Kawi2strokes.com Forum

I'm also of the belief that tapered steering bearings are not the end all be all. Properly maintained ball bearings and races work just fine.

You're not alone, Mark. Mine are original, greased since I got them, still fine.

_________________
If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

ball bearings are great if you ride like a girl......... I can destroy a set in a day.

_________________
Twist the throttle, tilt the horizon, and have a great time. What triples are all about...........

I suppose the real benefit of the tapered bearings is their rigidity and longevity compared to the balls... My bike only had 9000 km on the dial when I bought it, the headstock had already yielded as there was a definate detent in the middle from the PO doing wheelies.
I've tripled that milage since swapping to tapered rollers and do plenty wheelies still good as new.

I'm also of the opinion that roller bearings are the way to go on the swinger as the fit can approach preload, where a bushings needs clearance to function.

Same thing using rollers over balls on the headstock, the rollers can be preloaded to a higher degree without bind.

I'm not saying it's requirement, just that these components have the edge IMO

_________________


http://kawatriple.com/wtf/

Good points, Andrew, but It's my belief the detents that form in ball bearings happen more from lack of lubrication and resulting corrosion than from wheelies. Also, it's good practice to slightly rotate the races of ball or roller bearings whenever they're ever apart, since otherwise they spend 95% of their lives in the same spot.

_________________
If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

I ran balls for quite a while, and prefer them over tapered. However that was just because I had a heap of NOS races.I've never ridden a H2 without at least one wheelie
Friends that were into racing used ball races and non o ring chains, a trade off of maintenance over performance.
Swingarm bushes are very easy to turn up with some sintered bronze stock, $20 gets you enough material to make six or more sets.

Not trying to bust balls here...

IMO it's a fair debate whether the tapered bearings are a requirement for better handling but I fail to see why you would prefer the weaker of the 2???

_________________


http://kawatriple.com/wtf/

"However that was just because I had a heap of NOS races." I had them on hand and already paid for- why go and spend time and money for something you already have?
Balls have less friction than rollers. Yes they damage easier, but as I had a box full of replacements I just changed them when required.

Lol I would have done the same...
Although I thought the opposite when sawapping to the rollers... I had to get used to the lack of the center detent...

_________________


http://kawatriple.com/wtf/

FWIW,
An overtightened stem adjuster nut will put considerable compression load on the ball bearing type of head bearing. The force of road impacts adds to this denting the races resulting in the notchy feel previously referred, in very short order.

The idea is to adjust the bearings so they are tightened essentially only the amount to just take out the slack (kind of like adjusting a tapered wheel bearing on a car). Done correctly, the ball type head bearings can operate smoothly for years.

J