Steering Wobble

[Pushrod]

I know most of you have seen or heard of this question before so excuse me if I have to do it again. I am a New Trike Owner, had my 2005 Ultra Classic converted to the CSC Kit. What I have is a serious wobble on Sterring on take off and stoping, dealer said this was normal. rode 2 other trikes today and they didn't have it, one a Honda and Another a Harley. The Honda had the CSC Kit and the Harley had the Champion, neither has the problem I have. I have the EZ_steer on it but it don't seem to help it any, any fixes you know of without having to add a steering damper as I have read so far. Any Help will be appreciated, I want to ride, don't want to just sit and look at it.

 

[BlueTrinity]

Don't accept that "normal" crap from the dealer.

I've got an 06 Ultra/CSC and it's fantastic without a damper.

Wobble usually happens at certain speeds, not accel or braking.

I would first look at steering bearings and tire wear. Chck tire balance and inflation. Don't forget the forks either. Compression good or soft?

If nothing there call CSC direct. You'll find they are a great bunch to deal with.

Good luck!

 

[Ozarkryder]

Ditto on the inflation. Front tire at the maximun listed on the tire, and make susre the rear tires are inflated to the same pressure. Trikes are pretty sensitive to rear tire infaltion. Alignment may be off, also.

Also if the road your are on is not smooth and level the rear wheels will move different from each other, and that energy is transferred to the frame of the trike, and then to the steering. After you gain a bit of speed the suspension reacts quicker, to faster inputs, and it smooths out a bit. (In theory)

If you can, you might try another another installer/dealer in your area to see what they have to say.

 

[grimm]

i experienced the same thing, when i had my stock front end. i ended up raking out my front end and extending the tubes. handles like a dream, now. i know the touring rigs triple tree setup is different from the other models, but you might want to see what's out there.

 

[Pushrod]

I had the Dealer to check the Torque on the steering, all is within specs. I do have the 4.5 degree rake on it also, checked the air pressures and they are right, still got the wobble at 5 mph and less, really bad on take off. Only different thing I have on the front end is the chrome tubes instead of stock, should that make a difference? Still afraid to ride it much.

 

[dwiht]

I have a slow speed wobble if I do not have a good grip on the handlebars at slow speed. It usually will be the result of hitting a bump. As long as I have a good hold (not a deaath grip) but firm grip, the wobble is no problem, is easy to pull out of, and really has no effect on my riding. I do not have a raked steering and am riding an 08 Ultra with a Lehman conversion.

 

[Gorilla]

Hi dwiht, Does your Ultra/Lehman have the stabilizer bar that Lehman sells for the wobble purpose? Also is that your first trike? How does it handle without the raked triple trees? I am in the process of converting a 2007 Road Glide with a Champion kit and still need to decide to due the rake or not. I have driven a 97 Goldwing 1500 with a CSC conversion including the EZ-steer several hundred miles and it is a dream. Several sales people have told me with the harley's the rake is not as necessary as it is with the Honda. So I'm getting more opinions if possible. I should start my build in about 2 weeks. Thanks Ted

 

[dwiht]

Yes this is my first trike and since I have not ridden a bike with EZ steer, I have nothing to compare it too. I do not have a stabilizer bar and the wobble is really not bad as long as I hold on to the handlebars with a good grip. It quickly goes away. I get a good feel for the road thru the handlebars. I have put almost 10,000 miles on since June, I have ridden 500 to 600 miles in a day and was not tired. I have torn both rotator cuffs so I do not have a lot of upper body strength and have had no problems keeping up with my otheer two wheel friends on twisty roads.

 

[Gorilla]

Thanks for the response (dwiht) I think I will try it without first. Can add it later if needed. Good luck with those rotator cups. If you get them fixes the rehab is a tough 4 to 6 weeks but worth it after. Ted

 

[bob searcy]

my trike steering wobble was resolved by machining a nylon block shaped to duplicate the upper steering head tapered roller bearing. the "block" runs against the existing bearing race and provides the perfect amount of steering "drag" never lubricated in 15 years, never had a problem..

 

[Gorilla]

Bob searcy, Am I understanding you correctly???? You replaced the upper steering head bearing with a nylon fabrication and you resolved the wobble in a harley touring bike? What did you torque the jam nut to? Did you take a picture of the fabrication part? Very interesting solution. Maybe you should sell this idea? Seems like a much better and cheaper solution then a $500 engine addition mount solution. Ted