Steering head bearing replacement: Difference between revisions

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==Disassembly==

If you think there is a problem after you do the testing, you're going to have to take apart the front of your bike to get at the bearings. If they feel pretty bad, you might want to order parts before you do this. If you just want to lube the bearings, the directions are basically the same, except for removing & replacing the bearings and races.

If you think there is a problem after you do the testing, you're going to have to take apart the front of your bike to get at the bearings. If they feel pretty bad, you might want to order parts before you do this.

If you just want to lube the bearings, the directions are basically the same, except for removing & replacing the bearings and races.

If all you're doing is adjusting the stem nut, you don't have to actually remove the upper triple. The adjusting nut will turn fairly easily once the clamping pressure is removed by loosening the stem head bolt.

If your races are notched, dented, or otherwise not smooth inside, you should replace them. Check to see that the bearings are in good shape and not pitted. If they just need to be lubed, lube them up and put everything back together.

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[[image:824526.jpg|100px]]

"Lock nut" is a bit of a confusing name (though that's what Kawasaki calls it). It's really the adjustment nut for the preload (pressure) on the bearings. It doesn't really lock anything, since it's not really tight. We'll call it the 'stem nut' from here forward. The stem head bolt clamps the upper triple tree against the stem ~~adjusting~~ nut to hold the adjustment.

"Lock nut" is a bit of a confusing name (though that's what Kawasaki calls it). It's really the adjustment nut for the preload (pressure) on the bearings. It doesn't really lock anything, since it's not really tight. We'll call it the 'stem nut' from here forward. The stem head bolt clamps the upper triple tree against the stem nut to hold the adjustment.

====OEM bearings====

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 ==Disassembly==
-If you think there is a problem after you do the testing, you're going to have to take apart the front of your bike to get at the bearings. If they feel pretty bad, you might want to order parts before you do this. If you just want to lube the bearings, the directions are basically the same, except for removing & replacing the bearings and races.
+If you think there is a problem after you do the testing, you're going to have to take apart the front of your bike to get at the bearings. If they feel pretty bad, you might want to order parts before you do this.
+If you just want to lube the bearings, the directions are basically the same, except for removing & replacing the bearings and races.
+If all you're doing is adjusting the stem nut, you don't have to actually remove the upper triple. The adjusting nut will turn fairly easily once the clamping pressure is removed by loosening the stem head bolt.
 If your races are notched, dented, or otherwise not smooth inside, you should replace them. Check to see that the bearings are in good shape and not pitted. If they just need to be lubed, lube them up and put everything back together.
@@ Line 16: / Line 20: @@
 [[image:824526.jpg|100px]]
-"Lock nut" is a bit of a confusing name (though that's what Kawasaki calls it). It's really the adjustment nut for the preload (pressure) on the bearings. It doesn't really lock anything, since it's not really tight. We'll call it the 'stem nut' from here forward. The stem head bolt clamps the upper triple tree against the stem adjusting nut to hold the adjustment.
+"Lock nut" is a bit of a confusing name (though that's what Kawasaki calls it). It's really the adjustment nut for the preload (pressure) on the bearings. It doesn't really lock anything, since it's not really tight. We'll call it the 'stem nut' from here forward. The stem head bolt clamps the upper triple tree against the stem nut to hold the adjustment.
 ====OEM bearings====