Head shake : Kawasaki ZX Forums: Kawasaki Ninja Forum

johnnyspeed · 04-23-2009, 11:00 AM

I am having bad head-shake @50 mph as I am rolling along I checked the suspension settings front and rear and the tyres have only 1500 miles on them. It seems as though when decelerating its worse...anyone had this problem ?

Hitman · 04-23-2009, 11:31 AM

Some people have complained that their headstock bearings are loose and need tightening. Sounds like you have a classic case of loose steering head bearings.
Get your dealer to check them out and tighten them if needed.

johnnyspeed · 04-23-2009, 11:35 AM

Ok I will give it a go, It does feel too free...TY

jefsfield · 04-23-2009, 12:40 PM

tyres, tyres, tyres !!!!!!!!

I have had exactly this problem on past bikes, ZZR1200 fitted with BT 020's went to Metzerler's and problem solved.

ZZR1400 with michelin pilot road 2's (headshake appeared only after a lot of use but otherwise fantastic).

I now have Michelin pilot power 2ct fitted to the front on the GTR and get some head shake and will be fitting pilot road 2's to the back any day now.

Seems to me that big kawasaki's are very sensitive to tyre profile and wear, personally I thought the 021's were shocking.

I think the GTR is very hard wearing on front tyres which could be your problem.

I only get the head shake if I slow down through 50mph and take my hands off. My solution................keeps hands on bars and no headshake

johnnyspeed · 04-23-2009, 01:44 PM

This is my 4th set of tyres and I am at 23000 miles I put on Continentals and they sucked from the first day, a week later I picked up a wood screw in the rear and didn't replace the front ,I went w/ the BS021 on the rear(stock tyres )and haven't replaced the front .I've been hard on the front hoping to wear it out...Looks like I have done a good job. I've tried 3 types and the 021 seems to give the most miles..

I'll try and keep my hands on the bars.

bobonefinger · 04-24-2009, 12:00 AM

Same problem to me with BT056 (the tire was old) and it was replaced free with a new 021. Now I use only BT021 special for GTR.

the stig · 04-24-2009, 01:25 PM

Weave / head shake from the Michelin Road Pilot 2cts, going back to BT-021 next week. Binning the Michelins with only 2k kms on them...

StealthNinja · 04-24-2009, 01:35 PM

How is the stig gonna talk about head shake when he doesnt feel anything. hes the stig for god sakes.
Some say his fingernails have 330bhp, and that he appears on high-value stamps in Sweden. All we know is, he's called The Stig.

zzr14 · 04-24-2009, 01:41 PM

I have recently fitted a new front to my 3500 mile old GTR. I have since noticed that tyre I fitted isn't the BT021E as fitted as standard. Anyone know if this may be a problem? What does the "E" mean?

Hammerhead · 04-25-2009, 05:22 AM

Equipment? OEM tires are different (cheaper) than off-the-rack examples of the same tire.

Hammerhead · 04-25-2009, 05:29 AM

Take a big, heavy (550-600 lb.) bike with a steep, sporty rake angle and you have a prescription for uneven tire wear, which is usually the most common cause of headshake. Avon Storms did it to my bike after several thousand miles. Keep an eye out for funny wear patterns (cupping, assymetrical wear) that will show up about the same time as the shake. The old rule of thumb of 2 fronts to 1 rear doesn't apply in these cases. I had to do an emergency replacement of my front Storm around 1500 miles after replacing the worn-out rear. Had a Metzler M3 Sportec spooned on-wore very evenly, but was the noisiest front tire I've ever run on a bike.

fatirossi · 06-15-2009, 10:00 AM

You can also get head shake from fitting a top box. I had the same problem on my GPZ1100 and ZZR1100, removed the top box and hey-presto the head shake disapeared. Never had any trouble when riding 2 up, only when solo.

RMC_SS_LDO · 06-16-2009, 06:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnnyspeed

I am having bad head-shake @50 mph as I am rolling along I checked the suspension settings front and rear and the tyres have only 1500 miles on them. It seems as though when decelerating its worse...anyone had this problem ?

Tires may contribute, but the head is likely loose. If the head on my cruisers get too loose, they'll shimmy like a chihuahua $httin a peach pit around 45; decel makes it worse.

Check all of the torques, specifically the steering stem head bolt (79.7 ft/lbs) and the upper front fork clamp bolts (15 ft/lb) before changing the tires.

If it is too tight, you'll get a shimmy at high speed instead.

BigKev · 06-18-2009, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zzr14

I have recently fitted a new front to my 3500 mile old GTR. I have since noticed that tyre I fitted isn't the BT021E as fitted as standard. Anyone know if this may be a problem? What does the "E" mean?

The E model 021 has a stiffer carcass and more steel belting to surport the high weight of the GTR. If you google search bridgestone there is a page that tells you all the diffrent OME fittments on all the diffrent bike brands sometimes an OME tyre can have a diffrent compound to the off the shelf models depending on the required spec's.

ktmkidusa · 09-08-2009, 08:18 AM

I've tightened the top triple clamp 1/8th turn and it helped the slight clunk I heard at stops from the front end, but still there, tighten it more I guess, any one else have to do this?