sudden vibration?
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Road Master
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 828
Likes: 8
From: western Mass
Back to the drawing board! Both fairing brackets (plus both small speaker brackets) were broken, so I figure "no sweat! This is gonna be easy!" Nope, wrong again! Swapped out all the broken stuff in the fairing, got it all buttoned up and headed down the road on what I thought was going to be a successful road test...nope. Still doing the same thing. I thought about checking things out in the primary, wife's Street Bob has had issues in there....maybe tomorrow I'll get a chance to at least take a look in there...maybe loose chain. btw, the bike has around 60k now, if that rings any bells for anybody.
Thanks!
Thanks!
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Road Master
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 828
Likes: 8
From: western Mass
Inside the primary looks good. Just for the hell of it, put the bike back on the lift, took things apart, and realigned everything on the back wheel just to be safe. Readjusted the belt...put things back together, test ride...still not right. Got back in the garage, and with the bike still running, noticed the motor wasn't "vibrating" as much as usual. Took a large screw driver, jammed it under the plate and above the mount for the lower front motor mount while holding onto the grip. "Funny feeling" instantly disappeared! Looks like a new motor mount is in my immediate future!
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 17,548
Likes: 7,164
From: Oxford, Nc
If the plate is resting on the rubber, the mount is broken. The steel sleeve is supposed to hold the plate off of the rubber.
Highly recommend a Stabo or Glide Pro front motor mount for your replacement. The "new and improved " OEM mount won't be the same as the one you have and doesn't feel as good going down the road.
Stabo is about half the price of the Glide Pro.
Glad you figured it out.
Highly recommend a Stabo or Glide Pro front motor mount for your replacement. The "new and improved " OEM mount won't be the same as the one you have and doesn't feel as good going down the road.
Stabo is about half the price of the Glide Pro.
Glad you figured it out.
Road Warrior
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,602
Likes: 3
From: Southeastern Michigan
Nice work finding your problem. Narrowed it down quick with relatively cheap and easy fixes, without going backwards. Your fairing must have vibrated like crazy with all the brackets broken. The new brackets seem to cure the breaking problem just at the expense of a little more vibration in the fairing.
Your new motor mount will make her feel like a new bike.
Your new motor mount will make her feel like a new bike.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 24,682
Likes: 9,163
From: Snow Hill, NC
If the plate is resting on the rubber, the mount is broken. The steel sleeve is supposed to hold the plate off of the rubber.
Highly recommend a Stabo or Glide Pro front motor mount for your replacement. The "new and improved " OEM mount won't be the same as the one you have and doesn't feel as good going down the road.
Stabo is about half the price of the Glide Pro.
Glad you figured it out.
Highly recommend a Stabo or Glide Pro front motor mount for your replacement. The "new and improved " OEM mount won't be the same as the one you have and doesn't feel as good going down the road.
Stabo is about half the price of the Glide Pro.
Glad you figured it out.
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,306
Likes: 39
From: Everywhere
I appreciate the responses/suggestions. After checking inside the fairing, I found BOTH of the small silver brackets (the ones between the main brackets and the speakers) broken! Hard to believe something like that could cause such a noticeable effect throughout the whole bike! But I have heard this a lot on here. SO, hopefully the dealer has some, and that solves the problem! Thanks again.
Broken Fairing brackets are a symptom of a front motor mount gone bad. When the motormount needs to be replaced, the vibration will transfer to other areas of the bike - the fairing brackets and rear exhaust bracket are the first things to go.
If you just replace the fairing brackets without the motor mount, you will be doing it again soon.
Thread Starter
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Road Master
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 828
Likes: 8
From: western Mass
Common - also check the vertical black brackets, at the top where they make a 90Degree turn.
Broken Fairing brackets are a symptom of a front motor mount gone bad. When the motormount needs to be replaced, the vibration will transfer to other areas of the bike - the fairing brackets and rear exhaust bracket are the first things to go.
If you just replace the fairing brackets without the motor mount, you will be doing it again soon.
Broken Fairing brackets are a symptom of a front motor mount gone bad. When the motormount needs to be replaced, the vibration will transfer to other areas of the bike - the fairing brackets and rear exhaust bracket are the first things to go.
If you just replace the fairing brackets without the motor mount, you will be doing it again soon.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 17,548
Likes: 7,164
From: Oxford, Nc
Understood re: shot bushings. While mine was indeed 'broken.' having tried the -79D bushing, ( thought my headlight was going to crack, the vibration was so bad,) and not wanting the new 'improved' -04(?) unit that supposedly wears out yearly, (or so I've heard,) I went with the Stabo unit, and am very pleased.
That led me to the rear swingarm bushings, which at 90,000 miles had to be worn out too. They were an upgraed OEM item also, and were stiffer and took 1,000 or so miles to break in.
Glad I did them both, the handling is now as tight as it was when the bike was new. ( Smoother too.)
That led me to the rear swingarm bushings, which at 90,000 miles had to be worn out too. They were an upgraed OEM item also, and were stiffer and took 1,000 or so miles to break in.
Glad I did them both, the handling is now as tight as it was when the bike was new. ( Smoother too.)
Last edited by Stiggy; Apr 17, 2012 at 06:23 PM.
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