swaggyp Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 Well the title says it all.. About a week ago, I hit a pothole, nothing big, but when I hit it there was a jolt in the bike. I rode later on that day and everything felt fine, but about an hour into my ride, I noticed a shudder when braking. It wasn't anything huge, and I dismissed as uneven road. Well as I kept riding, it got a little bit worse and worse. It wasn't only braking, but while I was riding now too, not as bad, but it definitely didn't feel right when I was riding. Fast forward to today and I rode to work.. The shudder when braking is getting worse, and the bike doesn't feel right. The bike is new, and before I hit the pothole, it was nice and smooth... I have 3500 miles on it and I know it shouldn't be feeling this rough. I bought the bike used with 1200 miles, so I don't have dealership warranty. I can fix the bike myself but I just can't figure out what's wrong. The forks are good from what I can tell, no puncture in the tire, so I just don't know what else to look for. If I can get some suggestions in ELI5 terms, that'll help me out a lot. yhanks guys, I need some major advice. I did lay the bike down about 3 weeks ago, low speeds, and the shuddering didn't start until AFTER I hit the pothole. Just an FYI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ralph Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 Lift the front wheel off the ground and give it a spin see it it as flat spots fix a pointer of some sort so you have something to check against wile its up see if you can detect any roughness in the steering head bearings, look for bulges on the tyre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member hobbs Posted June 17, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted June 17, 2015 The Yamaha factory warranty should still transfer to you. I can't help with your current issue but I'd recommend you call Yamaha or your dealership and talk about that. Everything went braap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member hobbs Posted June 17, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted June 17, 2015 Actually, check and see if you lost a wheel weight when you hit the pothole. You could have an unevenly balanced tire if so. Everything went braap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattonme Posted June 17, 2015 Share Posted June 17, 2015 It is illegal for any dealer to refuse to honor the manufacturer's original warranty no matter how many hands it's passed through. Now extended warranties the PO might have bought, those might not transfer but often do. First check for the wheel weights. You may have broken a bearing. How you could have managed that I don't know but it's possible. Put the bike up securely on a yoke stand (the kind with a pin that goes into the triple clamp) or on jacks to get the wheel in the air. Spin the wheel by hand and look/listen for any pulsing by the rotors against brake pads. Under normal conditions you should hear a constant scraping noise. Unbolt the calipers and hang them out of the way. Have someone hold the handlebars steady and yank, twist, pull on the wheel by holding the tire. (don't pull the bike off it's stands!) What you're looking for is any movement of the wheel independent of the forks. There shouldn't be any. If still nothing, take the axle out and wheel off. This time push pull on the lower forks both fore-aft and across. Yes these will move but you're looking for one leg moving a lot more than the other one in case something inside broke. (not likely) Put your finger in the wheel bearings and rotate them as well push and pull on the inner race, and up and down. There should be no discernible movement here either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick Posted June 18, 2015 Share Posted June 18, 2015 Along with all the other suggestions, run you hand along the side walls of the tire and feel for any irregularity - bumps or dips. You might have broken some chords in the belts that only shows up under braking forces. Sometimes it's easier to feel than see. Gonna assume the wheel is still round. You'd feel that all the time. I don't know how it could happen just by hitting a hole, but a slightly warped rotor will do exactly what you've described. Only takes a few thousandths of an inch off. It's best check with a dial gauge clamped to the fork leg. Short of that, you could attach a pice of copper wire to somewhere like the reflector and bend it so the end just barely touches the rotor. Mark that spot and turn the wheel. If a space occurs at any point that's a problem. If no space, rotate the wheel 180 and rest the wire and do again. this will compensate if the 1st position was already a low spot. And, just for grins, loosen the disc rotors and retorque. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pattonme Posted June 19, 2015 Share Posted June 19, 2015 I'd start with @rick's theory of damaged tire innards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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