack late one night and gone on a ride the next day. The whole day riding, I was thinking maybe my wrist is injured or I am extremely out of shape or something, My wrist was sore to the point I had to pull over. The slack was too tight.

Have aftermarket pipes on? If the pipes are touching the frame directly you will get a lot of handlebar vibration. Try to pad the connection points if you have loud pipes tightly fitted. Loud noise = Vibration I put my 2bros on with lots of padding between pipes and the frame and it helped.

Get some loose diving weights. Cut it but careful not inhale the lead dust. Pour it into your handlebar until its completely filled. Heavier handlebar makes a huge difference.

All these combined improved my ride a lot. If none of these fix your issue, I would look for the cause somewhere else. Something engine related.

 

[motojoe122]

My experience and perception of tingly hand is always the right hand and never my left hand. I attribute that to holding the throttle in a specific position and not from vibration. I would say when I'm conscious of my grip and relax it a little the tingly hand goes away. I think it has to do with blood flow more than anything else. Like when you sit on your leg funny and your foot or leg fall asleep. That's blood flow. It's your body's way of telling you circulation has been interrupted. I believe that's why those "Cramp Buster" levers are so successful. If you are only experiencing it in your right hand it's probably not just your riding position. Try to change how you grip.

Motogiro is right, but after a 400+ mile ride, I found it only works for so long. I ordered fz1 bars the day or so afterward. IMHO, the stock bars work for around town but not for long distance.:thumbup:

 

[FinalImpact]

I had a similar problem with my 08. I loosened all the engine mounts to let the engine settle in the cradle then re-torqued them all. Now I only have the small buzz at 5k rpm.

You took the words from my finger tips!


This happens in many engines which are bolted directly to the chassis w/out rubber isolation dampeners!

Good Call PowerMan!!!!

Do what he said and it could help! I actually loosen them and fire the engine off, rev it few times so things settle and move. Torque it all down. Be warned it could cause an ECM upset do poor grounding.

 

[Nelly]

Is it me or are you all a bit barking? Yamaha have built a decent motorcycle in the FZ6 + riding should be a relaxing almost subconscious experience.
No modern bike should be that uncomfortable to ride.
You should not have to pay extra dollars to make the bike more comfortable just to enjoy the ride. Granted really tall riders might need bar raisers to change riding position.
To me there is a deeper problem than just bars. You have tried all of the common sense fixes to no avail.
Is the front tyre overly worn? are the tyres miss matched? Has the front tyre been balance or lost the balance weight?
As suggested you need to look at your riding position and make sure you are relaxed. Have you ridden your sons bike for a couple of hours to see how they compare?
Good luck,

Nelly

 

[FinalImpact]

Is it me or are you all a bit barking? Yamaha have built a decent motorcycle in the FZ6 + riding should be a relaxing almost subconscious experience.
No modern bike should be that uncomfortable to ride.
You should not have to pay extra dollars to make the bike more comfortable just to enjoy the ride. Granted really tall riders might need bar raisers to change riding position.
To me there is a deeper problem than just bars. You have tried all of the common sense fixes to no avail.
Is the front tyre overly worn? are the tyres miss matched? Has the front tyre been balance or lost the balance weight?
As suggested you need to look at your riding position and make sure you are relaxed. Have you ridden your sons bike for a couple of hours to see how they compare?
Good luck,

Nelly

You nailed it!
He doesn't care if he wrecks his kid's bike! Hence why he's more relaxed! lol

Op -> j/k!

 

[FinalImpact]

One of the first things I did to my 08 was to rotate the levers to align with my shoulders such that your hands are neither arched upwards or pitched downwards compared to your forearm (5'10", 32"inseam).

Center stand your bike, loosen the lever pinch bolts and hop on and get in your riding position. Visually draw a line from your shoulders to the top of the bars. Picture this as a straight line and rotate your levers so your wrists are parallel to your forearms while actuating the levers. Your wrists should not be arched upwards or downwards when you grasp the levers! Keep them parallel to your forearm.

The factory lever angle are horrid for people with long torsos. Also, At this new angle you can apply more force to the Brake Lever! Be Careful!

 

[Nelly]

One of the first things I did to my 08 was to rotate the levers to align with my shoulders such that your hands are neither arched upwards or pitched downwards compared to your forearm (5'10", 32"inseam).

Center stand your bike, loosen the lever pinch bolts and hop on and get in your riding position. Visually draw a line from your shoulders to the top of the bars. Picture this as a straight line and rotate your levers so your wrists are parallel to your forearms while actuating the levers. Your wrists should not be arched upwards or downwards when you grasp the levers! Keep them parallel to your forearm.

The factory lever angle are horrid for people with long torsos. Also, At this new angle you can apply more force to the Brake Lever! Be Careful!

I think I'm built like a Japanese native, the bikes perfick for me.

nellysan

 

[graysky]

So I got home today and yanked the muffler off the bike. Man, loud as hell! But the vibration didn't change at all. After reinstalling the muffler and sitting on the bike on the center stand and revving it, you can feel the vibration in the pegs, the frame, the bars - Everywhere! I guess the next step is trailer it to the dealer and have them check it out. Thing is, I know the person who rides it will say its normal and I'll have fork over a 100. for that privilege.

As for all the other suggestions made, I've actually done almost all of them. I am going to try loosening the engine bolts, settling the engine and re-torquing the mounting bolts. And I think some of the riding posture suggestions need to be tried as well.

I have to thank everyone for the info!

 

[ebk02]

I don't know if anyone has touched on an idea, but are the carbs synced? If out a bit, vibration would be more pronounced. And with the additional pressure on your right hand holding throttle, that may aggravate numbness.
I too have an 09, and find it relatively smooth. Having run the bike on the center stand eliminates tire, road, steering issues. It is the engine, and there may be the sync issue or other....

 

[graysky]

Yep. Synced it less than 30 miles ago. I'm really at a loss.

 

[FrozenBiker]

Yep. Synced it less than 30 miles ago. I'm really at a loss.

Count your blessings, if the only thing vibrating is your bar. My whole bike has it at 5500+
I can reach down to any piece on the bike and feel the buzz.
At 100+ the mirrors are a complete blur