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Steering Head - How Tight?

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skippy:

--- Quote from: Huzo on November 27, 2021, 03:06:16 PM ---None of the above I think is wrong.
But I’d not use the nut to bed the races by pulling them up “very tight”. It’s a bit cruel to brutally force the inner and outer together with that level of force.
If you freeze the inner and (perhaps) warm the housing, they should fall in. But I do appreciate the need to have them properly seated.
A simple tool can be made in the form of a long bolt and two discs, with the the bolt through the stem and the discs drawing the races together.

--- End quote ---

This is a true statement. You don't want to force the outer race into its fit applying pressure through the inner race and rollers. that will immediately destroy an otherwise good bearing. The term is called brinelling and it will leave you with a dangerous motorcycle to ride.

Use heat and freeze the parts. Like Huzo said.

Skippy   

Bpreynolds2:
Appreciate all the responses.  I wound up doing a little of both in a way.  My spanner wrench curved as such that it won’t let me get a perfect grip so I could really only go down so tight per se, then backed off to a bit of resistance. 

Scout63:
IIRC the nut is 35 or 36 mm. You can buy a stamped thin open end wrench (spanner) on line that fits right in there.

Nice work doing the bearing maintenance that 9 out of 10 bikes never get.

Rough Edge racing:
 My experience is it depends on the bike...Some like a slight preload to dampen the movement, some don't..For instance with the front wheel removed and no binding from cables or brake lines, about a two pound pull on upper fork tube to get it moving  is a slight preload...A fishing scale is the measuring tool. Or the Harley type adjustment where it takes a slight push to move the forks off center and they they fall to the side on their own..
  Some newer bikes have gone back to roller bearings, caged not loose...
 What Rodekyll said, tapered rollers can handle stiff preloads in constant rotation ....

Mike Tashjian:
I had a 2001 Roadglide and the manual had very detailed directions for adjusting the steering head.  Once set properly the fully equipped bikes front end in the air, should rotate from lock to lock and settle after releasing.  I can't remember exactly but it was like back and forth one and three quarters turns. Anyways I would set up with no play but no tightness either.  The steering damper on your Stone can then be used if additional tension is needed for high speed driving. 

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