Steering head bearings shot on the BMW F800gs
Great, the steering head bearings are shot on my BMW f800gs, which was pointed out to me by a mate (Chris) and come to think of it, I’ve noticed that the handle bars have started to vibrate back and forth when I take my hands off them at slow speed. There is a definite notch when the bars are moved slowly either side of the straight ahead position. What’s so annoying is that the bike has only done 10,500 miles, should bearings go after this amount of mileage? They will need to be changed before our big trip. I’ll be replacing the bearings myself, which is something I’ve never done before but I’m sure it’s within my capabilities. From the research I’ve done, the trick to fitting new ones is to heat the frame and put the new bearing in the fridge, apparently it makes the job easier – the old, heat expends, cold contracts thingy! Well, I’ll be doing the job in the next week or two so will let you know how successful I get on.
October 10, 2013 at 9:38 am
It’s a common fault I’m afraid. Try tightening them up first, they may not need replacing. Mine went at about 27k miles, tightened them up and it’s been fine for another 30k miles. Of course if that don’t work and you do need to replace them don’t use OEM, they’re shite apparently and overpriced. I recall a good guide on ADVRider… Good luck mate. Make a video out of it and share it with the community. Could use a part of it as a ‘before you leave: bike prep’ segment in your travel movie. X
October 10, 2013 at 4:48 pm
Cheers Steve, for the advice. I’ll try tightening them first. Good suggestion about filming the repair, i’ll do one if tightening the bearing doesn’t work. Thanks.