May 14th, 2015, 09:40 PM | #1 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Lucas
Location: vietnam
Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): ninja 250 Posts: 83
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straight handle bars
Are the ninja handle bars supposed to be perfectly straight? I've gotten four different shops to check out my bike and they did laser measuring and bending and all sorts of things, but the bike drives very straight, but it feels like my throttle is closer to my body slightly than my clutch if I want to go straight. 9 different mechanics have tested the bike and they all say it's fine, but I'm still not sure
my roads are not flat and they slope to the right for the most part. I don't have any ninja 250 around to test drive, but I drove two other bikes and they all feel like my throttle is closer to my body than the clutch. it's a very slight difference, but it's noticeable. So my question is are the bars supposed to be perfectly straight or does it lean slightly to the right? thanks |
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May 14th, 2015, 09:49 PM | #2 |
The Corner Whisperer
Name: Chris (aka Reactor)
Location: Northern KY
Join Date: May 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2010 250 (track), 1992 250, 2006 R6 (street/track), 2008 R6 (track) Posts: Too much.
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They should be straight, but road conditions can cause the front to "hunt". ie Constantly adjust to realign with the rear wheel. Do you have a nice flat road to try it out on?
Could be tweaked forks too.
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May 15th, 2015, 04:32 AM | #3 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Lucas
Location: vietnam
Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): ninja 250 Posts: 83
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this has been a complete waste of time for me. every shop ive been to, agrees something is wrong, and then they take a few days to fix it and then when I get it back it rides exactly like how I dropped it off. the recent shop had a lot of machinery and stuff so I felt good about it. They were also fixing crashed Z1000s. But they did make the bike feel a little bit better in the rear, but the front still has a problem. I spoke to them about the forks and they said one was longer than the other and they fixed that. The bike will go very very straight, but only if I tilt it a little bit to the right therefore my throttle arm is closer to my body. They even removed all the fairings to adjust whatever it was that they adjusted.
I just don't get why 9 people all said the bike is fine and goes straight. Yeah, im trying to figure out where I can find a flat road, but there aren't any around here. This is really frustrating because the bike was fine to me before I had my forks repaired because they were leaking. I figure maybe its not the road because the steering position and handle bars dont change whether or not the road leans left or right. So I figure its gotta be me or my arms. |
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May 15th, 2015, 04:32 AM | #4 | |
Long Time Rider
Name: Blue
Location: Charlotte, NC
Join Date: Sep 2010 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Kawasaki Ninja 250R Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
How do you sit on the bike? (most people lean their body slightly to the throttle side) Are you pulling the handlebars as you twist the throttle? When the bars are fully turned to the right and left are they the same distance from the tank on both sides? |
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May 15th, 2015, 06:12 AM | #5 |
dirty boy
Name: Joe
Location: Johnstown, PA
Join Date: Sep 2012 Motorcycle(s): I don't even know anymore?? Posts: A lot.
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I have always felt like my bike is not perfectly symmetrical right and left up front. When I put my clip-on on my bike I noticed that one side was a lot closer to the plastics and what not despite having the same angle and what not. I messed with it a few times at first but stopped caring, the bike feels and rides fine so whatevs
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May 15th, 2015, 08:34 AM | #6 |
The Corner Whisperer
Name: Chris (aka Reactor)
Location: Northern KY
Join Date: May 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2010 250 (track), 1992 250, 2006 R6 (street/track), 2008 R6 (track) Posts: Too much.
MOTY 2015, MOTM - Nov '12, Nov '13
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If they were fine before, then the triples are twisted. This will allow the bike to track straight but the bars be out of alignment. There is a DYI around here somewhere to straighten it out.
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May 15th, 2015, 04:53 PM | #7 | |
Daily Ninjette rider
Name: Hernan
Location: Florida
Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot.
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Yes, they should be symmetrical and any line connecting the same points of the hand grips should be perfectly perpendicular to the front wheel.
Quote:
If not, then your forks may be twisted; here is how to check it and correct it (without laser): http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/I_need_...or_fine-tuning All roads have some pitch for water drainage, but it is not noticeable regarding the straight steering and alignment that we are discussing here.
