Comments on: Ep 5: Replacing steering head bearings

By: Waz

Waz — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 18:26:50 +0000

Hi Shano. Haven’t used the soda blaster again as yet but am planning to try it out on my Ducati engine side covers. Cheers for the positive feedback mate.

By: shano

shano — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 01:33:44 +0000

Great vids, very useful and well presented info. Did you ever refine the soda blaster? What pressure do you think is needed?

By: Steering bearings

Steering bearings — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 23:18:58 +0000

[...] Steering bearings google this http://www.garagenight.tv/ep-5-replacing-steering-head-bearings/ I put taper rollers in my @ today, easy job… spent more time removing fork guards, callipers, [...]

By: mad mitch

mad mitch — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 20:33:10 +0000

excellent video great friendly guys keep up the great work thanks from scotland

i did my steering head bearings on my honda xlr bike after watching your video it helped me out cheers mitch

By: Dan

Dan — Thu, 06 May 2010 08:06:32 +0000

Thanks for the videos. I managed to change the steering head bearings on my cbr. Much appreciated by a broke student. Thanks again, Dan, New Zealand.

By: Replacing @ head bearings - idiots guide anywhere?

Replacing @ head bearings - idiots guide anywhere? — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 19:16:37 +0000

[...] Replacing @ head bearings - idiots guide anywhere? Ep 5: Replacing steering head bearings at Garage Night has a step by step video [...]

By: Rob

Rob — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 16:53:12 +0000

Superb videos etc.

This is what I found helped me, in addition to what the video showed and other guys comments already on here -

To get the bearing cups out of the frames headstock, clean out all the old grease, then spray some WD40 (or similar) inbetween the frame and the cups, then leave for 20 mins. Cut a length of the 4″ x 2″ wood to the correct length and put under the bottom of the headstock and the ground (this will give you a firm base to work against). Note how far in the bearings fit in the frame (2-3mm on my bike).
Use a hair dryer (safe heat) to heat up the outside of the headstock around the point of the cup you’re going to take out (this should slightly expand the headstock).
Then place the metal rod/bar inside the headstock so it touches the lip of the bottom cup (as per video), however rather than keeping it in line with the frame, lean it across so it’s resting on the top bearing cup on its opposite side. Now lean on the bar slightly so it forces it to push against the headstock at the point just above the bottom cup (this should stop it slipping off so easily). Now whilst still applying pressure on the bar as above, hit the bar with your heavy hammer. If you get a slight ringing it hasn’t moved, if you get a duller noise it has moved. Once it’s moving hit it at various places around the cup to get it to come out straight, otherwise you may damage the cups seat in the headstock.
Repeat for the top cup.

I found that using a longer rod on the bearings seemed to work better than a shorter length, not sure why, it just did

Keep up the superb work, Rob

By: oli

oli — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 15:33:18 +0000

Thanks guys, big help whilst I was doing this tooday.

By: punisher_uk

punisher_uk — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 12:52:22 +0000

ok to take this one step further
after removing top yoke i proceeded to tighten the bearing cap maybe 1/8th of a turn
replacing every thing i took the bike for a round 200k ride no high speed wobble
but a low speed wondering lets say,anywhere between 30k and 60k the bike sort of sways under me as if gently moving bars from left to right
after reading numerous forums i have decided to slacken them a little hear is why
(sorry can not find post )
apparently when i torque the yoke down (100nm) it will add pressure to the bearing cap
something about the thread so its trial and eror
i put bike on center stand and the bars do not fall when pushed but stay ther they are i think i need to slacken it about a 16th of a turn
will let you no how it goes
[url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-RnxkMUywQ]null
hear is the link to my own garage night

By: Trent

Trent — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:39:50 +0000

Hiya,

If the bearings are too loose, you'll get a clunk sound or feel when you brake or hit a bump.
If the bike has a main stand, get it up on that then grab the bottoms of the forks - With the wheel facing forward, pull and push the forks back and forth - if the bearings are too loose, you should feel some movement.
If you don't have a mainstand, try to prop the bike so the front wheel is off the ground.

Perhaps you should loosen the bearings off again, then use the technique above to feel the "clunk" I mentioned - you can then gradually tighten the bearings until the clunk disappears.
The nut / collar used for adjusting the bearings won't need much tweaking to tighten the bearings - try 1/8 of a turn at a time till you get the feel for it...
It should just be "nipped up" when the bearings are at the right tension.

