A few weeks ago I replaced the head bearings on my 97 bumble bee looking to improve the parking lot maneuverability aspects of the bike. Once I got into it I saw the wear marks on the races and knew it was time anyhow with almost 69K miles on the bike.
I decided to up the recommended torque on the stem adjusting nut from 12 ft lbs to about 16 (which gave a preload of about 4 pounds) to see how that would handle. It actually felt great at slow speed and I was quite happy with the overall handling and left it there, and proceeded to ride as usual.
A few days ago I was in a tight passing situation with the only option to keep on going when the bike started into a wobble or weave at 85 to 90. I got around and allowed it to calm down and everything seemed OK until I got home. I knew the shock bushings were good, but was unsure of the swingarm bearing end play, but decided I might as well look at the last thing I messed with so I checked the head bearings, it was time for the second adjustment anyhow, and found them just where I had left them at about 16 Ft. lbs. I decide to GO UP a couple of pounds just to see what it felt like and adjusted the nut to about 18 ft. lbs. For such a small adjustment, the difference was dramatic,, it seemed like you needed to be adding input constantly or the bike was all over the road. Not what I was used to at all.
Since I have an aftermarket faring and air deflectors on the front end,
I adjusted the nut to 10 ft lbs. , closer to the recommended value for the interstate. Everything is perfect again... better than at the value recommended for the Standard,,, it makes a difference. I can again zip up to above 100 mph with no hint of instability, and it feels fine at low speeds. I was surprised to find that small changes in the preload make such big differences in the overall stability and handling of the machine. Once again, mother knows best.
Note my matching garage vacuum..... HA