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Motofool .................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí |
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May 15th, 2015, 09:40 PM | #8 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Lucas
Location: vietnam
Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): ninja 250 Posts: 83
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this is a little strange. when my handle bars goes to the left side in the case of i want to lock the neck, then it doesn't touch the wind screen.
but if I move it to the right all the way, it touches the wind screen. is this normal? Doesn't touch. this side touches http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b2...psz8eazvbl.jpg The handle bars need to be turned right a bit in order to go straight. the throttle is closer to my body slightly. But it seems weird that the two other non ninjabikes that I've been on has the same problem to me... hmmm |
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May 15th, 2015, 09:46 PM | #9 |
wat
Name: wat
Location: tustin/long beach
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laser aligned front to back just means the rear tire is aligned correctly and the neck isn't bent. triples can still be twisted, which wont really affect steering outside of it being offset one direction. also the fork height only on one side wont make any difference. it will slightly affect compression damping stiffer since the inner is pushing extra hard on the inside of the lower because of the twist. if they didn't loosen the top triple nut under the top triple then its pretty likely the two triples are still misaligned.
but the photo you posted looks like a bent handlebar.
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May 15th, 2015, 10:15 PM | #10 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Lucas
Location: vietnam
Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): ninja 250 Posts: 83
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can you post a picture of what the triples are. sorry, im a newb.
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May 16th, 2015, 07:01 AM | #11 | |
Daily Ninjette rider
Name: Hernan
Location: Florida
Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot.
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Quote:
The picture below shows the upper triple installed in the assembly. Each triple has clamps that hold the tubes in position (vertical and rotational). What happens if the top triple is clamped to the tubes in a twisted position (rotated around the central column) respect to the lower triple?
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Motofool .................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí |
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May 16th, 2015, 07:24 AM | #12 |
ninjette.org member
Name: Lucas
Location: vietnam
Join Date: Oct 2014 Motorcycle(s): ninja 250 Posts: 83
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im pretty sure the shops have all tried to adjust that.
I even remember one place loosening the big center bolt and the two side clamps and playing around with it for a while. The bike rides so straight now from to back, but it's just the annoying sides. So maybe I do have bent handle bars. maybe my throttle is bent? How can I really tell? Is one side of the bar supposed to touch the wind screen when you put it all the way to the left? My left side (clutch) hits the wind screen- this is also the side that feels further away from me when I go straight. Here are some more pictures. Would unscrewing those two bolts where the handle bars are and playing around with them potentially help? It always feels like the left clutch side is slightly higher than the right side. and also, if you look closely at my left fork, does it seem like its bigger or sticks out more than on my left fork? For whatever reasons, when I straighten the bike out, the left fork looks a lot better than the right fork. |
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May 16th, 2015, 08:19 AM | #13 | |||||
Daily Ninjette rider
Name: Hernan
Location: Florida
Join Date: Mar 2011 Motorcycle(s): 2007 Ninja 250 Posts: A lot.
MOTY - 2016, MOTM - Dec '12, Jan '14, Jan '15, May '16
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Quote:
You can use anything that is flat, like a piece or marble, hard wood or glass. Quote:
Only the steel tube of the handle could be bent at the point where it enters the pedestal that anchor it to the upper triple. You can place a straight edge over the side of that pedestal and look at the line of the tube. If that is the case, the repair is difficult and you may prefer living with the bent tube. In order to repair, you need to remove the tube form the pedestal and apply heat from a torch and then re-paint. A heat gun is needed to remove the screw that holds the end weight, because it has red locking agent. Quote:
If the windscreen is centered, then that proves that your top triple is twisted to the right. Quote:
If not, nothing will rotate. Also, you will need to verify that both forks protrude the same distance above the top triple. Please, read these: http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Steerin...ng_replacement http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/I_need_...nd_front_wheel Quote:
You can also run a plumb by the sides of each fork to verify that they are not bent laterally or that your head of the frame is not twisted respect to the frame. Please, read this: https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=185380
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Motofool .................................Never ride faster than your guardian angel can fly "Mankind is composed of two sorts of men — those who love and create, and those who hate and destroy. Love is the bond between men, the way to teach and the center of the world." - José Martí |
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May 21st, 2015, 09:44 AM | #14 |
ninjette.org sage
Name: bruce
Location: northern illinois
Join Date: Jan 2012 Motorcycle(s): Race bikes:08 Ninja 250,11 R6,16 ZX6,SV650.3 HD-1947,2-2003,2010. 1946 Indian and a lot of dirt bikes.2 Posts: 999
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If you drive in the right side of the road over there and the road has excessive "crown" then it would make sense that your throttle hand would be closer to your body due to counter steer.
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