low speed wobble tyre and fork advice

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Dec 5, 2007
Messages
169
Hi , Been on the dark side riding Harleys for the last couple of years but madness and boredom have forced me back to the Norton, (69 s) took her out for the first time in a year the other day after changing oil checking tyres etc, all good excpt i notice at low speed, (40klm) if i take my hands/wieght off the bars i get a nasty wobble up. Bike is original bar the usual mods and tyres must be 15 yold, i even noticed that the rear tyre is running in the wrong direction all these years :(. I plan to replace both tyres, currently Avon roadrunners 100/90 V19 rear and 90/90H19 frnt, any preffered options ??, i hardly ever ride and speed or cornering dont come into the equation greatly. Also i was going to rebuild the front forks, , any suggestions on a kit or seals oil etc i will need,( i saw a Lamberton kit??, but dont really need to go there with my riding style ) I am in Australia and mostly shop on Ebay , Have the workshop manual and comfy with rebuilding myself. Thanks in advance, BTW , 12 months without starting, put oil back in tank from sump, flooded ticklers, enricher half way, one kick with key off to get her juices flowing ,one kick with key on and she is back to life, gotta love that.
Cheers
rob
 
Rob
Don't take your hands off the bars, after all why would you want to?
This is common with Commandos as the ISOs haven't smoothed out the vibes until you go faster.
 
All bikes w/o a damper wobble the forks hands off at some speed usually on slowing down before hwy speed, especially C'do's that ain't been re-done stem to stern with non Norton devices. I'm betting my life on one of those in my living room but its totally unneeded for wonderful easy riding if ya keep at least one hand on the bars at all times or speed way up before letting go to work a zipper or other two handed tasks like a bug under the bonnet. A C'do goes through tires fast enough will not be long better they are new to see how that affects your ride. My pretty nicely assembled factory Combat may be one of the most wobble prone I've ridden, which does bother me one two handed tasks but just did 1000 mile trip yet returned refreshed not worn out fighting any effort to hold stable lines. Mine still has decades old front tire so its soon to be renewed to see how that feels hands off.
 
Also check the front axle clamp. It may seem torqued yet could still be loose on the axle.
Right side on mkiii, left side on others.
 
Those AM26 Avon Roadriders are fine tires, I just bought a set for the Commando after wearing out a set on my '86 1100 GSXR.

Did you try tightening up the isolastics? Since the bike has sat for a time, maybe they "took a set" that affects wheel alignment? Was it on the sidestand?
 
It was on the centre stand sitting, thanks for the replies, will check the mentioned things and replace tyres, seems like it could be fairly normal tho, so i wont stress too much about it

Cheers
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top