Steering shakes at high speed

Technical stuff specific to the Raptor 650
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

weirdo wrote:55 years agoIf your tyres are ok then you should maybe check out the suspension.

Are the wheels aligned correctly?

Have your forks been leaking at all ?

What about the rear end? Raptor suspension bushes seize very easily if not maintained. Rear shock ok?

Do you have the forks too far up through the yokes?

Any of these could cause high speed problems.
The tyres looks ok.I'll check them at the tyre shop that I bought them.
The wheel alignment how can be checked from me?

The forks are ok and not leaking.
Rear shock also looks ok.The bike is almost new,I don't think that the rear shock could be damaged so soon.

Explain to me please what do you mean by "Do you have the forks too far up through the yokes?"

My English are not the best!
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

The weather wasn't really windy.so I guess that shouldn't be the problem.
Vassili if you mean that I had my hands tight on the steering,I didn't.Thats why I left my hands from the steering when that happened to see if that would reduce the problem.

I see that the problem should be from the front end.either the tire or the wheel or suspension or bearings.
As I said all of these will be checked when I get to the store where I bought my tires to check them so I guess we'll have our answer then.


Thanks again everyone for your help!
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

Just got it checked.
The problem is propably with the rim.
the bearings are ok,the suspension too,the back wheel is ok.
the front rim is a bit "wry"(the best word I could find at google translate :P )
Propably because of the nice roads here in Greece which are a bit too bumpy.

So I guess when I get to change the tires again,I'll get the rim fixed.Told me that costs about 50 euros.
Thanks to all for your help again!
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shebee
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by shebee »

On my Triumph Tiger an out of balance wheel caused this problem - have you hit a big pothole recently and/or have you lost any of your balance weights on the wheel?
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

They checked if the wheel was balanced and it was ok.
AZ
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by AZ »

If the front wheel is buckled then it will cause a weave at speed.I had a cbr 600 with a buckled front rim and it did just as you describe and became worse on fast sweeping bends as it pushed the wheel all over the place,as for baggy clothes,yes they can cause a wobble but i mentioned it as it`s a no cost thing to check 1st and we all like things that cost nothing.
NOTE; bikes do not have air brakes,lofting the front wheel will have an effect on a bikes braking efficiency.
dont arf get the adrenalin pumpin tho!!!
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by weirdo »

Dante wrote:55 years ago
Explain to me please what do you mean by "Do you have the forks too far up through the yokes?"

My English are not the best!
The forks could have been pulled up through the yokes at some point, lowering the front end (it's usually done to quicken the steering), but if adjusted too far the bike can become unstable, especially if bigger triangles are fitted to the back end.
To a Raptor....EVERYTHING else is just prey !!

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Red Mist
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Red Mist »

My front end can get a bit weavy over 100 mph. I don't know if it's dangerous exactly but I'm not altogether comfortable with it. Sometimes it's worse than others. I saw an indicated 120 mph on the clock last weekend and it was okay. On another road it felt a bit vague over 90 mph. I think wind strength and direction are definitely a factor.

I've had new tyres, wheel bearings and head bearings since I got the bike. It's probably improved a bit but it's not the most stable bike at these speeds.


Errr, I don't go over 100 mph all that much... :oops:
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by weirdo »

Red Mist wrote:55 years agoErrr, I don't go over 100 mph all that much... :oops:
...and only on private roads of course ('onest occifer :evil: ) :revrev:
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

So I guess it's something about the bike in general.
So finally a stabilizer is indeed needed
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snapdragon
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by snapdragon »

http://www.raptorchapter.org.uk/viewtop ... 921#p27921

on this ^ thread 'Pod' mentions that lifting the rear makes the bike more stable, maybe that's what is needed :?
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

thanks snapdragon.I'll keep it in mind.
Went for a quick ride 2 hours ago,got up to 180km/h and didn't notice anything weird this time.
So I guess that time could be the road in addition to the luggage that made the shake so intense.
The steering now wasn't rock solid but it surely was better than the last time and not that dangerous.
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by pod »

When I fitted the "baines " link dog-bone which raised the rear end a little there were several instant benefits. The bike felt more planted in general ( that "on rails" feeling when taking sweeping corners), accelerating uphill on a bumpy road surface no longer produced head shaking and as a spin off the bike sits more comfortably on the side stand. I consider this the best value for money in terms of handling improvements. My bike does not need a steering damper/stabiliser.
if i take my hands off the bars at high speeds I can nudge the bars in an attempt to produce head shake and the bike stays stable.
After this I had the fork cartridges changed by Maxton, this gives a smoother ride but isnt the big change that modifying the rear suspension links make.
I live in the Scottish Highlands and spend all my time on A or B quality roads where sharp handling is very important.
Rear triangles plates for the rising rate links are available on e bay and have a similar effect.

I consider the stock bike to have been lowered by the factory to make it more sell-able to shorter people ,
Stay calm.
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Dante
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Re: Steering shakes at high speed

Post by Dante »

Could you give me a link from ebay to see the cost?
I'll have them in mind.sounds like a good upgrade.
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