steering head
Thread Starter
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Road Captain
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 646
Likes: 167
From: chicago
I see im going to have to cut down an allen wrench, easy enough to do. Odd that you say “bolts”, i can only see one! screw head is on left side facing machine. Youre saying there are two? Manual shows only one, now im really confused.
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 3,304
Likes: 2,093
From: Masshole
Please forget everything I said, I am sick as a dog, got the covid unfortunately. Those are the fork tube pinch bolts I pointed out. There is only 1 upper pinch bolt and yes it's a **** to get to!
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Road Captain
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 646
Likes: 167
From: chicago
Sorry to hear you’re sick…..i just pulled the fairing and checked! Ill cut down a 5/16” allen tonight at work. That bolt is definitely a bitch to get at!
dealer wants $750 for 20k service! Mostly labor i assume seeing how hard the pinch bolt is to get at, plus the fall away test is confusing as all hell too!
ill get to it this weekend, ill post an update when done, thanks for all the help!
dealer wants $750 for 20k service! Mostly labor i assume seeing how hard the pinch bolt is to get at, plus the fall away test is confusing as all hell too!
ill get to it this weekend, ill post an update when done, thanks for all the help!
HDF Community Team
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 7,837
Likes: 4,404
From: Texas
I did this two years ago and have it well documented somewhere. I’ll post back with a link. I do remember having the fairing tilted and using a long hex key to get to the bolt. Pretty sure you need the fairing tilted, which doesn’t take much to do: remove the two turn signals, remove the four double ended bolts that hold the fairing in place (these are what the turn signal acorn nuts attach to), then lift fairing and rotate forward.
loosen pinch bolt then set fairing back in place. Do your swing test then make adjustment to stem, then swing test again, etc. then when done tilt fairing and tighten pinch bolt. Reassemble
loosen pinch bolt then set fairing back in place. Do your swing test then make adjustment to stem, then swing test again, etc. then when done tilt fairing and tighten pinch bolt. Reassemble
HDF Community Team
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 7,837
Likes: 4,404
From: Texas
Yes, that is exactly what I did (tilted fairing). Here’s the link to my thread I made. In the first post, there are PDF documents that I compiled that go step-by-step using the service manual. Just follow the highlighted steps to complete the job. I compiled it this way so I didn’t have to go flipping back and forth through the manual with greasy hands and sweat running all over the place!
The manual does not mention tilting the fairing but that is the only way I could get to the pinch bolt. It took considerably less time to tilt the fairing than it did to attempt to find a way of getting the tool underneath all that mess.
You say you’re doing the full service - did you already replace and/repack the bearings?
The manual does not mention tilting the fairing but that is the only way I could get to the pinch bolt. It took considerably less time to tilt the fairing than it did to attempt to find a way of getting the tool underneath all that mess.
You say you’re doing the full service - did you already replace and/repack the bearings?
Last edited by BrandonSmith; Apr 28, 2022 at 07:55 PM.
Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2016
Posts: 1,354
Likes: 399
From: Vancouver, BC
I did this two years ago and have it well documented somewhere. Ill post back with a link. I do remember having the fairing tilted and using a long hex key to get to the bolt. Pretty sure you need the fairing tilted, which doesnt take much to do: remove the two turn signals, remove the four double ended bolts that hold the fairing in place (these are what the turn signal acorn nuts attach to), then lift fairing and rotate forward.
loosen pinch bolt then set fairing back in place. Do your swing test then make adjustment to stem, then swing test again, etc. then when done tilt fairing and tighten pinch bolt. Reassemble
loosen pinch bolt then set fairing back in place. Do your swing test then make adjustment to stem, then swing test again, etc. then when done tilt fairing and tighten pinch bolt. Reassemble
Thread Starter
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Road Captain
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 646
Likes: 167
From: chicago
i havent started yet. got as far as taking the front fairing off and realized you cant access the pinch
bolt. now i have two methods of access, your method and i cut down an allen wrench.
no link to-your file.
bolt. now i have two methods of access, your method and i cut down an allen wrench.
no link to-your file.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2015
Posts: 10,034
Likes: 5,308
doing my 20,000 mile maintenance and im trying to adjust the steering head bearings but cant get a socket or allen wrench in the crimp bolt to loosen it to in order to adjust bearings. too many cables n crap in the way. do i need to pull the radio out to get at this bolt? 14 ultra classic.
thanks
thanks
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HDF Community Team
Joined: Mar 2017
Posts: 7,837
Likes: 4,404
From: Texas
The yellow highlights are the steps to perform, in order, if you're going to do the full bearing inspection/repack. I do not go into detail on the swing test and adjustment.
I would highly recommend to repack the bearings with grease. Mine were nearly dry at the same mileage, and what grease remained was nasty.
If you're looking to just rotate the fairing to get to the pinch bolt, those steps are not highlighted but are on page 11 of the PDF (page 3-118 in the service manual).
Here's a link to some pictures and other details related to my bearing repacking: Brandon's 2017 FLHX - Page 16 - Harley Davidson Forums (hdforums.com)
Tools I had to go out and get to finish the job:
- 1-1/2” socket for the upper steering stem nut
- 5/16” ball end hex bit (LONG, almost 5" long) to get to the upper stem pinch bolt when you’re adjusting the tightness during the swing test
- There's also a plastic tray under the radio, where the handlebar switch controls are zip-tied. You can move this tray out of the way (without having to remove any of the wiring) and get easier access to the pinch bolt (it may be held in by a plastic clip and/zip ties - very easy to remove).
- 1/4” drive, 6” ratchet extension for adjusting the steering stem
From one of my threads:
I’ve managed to do the swing test today and that thing is touchy. Too loose, too tight, too loose, still too loose, too tight, just right... Found out my jack doesn’t lift level, so I had to keep adding shims on the jack to get the bike level. Found that being perfectly level matters a LOT. Oh, and I had to undo most work I did yesterday to rotate the fairing just to be able to get to the pinch bolt. Put everything back together to swing test, then take everything apart to tighten pinch bolt and put everything back together again. I’m beat.
Last edited by BrandonSmith; Apr 29, 2022 at 07:28 AM.
Thread Starter
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Road Captain
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 646
Likes: 167
From: chicago
No actually. I had felt a slight wobble so i had tires replaced last year because they were original tires. I initially thought out of balance/bad tire. A tech at the dealer test rode it and said that at 18,000 miles the steering head probably loose. I did the swing back test and verified it was a little loose, but finished out the season without doing the maintenance. Now im at 21000 and doing the service, weather starting to get nice, be riding every day very soon.