Shake... Rattle.... and thankfully no roll.

[Firefly]

My 2015 F3 developed some serious shaking/wobbling while at Spyderfest. While we were out on a ride I noticed a 'shake' that was quite bothersome. I asked Wacky Dan if he felt like the road we were on was 'washboarded'. He said nope. We traded bikes and his was smooth. After riding mine he could easily feel the problem.

Here's what we tried to remedy the problem, but it still exists.

1. Big O Tires in Nixa removed the Ride-On I had put in the front tires. Put tires back on along with Lamont's balancers. They didn't charge me anything. Props to them! Didn't fix it.
2. Removed the tires (thanks to John from MN with a jack and tools and Wayne for his torque wrench). Big O Tires in Springfield balanced the front tires. Put them back on with balancers. Didn't fix it.
3. Removed the balancers. Didn't fix it.
4. Swapped wheels with Wacky Dan in the parking lot (thanks again to MN John & Wayne). Didn't use balancers as Dan's Spyder rides smooth as silk. Problem still existed. This shocked us all.
5. We compared my belt to Dan's and mine was quite a bit looser. I had loosened it before the trip. So we tightened it up. Took it for a ride and the problem seemed worse. Kenny Butler felt it could be a front sprocket problem.
6. Took it to Pitbull early Saturday morning. I hate having service done under the pressure to leave and while the dealer is (obviously) very busy. The adjusted the belt and said it was good. Went for a test ride. No dice... problem still there.
7. Pitbull looked at it again and made belt adjustments. Took it for a ride. Problem still there. Pitbull tech and counter service rode it and said it was 'normal'. This was frankly quite frustrating. With over 100,000 miles on Spyders I'm pretty sure I have a better feel for what is 'normal' than those who probably have less than 500 miles on Spyders. They hadn't really listened to me as I wanted the front and rear sprockets, belt, wheel, etc. checked. Got Len involved and they agreed to check those things out. Since I still had Ride-On in the rear tire I decided they should pull it and might as well replace it and re-balance. They did all of that and sent me on my way. I appreciate them fitting me in, but alas the problem has not gone away. It's hard for someone to fix a problem when they don't agree there is one.
9. Grueling 700 mile trip home due to 44 being closed near Rolla. Had to ride in storms, etc. 10 hour trip took 19. Spyder would run smooth at 79 MPH.. but that was hard to do in the rain. I've never felt more unsafe on a ride in my life. The shaking, the rain, etc. made for a horrible experience. Also developed some 'Limp Home' warnings that will have to be looked at. Most likely the rain got somewhere it doesn't belong.

So I'm fishing for ideas out here on what else this could be. I'm going to take a dial indicator and check the rear brake disc for any warping. Inspect the belt really well. I have Federal Evo's on order for the fronts, but we've pretty much eliminated this being a front tire/wheel issue.

The handlebars don't really shake, it's the body.. most notable is the F4 windshield with my phone and GPS mounted on it. At certain speeds/RPM's it shakes. I can feel it in the footpegs. 4,000+ miles now on this Spyder. I used to post and brag about how smooth this one was compared to my other ones. Really frustrated by this and can't believe this would be considered 'normal'.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Gonna clear her up and take to my local dealer later this week.

Oh.. and yes.... I'm already running the BRP belt tensioner.

 

[Bob Denman]

:shocked:
1. Can you jack the bike up, and spin the tires a bit?
(Checking to make sure that the beads are fully seated, and the tires are actually round...)
2. Has the bike been laser-aligned? Did you hit something that might have knocked a whee out of alignment?
3. With all of the playing around with the tires: are your pressures the way that you like them?

Good luck: please ;let us know what you find... :thumbup:

 

[Buckeye Bleau]

I don't profess to be a Sypder mechanic or expert at any of this sort of thing, but I would guess that a bad bearing set or wheel hub would be the cause. This is based on a similar incident that I had with an SUV at one time, actually three times on the same vehicle. :banghead:

Joe

 

[Jeriatric]

Thought

Have you checked king pins and steering bushings for any(and I mean any) play?

 

[oldgoat]

Have you checked king pins and steering bushings for any(and I mean any) play?

Haven't seen those words in over 55 years. I had an old Ford with transverse leaf springs & king pins. Had to replace the latter as the steering was very hard to turn.

 

[Jeriatric]

I'm old, potty bout that

Haven't seen those words in over 55 years. I had an old Ford with transverse leaf springs & king pins. Had to replace the latter as the steering was very hard to turn.

Shouldn't have said Kingpin.....meant ball joint.

Another symptom of problematic ball joints is excessive vibration coming from the vehicle’s suspension. Worn ball joints will be loose in their sockets and vibrate excessively as the vehicle is in motion. The vibration will usually stem from the affected ball joint, either from the right or left sides of the vehicle. In some cases, the vibration may be felt through the handlebars as well.

:doorag:

 

[billybovine]

What you're describing sounds just like a broken belt in a tire. But then you said that you swapped wheels. So I was puzzled. Then I started thinking maybe you meant only the fronts. So did you switch all three wheels or only the fronts. If only the fronts then check for a broken belt in the rear tire.

 

[Bob Denman]

I believe that Dan has already felt the effects of a busted tire belt before, so I assume that he has already discounted that possibility.
:shocked: However...

 

[Firefly]

What you're describing sounds just like a broken belt in a tire. But then you said that you swapped wheels. So I was puzzled. Then I started thinking maybe you meant only the fronts. So did you switch all three wheels or only the fronts. If only the fronts then check for a broken belt in the rear tire.

Swapped both fronts for a test. Had brand new rear installed by Pitbull.

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I wonder if there really is something fishy with the drive belt. The symptoms sound a lot like what I felt when there was a pebble wedged in between a couple of teeth on the belt. Maybe a bad belt in the rear tire gives the same symptoms?

 

[H2O]

It may be a shot in the dark, but check the swingarm pivot for excess play.

H2O

 

[cptjam]

Ball joints and A arm bushings

Dan, we had a customer with similar symptoms. He had 2 A arm bushings bad. With the bike supported by the cross member of the frame(to leave the A arms free) shake, pull, push and move forward and back. You want to compare side to side. I only wish I knew when it was in my booth! Let me know what you find out! Joe

 

[Firefly]

Dan, we had a customer with similar symptoms. He had 2 A arm bushings bad. With the bike supported by the cross member of the frame(to leave the A arms free) shake, pull, push and move forward and back. You want to compare side to side. I only wish I knew when it was in my booth! Let me know what you find out! Joe

I'll give it a check. I don't think I was aware of the issue when I had you do the alignment. The week is a blur now.

Gonna check a few more things, but basically making a list and taking it to my dealer. I'm tired of the 'elimination' game.

Sometimes I start thinking maybe it's just me.. being too picky, etc... as it will seem to be doing okay.. but then I'll hit the right combo of speed/RPM and there it is. Wacky Dan rode it and instantly could feel the problem.


It's driving me crazy... and I'm within walking distance.