SuzukiSavage.com - Front wheel alignment

Eegore

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Front wheel alignment
07/12/17 at 17:30:40

When riding a 95 I noticed that the fork/handlebars are slightly turned to my right in order to ride straight.

There is also some slight bounce (not sure how to describe it) on the front brake lever when I apply it.

Is this most likely an easy alignment fix, or a bent fork/rim of some kind? I ask because I don't notice any wobble in the tire, just that the bars are turned a little to go straight.

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Front wheel alignment Reply #1 - 07/12/17 at 17:42:02 Someone may have dropped it or smacked the side of the front wheel enough to twist fork tubes in the triple tree. Loosen the clamps and line it up.
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Eegore Serious Thumper Offline SuzukiSavage.com Rocks! Posts: 8356	Re: Front wheel alignment Reply #2 - 07/12/17 at 19:08:13 Yeah I guess I better learn how to deal with forks. I need to get turn signal mounts and according to the recent thread Im going to have to take them apart some to put on new mounts.
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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Front wheel alignment Reply #3 - 07/12/17 at 20:59:46 You can slip one tube out at a time.
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IslandRoad

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Re: Front wheel alignment
Reply #4 - 07/13/17 at 01:15:35

I noticed a similar thing on my bike when I first bought it secondhand. After replacing the handlebars and mucking around with custom risers etc, I've found there is a lot of play in the rubber mounts between the risers and the triple tree. You can loosen them off and wiggle them around and re-tighten them a bit at a time while you adjust the way they sit.

Last time I put the bars back on, I just couldn't get them to sit straight. In the end I switched the risers (each to the other side) and it straightened up perfectly. I don't know why that worked ... and, actually, I don't care Cool

And I have checked - the risers and bars are all straight!

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Dave

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Re: Front wheel alignment
Reply #5 - 07/13/17 at 03:45:52

Eegore wrote on 07/12/17 at 19:08:13:

I need to get turn signal mounts and according to the recent thread Im going to have to take them apart some to put on new mounts.

Or you can leave the front wheel alone and just pop off the top triple clamp/yoke. The fork caps do have the pre-load spring tension on them...so be aware that they are going to want to fly off when you unscrew them. Also be aware you need to support the bike on a jack as you take the fork caps off.....as the springs are what is holding the bike up (if you don't support the bike and take a cap off...the bike will drop - however the kick stand won't get shorter so the bike will suddenly fall over onto the right side).

Straightening the twist in forks is a common thing in the dirt bike worlds, as you can fall down a lot when you are learning. Loosen the clamping bolts on the bottom yoke, stand at the front of the bike with the front wheel between your legs, and your hands on the handlebars.....and twist the bars the direction you want them to go. Repeat as necessary until you get them straight...then tighten the yoke bolts.

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ohiomoto

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Re: Front wheel alignment
Reply #6 - 07/13/17 at 06:55:37

I would look at the handle bars first. Are they lined up straight with the top clamp? If not the look at the rubber mounts as IslandRoad suggested. The rubber parts can be rotated, flipped, swapped around or replaced if needed. You would also want to make sure the mounting bolts are not bent.

If the bars are lined up up with the top clamp. Then proceed to what JOG and Dave suggested.

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Eegore

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Re: Front wheel alignment
Reply #7 - 07/13/17 at 08:40:10

Well I had planned on changing the handlebars on this bike anyway, this one still has buckhorns. Was thinking of a Biltwell keystone model, maybe I wont need to replace all the cables.

The link is the bar I want if I can get 1"

http://www.jpcycles.com/product/634-912

Once I change out the handlebars I should know more about the fork/wheel alignment I imagine.

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justin_o_guy2 Serious Thumper Offline What happened? Posts: 55279 East Texas, 1/2 dallas/la.	Re: Front wheel alignment Reply #8 - 07/13/17 at 09:13:08 Good place to start.
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SALB Serious Thumper Offline FSO Posts: 668 Whittier, AK Gender:	Re: Front wheel alignment Reply #9 - 07/13/17 at 12:01:22 If you're getting a pulsing sensation through the brake handle, check the rotor for warpage or bent. Also check the rear tire for squareness to the frame. If that's off, you will dog track, causing the front forks and handlebar to appear off as you go down the road at an angle.
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