750E handling

I have a 750E1 w/ 20K that handles like it has a mind of its own.

Details:
New Progressive fork springs
Changed fork oil to 15w
New needle bearings in the stem
New chain and sprockets (to 530, changed ratio slightly from stock).
New Bridgestones, 110/90 front, 120/90 rear (the same size and brand that were on the bike last year, broken in w/ roughly 500 miles on the new set, 41 psi per tire).

The front to rear wheel alignment is good (set w/ a string). Both tires seem to be wearing dead center on the tire.

I have not changed the wheel bearings or rear shocks. The wheels appear solidly mounted, no discernible shucking back and forth. Swing arm bushing is a question mark?

Rider (me) 6'1", 190. Should also mention the stock seat shape sucks, it's constantly sending me into the tank.

Last year it handled like crap! So I put the time into the chassis over the winter. The front end is now solid, the rear still somewhat harsh but still solid.

Problem - At cruising speed say 65, it handles alright, not great. But through 30-45 mph corners, if I even think about turning in I end up way inside before I know it. I've tried to change my riding style, stay out wide, pick a spot, countersteer in, throttle off the corner, but even then I find myself having to constantly correct!

I've read reviews (Cycle mag?) about the bike and they mentioned handling being deficient. Anyone have any suggestions before I send this bike into the ditch, leave it there and walk home?

If i find myself drifting out of track around corner I give it a little throttle. The bike corners better under throttle. You have to get used to it but if your heading somewhere you don't want to head, TAKE control of the bike with power. the same rules go for a race car, water craft...
Try it in a parking lot or open area. corner with no throttle, the try the same under power. Know your tires and how they grab the road. carefully learn to trust your tires and how far your can lean them. Whatch for dirt or gravel.

At those lower speeds when I turn my KZ650 a little it turns a lot. I was surprised at first but put it down to these modern (to me, I hadn't ridden in 30 years) tires with almost no grips on them.

Did I mention that this bike was real nimble in traffic.

As far as carving through a corner I have never had problems but my rear swing arm bushings are solid and tight. :dry:

Best of success.

If you've never greased the swingarm bushings/bearings, then that's probably the cause.

Why 41 psi in the tires? Isn't that a little higher than it calls for?

I have an 80 KZ750E but it's got Suzuki GSX front end with GPz750 swingarm and 17" radial tires on it, so I don't have a clue what stock air pressures are.

I greased the swing arm bushing, dialed up the preload on the rear and lowered the air pressure in the tires about 3 psi (side wall did in fact call for 41 psi cold). The handling is better now, not great, but better. Also spent a bit of time thinking about what I was doing and tried to change some things, we'll see.

The seat though has got to go. Doesn't fit right for me at all. I guess I'll try and work on reshaping the seat somehow and recover it.

Thanks to all, great advice as always here!

If you are going to reshape the seat an electric carving knife works great on shaving the foam. Just keep it straight and don't shake or more hills and valleys to sit on.

If you are not comfortable doing it yourself any local uphostery shops will do it for little $.

Check the rear shock hardware and the condition of the shocks, are they original to the bike?

The pressure listed on the sidewall is "maximum" cold air pressure, good for fuel mileage but not to good for anything else. Look in your manual for proper tire pressure, probably something like 30 front 32 rear.

With 41 psi you probably felt a bump every time you crossed a painted line

With 41 psi you probably felt a bump every time you crossed a painted line

Wasn't quite that bad but close.

I'll get the pressures down and see how it is. When I got the bike I went through the periodic maint. part of the owners manual, changed all the fluids etc, changed the tires and all, thought I was good for the time being. Just aggravating to miss something so rudimentry as tire pressure! :whistle::blush:

The seat 'll have to wait 'till the winter. I lost too much riding time earlier this summer doing other work on the bike. Thanks for the tip re the carving knife! I'll be looking for a spare seat pan to experiment on rather chopping up the old one and being stuck in the garage.

Thanks again to all!!!!

I know you said you had new springs up front, but do they require any spacers? did they have a good bit of tension on them when you capped the forks? What about the fluid and seals?


To me (and I have very little experience so grain of salt here) that the steering geometry is out a but and the steering has become "twitchy," are the forks and shocks stock length? have you dropped the forks down any??