Head shake

[chrisgroup1]

Let off the throttle, took hands off the grips, and as I decelerate, head shake commences. Any thoughts? Doesn't seem to do it if I'm holding on...

[tinman905]

Mine does that too, 40mph down to 25 mph decelerating when my rear tire pressure is low. When I keep it around 38 to 40lbs the shake disappears.

[bikerphil]

Possible causes...

Steering stem bearings could be loose.
Tire might be under inflated.
Fork pinch bolts may be loose.
Forks may be misaligned.
Wheel axle might be loose.
Wheel bearings might be shot.
Caliper may be sticking.
Rotors may be warped.

Hope it's not all of these...

Welcome to the forum.

[XJOK2PLAY]

Few things I would check:

1) Condition and age of the front tire

2) Time for tire rebalance?

3) Bike ever been in a crash? Ck. fork straightness

4) Triple tree bolt torque

5) Tire pressure

HTH's

[skids]

Different tires can make a difference. My Honda 1300st would shake on deceleration and a different new tire solve it, as it did for many others.

[mxmikie]

palsy will make your head shake also

[fredintoon]

Let off the throttle, took hands off the grips, and as I decelerate, head shake commences. Any thoughts? Doesn't seem to do it if I'm holding on...

Hi Chris and welcome,
as has been posted, could be one or more of several causes.
Headshake is common on sidecar rigs and what fixes most of those cases is tightening the headraces.
Note that sidecar rigs need headraces set way tighter than on a solo bike but too loose is a bad thing on any machine.
Here's my solo recommendation.
Bike on centerstand and the front of the frame jacked up so the front wheel is off the ground.
Use two peg wrenches to tighten the notched ring nuts under the top triple tree so that while the forks will stay central they fall to the side when the end of the handlebar is nudged.
If you are new to the bike, you could tear down the headrace enough to inspect and re-grease it before completing the adjustment. Note that while the fork should turn freely (as above) there should be no lateral play at all and the movement should be absolutely smooth.

[CatatonicBug]

palsy will make your head shake also

I was thinking more along the lines of the fact that I would shake my head too if I was accellerating and had to suddenly slow down.

[fredintoon]

I was thinking more along the lines of the fact that I would shake my head too if I was accelerating and had to suddenly slow down.

Hi 'Bug,
in those circumstances, better that you should concentrate on bowel control?

[ambidextrous]

i shake my head when my 600 dollar 30 year old bike keeps up with, or pulls away from my friends new, more 'expensive' bikes

but, back on topic

i get the same thing

hands off on slow deceleration i get a front end shake

once i put my hands back on, luckily, shake instantly stops

im getting new tires this season, so i hope that helps

[XJOK2PLAY]

Chrisgroup1,

Had another thought...

Does your bike have a fairing?

I have experienced a similar effect on my XJ w/ my Vetter 4 setup @ low speeds... very unsetteling when it happens...

The fix? Make sure any extra cargo load weights are placed in the proper places if you have bags and carry things... you need weight in the storage areas of your fairing... it's amazing how much that helps!

I had tool bags, etc. either in the trunk or the side bags... but thought I was OK with the way I tried to keep things balanced and evenly placed. But had nothing over the forks in the fairing. Once I repositioned the load, and placed the heavy stuff in the fairing... no more wobble!
JAT

[DeanR]

Different tires can make a difference. My Honda 1300st would shake on deceleration and a different new tire solve it, as it did for many others.

Same for me with my ST1100, except my shake began when I switched tires. Avon replaced it for free and the replacement did the same thing. Never a hint of shake with stock Bridgestones. I live with it though, cuz the Avons are great tires but next change I'm gonna try something else. Back to the XS....never a headshake problem.