geez, I don't remember the steering head nut this proud when disassembled?

[amamet]

putting my 77 lemans back together from being apart since last year, after reinstalling the triple clamps, the top triple has about an 1/8" play up and down.  I definitely don't remember that when I took it apart. the head nut is longer than the body of the upper triple so I don't know how it would be flush anyway. it appears to be flush in older photos of my bike.  do I just raise the upper triple when I lock it onto the forks?  the second photo is me just holding the triple up to nut.

[Wayne Orwig]

Sure looks like a spacer is missing between the nut and the clamp.

[amamet]

all parts taken off were put back on...and looking at a schematic everything is correct

[1down5up]

It looks like you might be missing the washer between the dust cap and nut - but that's not going to take up that much slack...

[amamet]

Nope, it’s there. The washer is on top of the nut. Dust cap, nut, washer, upper triple and lastly the steering head nut

[acogoff]

     Did you by any chance put in new bearings and races? A race not driven fully home would cause such.

[amamet]

Nope again, just reinstalled as it was removed. All parts the same

[amamet]

the second photo shows, from the bottom up, the dust cap, steering head nut, washer then the lower part of the body of the top steering head nut.  I can't figure out how the upper triple doesn't "float" along the body of the top nut.  I've included the schematic from stein dinse

[Dimples]

If everything is accounted for on top, maybe something is missing from the lower triple tree assembly.