[900Steve]

at highway+ speeds i notice the handle bars tend to shake a bit. not awfully out of control but definetly annoying. could this be due to the front damping on the stiff side AND the fact taht its a new fork?

which leads me to ask if this may change subtly over time due to break-in, if no damper settings are changed?

finally, do a lot of you find that by playing with the damper settings on yoru forks that this goes away or will this warrant a steering damper?

its a 2001 900S, brand new.

Thanks!

-steve

 

[spaceman]

I have not played with the damper settings, but could the shakes be attributed to the texture of the pavement you are going over?
-Spaceman.

 

[900Steve]

the pavement was pretty smooth, for a massachusetts road. i havent had time to mess with the settings yet, if i get a chance ill let you konw.

 

[Retro]

Very hard to assess your symptoms without more info.
I think Ohlins has some good pdf manuals you can look at
to better explain the function and related symptoms of compression and rebound damping for you.
Check other sites also, like Racetech, Penske, etc..
I think you are talking about straight line front end shaking?
There are so many variables to consider I think it is best to start at a baseline set up with your supension first, including checking wheel alignment, and balance, and tires before throwing on a steering damper.
If you haven't done so, getting the sag set correctly, front, and rear, would be a good thing to consider doing first.

 

[Wolvie]

The problem with steering dampers is that they can mask a problem that should be addressed and fixed first.

First and foremost, check your tires. Look at condition, pressure and balance.

Second, check your suspension settings. Too much/little compression/rebound will easily make the bike behave badly. Look at this site for clues in setting suspension:
http://www.sportrider.com/tech/146_0202_geek/
http://www.sportrider.com/tech/146_0006_susp/

Then, after you have done this, if you are still unhappy with your performance, look into a steering damper.

 

[motorep]

New forks- did you mess with/adjust/tighten the steering head bearings at all? Too tight will/can make it shake. I'd also check to make sure that the wheels are in line with each other. Did you change anything else- new tires? You shouldn't have to install a steering damper to cure it.

 

[CRASH!]

My $0.02....

Do you have a fairing? I do and I noticed some uncomfortable shaking when I first got my bike. The fairing is fork, not frame, mounted meaning that wind buffeting is transferred to the forks resulting in some shake.

I put clip-ons on not too long after getting the bike and it got better. More weight over the front AND my upper body and arms are taking less wind buffeting which can be transferred to the wheel.

I have also since had the forks adjusted by BCM and put on a Rizoma rear suspension loop. The loop is longer and raises the rear ride height putting more weight on the front.

You may have a problem; can't say from here. But it's my experience that the Monster is a much happier machine when you engineer a bit of weight transfer from back to front.

I don't have a dampener and don't feel the need for one.

 

[900Steve]

thanks everyone for your input. ill try and take it a step at a time. it looks like i got some reading to do here.

thanks again!

-steve