View Full Version : have you ever.....


Bob KellyIII
August 29th, 2021, 08:13 PM
Have you ever wallowed your way through a corner ?.... Well that is what I call it.... back when I was just starting to ride bikes I had a Honda 50cc sport
must'a been a 1968 version but I was ever so proud of that little bike.
on my first trip to town I had it up to about 45mph ( almost the bikes top speed) and laid into the corner that was just before a bridge with a sharp corner on the other side coming off the bridge, being a "country road it wasn't the smoothest pavement in the world and there was a bump just before the bridge.... by now I knew the road like the back of my hand and I was booking it quite fast but as I hit the bump the bike "Wallowed" through the corner.. that is to say bounced but sideways... not so much up and down but more sideways than anything.... talk about butt pucker ! all I could see was the guard rail of the bridge coming at me closer and closer with each bounce ! I made it past the guard rail and quickly leaned it all the way over to the other side to make the next sharp turn, I barely throttled back doing this but made it with no problems.... coming home I was a bit more cautious on that corner and again I experienced that same Odd Wallowing in the corner ! I decided to check everything on the suspension after that
and found the rear wheel was not in alignment with the front i corrected the alignment and checked the rear swing arm for slop but found none...
with the alignment correct I never experienced that Wallowing in the corner again.... much to my relief ! needless to say that could have been real bad
if I had hit that guard rail it would have thrown me 30ft into the creek below
and that sudden stop would probably have killed me ! and my riding currier would have been cut short !
years later after I got my Honda 305 Dream I noticed a slight wallowing in the same corner... that time I had to replace the swing arm bushings as the whole swing arm could be forced over about 1/4" ( I gave the rear wheel a good shove right and left and discovered it.)
....
so if you ever notice a tendency for the bike not to hold the line in a corner
and want to "Wallow" a bit in the corners, or snake it's way through it... you now know what to look for.... and believe me you do not want to experience that feeling I had heading toward that guard rail !
....
Bob.

thedrewski86
August 30th, 2021, 08:59 AM
Yes, I've had similar experiences mid-corner. That feeling of the front suspension compressing as it takes a hit, then not rebounding quickly enough to push the tire back into traction with the road. That is definitely a pucker moment. This was when I was attempting to make up for my lack of damping control on my SV. I had the right springs on the front but I hadn't made the leap to emulators yet. The front end was a little pogo-ish so I figured heavy oil was the solution. I tried 20wt then decided to follow a friend of mine through some of his local canyons. Mind you, he's a better rider than me anyway and he had home-court advantage. I was keeping up but cheating; I just stuck to his line and held on. Needless to say the 20wt was too slow on the uptake and I was running wide in some of the more potholed sections. I slowed down, tore the front end down and installed emulators and 10wt oil and now I don't have to dribble the front tire through a turn anymore.

Bob KellyIII
August 30th, 2021, 05:48 PM
that's Interesting ! I suppose the same effect can be felt from the front as from the rear.... which is reasonable as their is only 2 points making contact.
Your Riding is a bit more Hard-core than mine without a doubt, but it's good to know any solutions for this screwup in the corners as it is definitely not right
and scary as heck ! On most of my bikes I've never had this problem.
perhaps pushing the bike to the max can bring it out as well.
I've drug many a low point on cruisers in corners and that will wake you up
but that is entirely different than what I call "Wallowing in the Corner"
....
Bob....

Triple Jim
August 30th, 2021, 07:19 PM
Just about any motorcycle will do it once in a while, even if it's in perfect condition. I've been leaned over to the knee-down point and run into rough pavement, and had the front tire increase its required angle of attack suddenly (lose traction). You just keep going and hope that it comes back to normal instead of letting loose completely.

Bob KellyIII
August 30th, 2021, 07:54 PM
LOL JIM ! that's not something I want to experience EVER !
however On the Dirt I have had a 2 wheel slide in the corners at speed and it was still controllable, I took up the entire road, but made it through with no problems.... can't say I've ever done that on pavement though LOL
....
Bob.