Low speed front end wobble

So I've been doing some short rides on the 78 kz1000 I've got running, test rides close to home if you will. Too see what other things need attention after sitting for 17 years. I noticed a front end wobble at low speed when I let go of the bars, when I get it up to speed and let go of the bars it doesn't wobble. I'm guessing steering bearings are my first thing to look at, I have new tires coming within the week. While I'm at it I should drain and add fresh fork oil, check front rotor for trueness, rear swingarm bushing for wear and I'll check the wheel bearings once the wheels come off for new tires.

Anything else I should look into in regards to steering wobble?

Other things I've learned from my shakedown rides, new side cover bushings are in order. In 5 gear between 3/4 and WOT the side covers fly off, haha. The clutch feels like it slips till the bike warms up, was expecting some clutch issues with it sitting for so long. Float needles seem to be leaking when the bike is off, I shut the petcock off and noticed the clear fuel lines were empty after a day or two. Will change the oil again and check for gas in it and see if that helps the clutch slipping problem. Once it warms it doesn't slip, even under hard exceleration.

Man what a fun bike to ride, it sure has some guts for an old bike!

if you can get the bike up off the ground you can grab the front wheel and pull it back and forth and feel for slack in the steearing bearings.
myself personally,i ride the bike and squeeze the front brake and watch the steering stem nut for movement relative to the fuel tank,if you see front to back movement the bearings are loose.
chances are they have set long enough to condense some water in there and have pitted the races and you are feeling the balls roll down into the pits and up out which will try and hold it in the pits and then bounce em out.so they are effectively acting like detent balls.
if you turn it side to side while off the ground feel for notchiness as well.

same deal on the swingarm remove the shocks and try to move it side to side and watch where it connects to the frame and watch for movement that will indicate worn bushings/bearings.

changing fork oil would be prudent.i wouldn't worry about checking brake disk runout unless i did not find anything else that could cause the wobbling.

hth,
leon

Thanks Leon

I'll have it up on a jack as soon as my new rubber shows up and will check the front and rear ends thouroghly, I had a feeling the steering bearings might need attention, under takeoff I thought I could feel a bit of play. Tapered roller bearings were on the horizon anyway, the bike has a front end and rear swingarm swap in its future.

Give the swing arm a shot of grease

you got the right advice and your ideas before that are the right starting points checklist....each one of those will move it better along as you check em off the "could be" list

and each one are their own animal so sounds like your on the right track....sometimes i (after doing a bunch of rehab work like you are set to do)and knowing i have a good start on the handling problems

will get going fast enough to not wobble or start slowing/stall...then easy stand up on the pegs and look over the front speedo/tach area straight down at the front tire to see how it is running out.....


hard to explain it,but it helps me and is something i do often after front end work, with new tires and all things done and tight right in the trees and axles etc.....the front tire should now be center lining out of the fender at 20-35 mph dead true...a fender in bind...triple trees tweaked in little front end bump in the past(think kids bike crash)...bent bars a tad...weird stuff in the front half of the bike kinda pops out when i am able to look straight down while cruising along...slow speed wobble can mean that the bikes front is in a bind and trying to reset itself....by speeding up you kinda counter steer it away in some cases a clue.. imo....

just some thoughts

I copied this from a post from Jeff Saunders (owner of Z1 enterprises)

Motorcycle Wobble/Vibration Causes

There's a LONG list of potential area that can cause this.

These are not in any particular order

Wheel bearings

Steering bearings - repack grease, check tightness

Swing arm bushings/sleeves/bearings - replace if worn, repack grease

Fork springs aging - check spring length

Unequal fork oil - if seals leak, then your damping can be ineffective

Rear shocks aging, damper leaks - if you have oil leaking from the seals, the damping is toast.

Worn Tires/Mismatched tires/tire pressures/wrong size tires

Wheel alignment - don't trust the chain adjusters - I visually align the wheels.

Bent rims/broken spokes - get the wheels off the ground and spin them - check for run out/ damage

Balance the wheels- makes a big difference.

Check for wheel run out(out of round).

Front disc warped - check for run out (out of round)

Dragging brake pads

Steering & swing arm bearings are very common problems, but so are tire issues (pressure/mismatch) and wheel alignment.