Front Axle Spacer

[bikerphil]

centering

It's not a problem if it's a little off. Just as long as it isn't scraping. After aligning the forks on my 79 Special, the rt. rotor is pretty close to the outer side caliper bracket, but not touching. No problems whatsoever. HTH

[John]

All that is needed to fix the clearence problem is to loosen the axle pinch bolt on the right fork tube and either pry or pull the tube out to attain equal clearence on both sides of the rotor, and the tighten the pinch bolt. You will not need to loosen the axle nut on the left side.

[fredintoon]

Oh, that slot

Hi Howard,
I just looked at mine and damme if my rightside rotor isn't well towards the inner side of the slot too. The leftside caliper looks to be dead centre in it's slot because the axle nut forces the wheel up against the leftside fork casting and fixes it's position. The rightside fork casting ended up where it wanted to be after I pumped the forks up & down with the clamp slackened after fitting a new front tire. I suppose I could slacken off the axle clamp & tap the fork out a bit to centre the rightside slot but so long as the rotor don't rub on the casting (it's ~1mm clear) I don't see the need to do that as it may misalign the forks a little.

[Bonz]

John and fredintoon,

Thanks for the thoughts, we all are pretty much on the same page it seems.

John: I did exactly what you said, pushed the fork in to the center a bit to even out the gaps on the disc clearance, and at the same time it put the fork right up against the spacer on the wheel, which seems more natural to me (i.e. no gap).

My only concern is that it puts, albeit small, a bit of tweak into the fork relative to what it wants to do. My thoughts below relate to this...

On another note, I have this 30 mph-ish side to side sway the bike gets doing, mostly noticeable after riding awhile, but not when I am starting out. I notice it when I come into a town and slow down from Highway speeds.

I read that having space between the fork and spacer is the reason for the sway problem, that it allows the wheel to move back and forth on the axle a small amount. That doesn't make sense to me, since I believe the larger diameter part of the axle butts up solid and the axle nut would be what controls any side to side wheel movement, and then only if the nut was not tightened correctly.

So, with all this said, it seems I have two options:

-Just leave things as they are with uneven gaps but no contact OR

-Push the fork inward to even the gaps and contact the spacer, then lock it in with the pinch bolts (which might help eliminate the sway my bike exhibits at lower speeds according to a post elsewhere in this forum).

Just gotta trust you guys since you've been at this XS thing much longer than I. My main ride is a 2003 DL 1000 V-Strom so I have a bunch of knowledge to share there, if anyone needs anything.

Howard.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Bonser,

Have you checked your steering head bearings?? If the bearings are not moving smoothly or slightly binding, then it can give you a sway type feeling. Perhaps after a bit of a highway run, it settles down into some notches in the bearing races??

Don't know or remember the history of your bike, but 20+ year old steering head grease can get hardened, caked, etc.!!

A recent member thought he needed to replace his bearings, but after taking it apart, and inspecting, the races were pristine and smooth, just gunked up grease, cleaned, regreased, and it works like new!
T.C.

[Bonz]

Haven't done anything with the steering head bearings but it is on the list at some point soon.

I made a brain fart in a previous post... To increase disc clearance in my situation I have to lever the fork out just a touch vs. pushing it inward like I said. I guess whether I pull it out or push it in, can't hurt either way based on what I've read so far. Just so long as the disc is clear that's all that matters as we have all said.

I did loosen the bolts on the lower tree/ brace/whatever and got the front end off the ground and let everything "hang" there, then compressed the forks (pinch bolts loose on axle), then got the front in the air again and tightened up the bolts on the tree/brace/whatever and then the pinch bolt on the axle. When I broke loose the bolts on the tree/brace/whatever I could hear "cracking" (a good "cracking") as the fork tubes broke loose from the 28 year hold the tree had on them. Maybe some binding was going on, so I'm headed out for a ride right now to see if there was something to it.

[John]

The fork adjusting procedure I gave you, is the same procedure used in the manual. Here is some interesting reading.
http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...ght=fork+rotor

[Bonz]

That thread and many others show that there are all kinds of ways to skin the cat, right or not so right!

I'll look more into the steering head bearings and such, as there seems no other rational reason the bike should get the sways at 30 mph as I am light throttle cruising after coming down from highway speed. However, everything is tight and smooth as can be with the free play and movement in the front end/steering.

Howard.

[DiverRay]

Don't forget to check the REAR END/SWING ARM . Sometimes a problem at the back will seem like a problem at the front. Check the rear shocks, VERIFY that BOTH springs are set the same. Check the mount bushings, and the sideplay on the swing arm.

[Bonz]

Thanks for the heads up on checking the back end. As far as shocks go, everything is set the same but with 28 year old shocks, one could be working better or worse than another. I get a distinct "thunk" when the rear end goes through a pot hole when the suspension compresses. Doesn't feel like anything is bottoming, but just might need to put new suspenders on the rear. What's your thought?

