Someone Added Weights To My Front Wheel

[WRThumper]

Bought a ’16 ES back in May. Met the guy selling and took it for a test ride. My first comment to him when I returned was “Boy, that front end is heavy!” His response was “That’s normal for the Gen IIIs.”

Ok. Coming from a ’05 FZ1, I knew the FJR would feel heavier and not be as nimble, but is the FJR supposed to want to tuck the front end on low-speed turns & curves to the right? Can’t imagine it should. Should I have to use a lot of force to counter-steer? Can’t imagine I should.

A couple of weeks ago I took the FJR on a 5 day 2k mile ride from South Central Washington to Northern California and up the Oregon coast. After returning home I wasn’t sure I wanted to keep the Feejer, I was that unhappy with the ride.

I did some research early last week and found the discussions about front tire pressures. I had been setting the front to 36, per Yamaha. Last Thursday morning I set the front to 42, then took the girl out for a short ride Thursday evening. Better, but still front heavy.

Had discussed the handling issues with a co-worker last week, and he put me in touch with a friend of his who owns a ’14 ES. We set up a meeting so we could swap bikes.

Met up with Neil on Saturday. We talked a bit, and then checked for worn/loose bearings. Everything felt good. We geared up and went for a ride. All I can say is, wow! His ’14 was soooo much easier to ride. It felt so much closer to my Fizzy! Neil said he’d never ridden a bike that felt like mine.

This fine gentleman took most of his Saturday meet me, swap bikes, pull the front wheel to check the wheel bearings (all good), and pull the upper yolk/triple tree and re-torque everything.

Unfortunately, it still feels and acts the same. So, I don’t know what to check next.

Tires are PR4s.

Anyone have any ideas?

[rbentnail]

How many miles on the tire? IMHO dump the PR4. Horrible tire after about 2000 miles. The rear tire pressure, type and age/mileage? Tried changing suspension settings?

[gixxerjasen]

Pic of the tires?

[N4HHE]

I agree the PR4 is one of the worst front tires for an FJR. Steers like a pig the last 25-50% of tread life. But I really like the PR4GT on rear. Only thing worse is a Shinko 016.

I like T31GT and T32GT on front. In Bridgestone the GT front lasts nearly 2x longer than not-GT. Have not found that true with other brands.

Dunlop Roadsmart 3 is the lightest steering FJR tire I have used but it too goes “off” toward the end. Only front tire that has not is the T31GT. Jury still out on T32GT.

[escapefjrtist]

Agree with the collective...likely culprit is a worn, out of shape front tire. For comparison did you notice which tires the '14 had on it?

Since you purchased the '16 used, are you sure the PO didn't change anything? Is the bike lowered? Rear dog bones stock length?

~G

[WRThumper]

PO said the tires were almost brand new (they looked it). I’ve put almost 5,300 miles on them. Due to be changed, for sure.

I’m running 42 psi in the rear. I’ve played around with suspension settings, but no improvement in the front-heavy feel.

The ’14 had T31s (to be replaced over the Winter).

Don’t believe the ’16 is lowered. The first thing I thought when I sat on the ’14 was how I was flat footed with some bend in my knees. My ’16 has a Laam seat on the low setting. I’m almost flat footed with it.

I’ll be picking up a set of tires over the Winter, so we’ll see if new tires fix the issue. I hope so, I want to love the FJR as much as I love my FZ1.

I’ll post up the results. Thanks to all of you for chiming in.

[Festus]

This fine gentleman took most of his Saturday meet me, swap bikes, pull the front wheel to check the wheel bearings (all good), and pull the upper yolk/triple tree and re-torque everything.

What torque setting did he torque the steering bearing to?

[extrememarine]

my .02 cents...

I have experienced slow sluggish steering when the bike is loaded (side bags, top case plus passenger) and I have not increased the pre-load of the rear shock (Ohlins 707); once the rear is back to a more normal ride height, steering effort (lightness) was restored. Could rider weight be contributing to this?

Lower front tire pressure of 36psi (vs 40 or 42)over time would potential cause the front tire profile to wear and contribute to the heavy steering described as well.

Wayne

[Hppants]

.... Dunlop Roadsmart 3 is the lightest steering FJR tire I have used but it too goes “off” toward the end...

I have not had that experience with the 6-8 sets of RS3s I've run. The front will hold its shape and feel all the way down to (just before) the cords. I run 40 psi cold and have been known to push a front tire at times.

The RS3 doesn't last as long as the PR4GT, but it's still the best value out there IMO. Every 4-6 months, Dunlop offers a $40 rebate on 2, and when that happens, I can sometimes get a set to the door for about $225.00

[raYzerman]

I vote a new front tire by the sounds of it...... I wouldn't use a PR4 up front myself.

If you stiffen up the rear end (set preload on 2-up), the rear ride height will change, which also affects suspension geometry relationship.... steeper fork angle = better turn-in.

[gixxerjasen]

Could rider weight be contributing to this?

Not if he was fine on his friends bike and his friend experiencing the same issue on his bike. Rear suspension on his own bike could certainly be suspect though.

[WRThumper]

Ring nut torqued to 38 ft lbs, loosened, re-torqued to 13 ft lbs.
Cap nut was torqued to 83 ft lbs.

Don’t think rider weight is a contributor. I’m well north of 200 lbs, Neil is well south 200 lbs. He experienced the same heavy nose.

I can try running the suspension setting on two-up to see what happens.

It really is hard to explain what the front end feels like. A person needs to take it out to understand.

It does require very firm pressure to counter steer at not-slow speeds. At slow speeds (parking lots/round abouts) and turning right from a standing start, the front end wants to tuck in.

It will be interesting to see how it is with new tires. I’ll be getting either the T32s or the RSs. On the FZ1 I’ve run the Bridgestones the last three sets and the Dunlops the set before that. Before that I ran the PRs & PR2s.

[Hppants]

It's the front tire. Either of your choices is going to fix it.

Ride more, stress less.

[SkooterG]

Funny how tires are. Everybody bitching about the PR4 front and for me, it's one of my favorites after running through three of them. Now the Dunlop RS3? Never again. The last two I have run including one I have mounted now suck the the last 50% of their life. They cup or scallop and vibrate and shake the handlebars. And yes, I run high pressure in the front, 40-42 psi.

Oh, and as for the OP, like most everyone else says..... the first thing you need to do is replace the front tire. They do make 'bad' one's every now and then.

[Boston]

did you compare the height of both bikes? length of the forks. (outside the box thinking)

[WRThumper]

Didn't think to compare forks.

I'll be looking for tire deals early next year, and I'll post the results.

Thanks to everyone!

[Red]

WRThumper,

I got a whole 'nother bike when I ditched the two old Michelins that came with my FJR and installed Pirelli GT (Spec A) instead. Get the tire pressures right for your weight and suspension, and it will steer almost by thought command. 40 PSI Front/42 PSI Rear is a good start.
All IMHO, of course . . .

[WRThumper]

Red,

That is what the '14 was like, a pure joy!

I am looking forward to getting new tires on.

It is interesting how different models are. My FZ1 doesn't care what brand I run. Now, the PRs & PR2s are my favorite on it, mainly because of the how long they lasted.

[wheatonFJR]

My favorite winter combination for riding in the mountain day rides (if dry) is PP front, PR# rear. Long trips PR4 front and rear...I will see if the PR4 front turns into the uglyPR2 triangle profile. T30 was best front, but they stopped making them.

[Powerman]

I'm with ScooterG on the fronts. Never really had issues with PR4's with higher pressures.
Had Dunlops scollop on three bikes.