Greetings,

I've already upgraded my rear shocks with Hagon 13" Nitros and have redone the forks with Racetech Gold Valve Emulators and single rate springs for my weight.

I had read about, but have now recently experienced....the wobble.

While the suspension has been sorted out, my next project is removing the wobble. I understand Vibra Technics (Predator Mount), True Track and Spruthe are the big 3 for aftermarket frame stabilizers.

Any opinions on which to get and why? Do most people do both the front and rear mounts, one or the other?

Thanks!

 

What were the conditions that made you experience the wobble?

 

I had the Sputhe engine mounts and Sputhe aluminum swingarm on my '01 FXDXT. Also, you might want to check fall-away...even with the mounts I had to tighten up my neck bearing about 1/8 over spec to get ride of a wobble at triple digit speed and when braking hard or on steep downhill. Try that before you add-on a "stabilizer". Treat the cause, not the symptom.

 

Sputhe is what I have. Did the front first and it was a big improvement, added the rear later and didn't notice that much more. I'd try a predator front mount if I was you. Yes, try tightening up your fall-away just a scosh, and how many miles on your bike? Put it on a lift and check your wheel for side play, the wheel bearings are ***** and go bad pretty quick, can induce a pretty good wobble, as well as the swing arm bushings if they have gone bad. I like my steering damper a lot, but the asphalt is generally pretty crappy on the roads up here.....

 

On a 45mph sweeper, going 65mph+. The bike felt like it wouldn't hold a line until after the apex of the turn.

Good info. Thank you.

Right now, the Predator mount is my 1st choice. Aside from that, why do you recommend the Predator over the Spruthe (or True Trac for that matter)? I had the forks off recently and had checked fall away. All was within spec. Bike has 6,5XX miles on it now. I don't think (operative word here) the swing are bushings are the culprit. Are the swing arm bushings involved to replace? How does one know when they are shot?

 

The predator mount is the one that the rubber is enclosed, I believe, so it is protected from used oil contamination during oil changes, as well as road grime. Should last longer than a stock motor mount.

6500 is too soon for the swing arm bushings ( unless someone was snoozing on the assembly line and didn't grease them). Your high speed wobble sounds exactly like what my bike would do prior to installing the front Sputhe, and exactly like the stock FXDF I rode last weekend.

 

If fallaway is within spec, then it's a bit loose. I went less than 1/8 turn over "spec"...

 

Just ordered the Predator. I'll report my findings.

That's for your feedback.

 

Vibratech Predator is installed and now have about 1k miles on the bike since the mod.

Regarding installation, I highly recommend removing the oil filter. I'm sure it can be done without the oil filter removed, but it gets kind of tight in there. Between the shop manual and the provided instructions, installation was pretty straight forward. Robbyville has a good thread on install as well. I've tried to be as careful as I can with oil spillage when removing the oil filter when doing services. After I removed the stock front motor mount, I was surprised how much oil was in/on the mount. While the rubber hadn't looked like it had rotted or degraded, it was bathed in oil. I like that the Predator mount is contained. It looks like oil seapage into the unit will be very minimal.

The bike feels more solid now. Immediately after install, I went to some roads that have some good sweepers and twisties in them. Confidence in the turns at speed has gone up nicely. The bike feels more planted. I can lean the bike over in a sweeper and it feels predictable and sure footed. I've gotten the chicken strips on the tires a little smaller now!

Also, vibes are transmitted a little differently since the install. At idle, there is noticeably less vibration. Underway, the mirrors are smooth (although I didn't have an issue with the mirrors to begin with). The vibes that do get transmitted have a slightly harsher character to them. Road imprefections seem to be a little more pronounced now. A slightly higher level of "road feel" is transmitted through the bike, but nothing offensive. It's a small tradeoff for the overall gains in handling.

Overall, the handling project is now complete. Racetech emulators and springs, Hagon Nitro shocks, and now the Predator mount. Aside from going with Ohlins forks/shocks, I can't think of anything else to improve handling. The bike handles waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyy better than stock now. It's a shame HD doesn't sell a factory Dyna with similar upgrades.