Bagger Wobble, Fact or Fiction?!
Bagger Wobble, Fact or Fiction?!
Thread Starter
|
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
Road Warrior
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 1,410
Likes: 30
From: Waterville MN
I rode 'other' brands of bikes for 30 years before I got my Harley, and the handling was very evident right from the start. I was told that is is normal, no problem, just ride it. So I did for about 6000 miles - then I put new tires on the bike and it amplified the issue greatly. Installed the Progressive suspension brace and it is night and day better. But I can't tell anyone about the solution because they never see a problem - mostly because the bike they have is the only one they ever rode and don't know any better.
Road Master
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 799
Likes: 2
From: WyoBraska (Western Nebraska)
Good article: well written. For those of us on hard mounted engines, some still applies. Coming back from a 1800 mile ride, with the bags loaded heavy, I experienced a "wobble" around 85 on a straight road ! Thinking it's time to look at the swing arm setup.
Thanks !
Thanks !
Tourer
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 354
Likes: 0
From: Indianapolis, IN
This isn't a denial...i promise. I do have a follow up question. I've never experienced this wobble. Now to qualify that statement, I'm only have about 12k of experience on a bagger, and I've never been accused of pushing the envelope with my riding style, I'm a cruiser for sure. Does this normally occur with more aggressive riding (not suggesting it's the riders fault at all, but acknowledging that there are definitely different riding styles, all of which are perfectly acceptable).
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
|
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
There are two aspects to this. The 'wobble' or 'rear steer' are most obvious at speed, especially in a bend and when hitting something that upsets the bike's balance. This can cause a momentary shift sideways of the rear wheel, which corrects itself, but in the meantime gives the rider kittens. Not nice.
At lower or less adventurous speeds, the rear wheel simply does not follow the front wheel as faithfully as it should. While a shrewdly chosen stabilizer kit will correct the wild moments, it will also tighten up the steering, give better feel and make the bike a whole lot nicer to ride. All the time!
It is well worth fitting one.
Hope that helps!
At lower or less adventurous speeds, the rear wheel simply does not follow the front wheel as faithfully as it should. While a shrewdly chosen stabilizer kit will correct the wild moments, it will also tighten up the steering, give better feel and make the bike a whole lot nicer to ride. All the time!
It is well worth fitting one.
Hope that helps!
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Verdad Gallardo
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Thread Starter
|
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,898
From: Bedford UK
Thanks for the video Tom, some real butt clenching moments there. Have to admire the cop for doing that repeatedly. I think it was somewhere here in HDF, a good while ago, that someone posted a link to a Police report about comparison tests on several candidate Police bikes of different brands. Made a good read and left me wondering why Harley doesn't make a better effort to sort their bikes.
The fork legs need better support in the top tree and the rubber mounts need better support. There, that wasn't difficult! There are solutions for both already out there in Customland.
The fork legs need better support in the top tree and the rubber mounts need better support. There, that wasn't difficult! There are solutions for both already out there in Customland.
Last edited by grbrown; Jul 17, 2012 at 03:20 PM. Reason: Expanded.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post