When the clunk / movement has disappeared, you should be able to move the handlebars smoothly from side to side with the only resistance coming from the cables etc as they flex.

Note that you'll also need to loosen the fork clamps on the top clamp when you adjust the bearings - if you don't you'll find that the bearings may loosen up again after a while.

Cheers
Trent

By: punisher_uk

punisher_uk — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 19:47:46 +0000

great site guys
one small question i followed your video on replacing the bearings
short ride and get major wobble on the bars at 60+ how do i now how tight to tighten top bolt i think mine might be to slack but dont want to over tighten and crush new bearings

By: Dommie forks and steering head

Dommie forks and steering head — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 05:11:23 +0000

[...] Re: Dommie forks and steering head Here’s something you might find useful: Ep 5: Replacing steering head bearings at Garage Night [...]

By: Garry

Garry — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 02:32:32 +0000

This video was really helpful when the bottom bearing on my KTM 950 SMR went tits up at 20K miles (days before leaving on a trip). The only difference I had was that the old lower bearing wouldn’t budge with a punch, so I resorted to a Dremel (cutting wheel too large to make a nice cut). A few whacks with a chisel managed to loosen it, not split it, and all went well from there. I picked up a tip to freeze the new races before installation to slightly shrink them.

Your videos rock! Keep up the great work…

By: DanH

DanH — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:05:44 +0000

Really good video.
Was going to get a dealer to bankrupt me, but now have the confidence to give it a go myself.

Keep up the good work

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:11:26 +0000

Great video. Another tip for installing the bottom bearing is to: 1) freeze the bottom triple clamp and steering stem and 2) heat the bearing. The result is that the bearing typically falls right on; I’ve had great results with this approach.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 07 May 2009 10:55:11 +0000

Wow, found this site thru ADVrider, FANTASTIC!!!…what a great site esp the video tutorials. Thank you for taking the time and effort to make these guys…..cheers Chris

By: Alec Anderson

Alec Anderson — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 13:30:46 +0000

Hey thanks for the tips guys,just away to attempt the steering bearings on my Suzi Rf600R, this vid has given me the confidence to give it a go myself rather than getting huge garage bills,keep up the good work.
Alec from Aberdeen (Scotland)

By: Hernan

Hernan — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 17:59:06 +0000

Hola Amigos!!!!!
Gracias por el video. Excelente. Lo que le faltaba a mi Africa Twin ´99 gracias a Garagenight se lo puedo hacer yo directamente. Felicitaciones buen trabajo.

Hernán
Chivilcoy. Bs. As.
Argentina

Translated:

Hello friends!!!!!
Thanks for the video. Excellent. What was missing in my Africa Twin’99, through Garagenight I can do it directly. Congratulations good job.

Hernán

By: Douglas

Douglas — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 04:16:13 +0000

Absolute Fantastic Video. Thumbs up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

By: luke holt

luke holt — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 06:10:49 +0000

Just about to tackle the bearings on my elefant 750. Thanks for the hints and tips. will have saved me a fortune by not wrecking my bike in the process. Cheers from sunny scotland

By: Avrom Brown

Avrom Brown — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 16:28:23 +0000

Great site with lots of good stuff. Really enjoyed steering head bearing replacement. Keep up the good work.

By: James

James — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 10:05:14 +0000

Hi Garage Night Team,

Thanks for the videos - have just removed a steering head race - after watching #5. It seems to be the best resource on the net for this particular job.

The one I had (from a ‘92 900ss) needed a visit from Mr Dremel, and a tap from the chisel in the cut - broke through one side, no more tension & off it came.

Keep up the good work!

James.

By: SteveW

SteveW — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 01:36:51 +0000

Hey guys,

Just wanted to say great job on the videos. I am really enjoying them and picking up a few pointers as well. Keep up the good work.

Regards from Western Canada!

Steve

By: LukasM

LukasM — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 19:19:39 +0000

Just finished watching all 5 episodes. I did pick up a few tricks, especially as I had never taken off a lower steering bearing.

Thanks for taking the time to makes these, and keep ‘em coming!

Regards from Austria,
Lukas