I'll check the freeplay/sideplay. The sway gets most prevalent after riding awhile, so if a shock is not working well, and it heats up, that could be causing an imbalance in the damping, etc of that side. Any thoughts there as well?

[DiverRay]

Probably the problem. You can go cheap, like TC, and get the JCW brand for $79, or do as I did and spend the money on Progressive. I like the shocks, and they work for when I have the bike LOADED ! With SWMBO and I on, I have the preload set all the way. the two of us are as heavy as the bike, but it does not complain!

[Bonz]

I've looked into shocks already just because I don't believe that these things at 28 years of age have much left except for the springs. BUT it does feel pretty well tied down going over sharp frost heaves in the roads at 60 mph or so.

There is not a single sign of a leak or other problem however. I assume they are filled with oil and i would see a mess dripping down if something had gone south?

I won't ride fully loaded on this old girl, at least as I see it right now. It does have soft Marsee bags for the back, but the rpm on the highway/interstate is real high as you guys know and I feel criminal running it at approx. 5300 rpm @75 mph on Interstate for extended periods. Plus, I am very tall, 6'11" (yes, not a typo) and I have to fold up on the bike to ride it as it is. I got it because of what it is and not for the practicality. Man, she sure looks good sitting in the bright sun!

I use it to pick up the kids from practices, etc and it's a fun run around for here in Palmer Lake. Hwy 105 running north toward Denver is a fun road. Lots of good roads, 60 mph or so, for me to enjoy the bike on for rides and running into town for errands.

My bike of choice because of my height is a 2003 VStrom (DL 1000) and it is perfect for the long haul and my long legs as well as being my commuter for the 35 mile round trip to work most days.

Thanks for all the ideas thus far, I'm sure I will have more questions as I get further into owning and riding such a classic!

[TopCatGr58]

You have my EMPATHY!

Hey Bonser,

You know my pain!!! I'm a mere 6'6" myself, but I, too, got tired of feeling like a pretzel while riding my 81SH for any extended distances. I like the pegs under me for the twisties, feel more in control, but like to be able to stretch out, and wanted to be able to shift and brake while stretched! I also didn't want to shell out hundreds of $$ for forward control, so I designed my own!

Forward Controls thread with many photos on how I did it!

Here are a few shots. You may note that the front forks look longer, they are, by 4"! I also extended the side stand and centerstand to accomodate the increase in height.





Most folks here try to find ways to shorten/lower their machines, and here we are wanting to raise them!
T.C.

[Bonz]

That's a different looking bike with that fork raised!

What the heck did it do to your handling?

I'll keep mine as it is, since I have an almighty DL 1000 that fits me already. Only had to have the seat built-up a couple inches on that bike and it fits well.

I'll get some pics of my XS and and the Vee posted here soon. Gotta put the rear wheel back on once the right side bearing, oil seal and spacer flange show up at my dealer later next week.

Didn't take much time getting the rear end apart today, but toasted the right side bearing when I drove it out. The grease inside the bearing between the "balls" was still looking real good so I didn't even think about taking out the left side bearing (as I hear it's not made anymore and I'd have to track down different bearings to put back to back to replace it if I messed it up). Just cleaned it up real good from the outside and mashed a whole bunch of new bearing grease into it, wiped it down real good, mashed more grease into it and called it good.

Also, greased the splines so when I put it all back together the area everyone says needs special attention will be well cared for!

Question: Does the spacer flange need to be in perfect shape, i.e. it got bent up a bit when I removed the right side bearing. It doesn't appear to matter from what I see, it's function appears to be keeping the spacer from wobbling around in there too much, and nothing more.

FYI, the left side seal is no longer cataloged according to the dealer, so take care when removing that seal. Mine wasn't damaged when I took it out, so I'm glad I did take my time and not butcher it. The right side seal wasn't so lucky, but it is still available. It's better to be lucky than good when it comes to things like this.

Any recent updates on folks that do have all the parts needed from one source to replace seals and bearings?

[TopCatGr58]

Well, my handling was changed more than just the effect of the longer tubes, since I had a bad front end collision that bent the steering neck inwards reducing the RAKE angle, so it turns even more easily than it would have with just the longer forks! The dealer either didn't notice, didn't check, or DID find it, but didn't bother to tell me when they did the repair a couple of decades ago, and I didn't know better back then, and so attributed the handling to the fork tubes alone. GNEPIG helped point out the bend at a rally couple of years ago, but it was STRAIGHT BACK! Like you said, lucky! I like the easier steering, so I haven't "fixed" it!

While you have the rear wheel off, go ahead and take apart the final drive from the swingarm, that's where the OTHER set of SPLINES that don't get greased due to the poor location of the zerk fitting, and will prevent a worn driveshaft/final drive gear in the future!

Can't help with the seal info!?
T.C.