I have a year old Busa with 5,000 km on the clock. Im loving the bike but find an annoying noise from the front end - like a hollow clunk sound, over certain bumps. Ive checked the fairing as best I can and cant detect anything. The steering damper has some play but does not make a noise as far as I can tell. I guess its either in the bodywork or in the forks.
Has anyone come across this problem and found a solution? bye, fenda
I too have this noise. Particularly when crossing railway crossings. No, I have not found what it is, and have lived with it for over a year...
I used to have that when going over bumps, but when I stiffened up my suspension settings, I havent really noticed it anymore. The seetings reccomended is somewhere on the homepage, also been discussed in former posts.
same as volvi, i noticed the hollow front end clunck from day one on mine and also on the demo i rode before buying, after an adjust to the home page specs, it all disappeared,,
cheers
les
Busa@11K
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Member # 217
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posted 04-02-2001 08:09 PM
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While working on the Busa last night, I grabbed the front brake lever and pushed the front end down a few times and heard a "clunking" noise evey time I comprssed the forks by ~1/2 inch. I put my finger at the upper and lower steering stem bearings to see if I could feel any slop -- there was none. After listening carefully, it sounded like the noise was coming from the left fork tube -- WTF?? I have read about this same noise a few times, but I never heard of a definate cause. In the past, eveyone that would respond was thinking it's loose steering stem bearings, but mine are tight -- this noise is not loose bearings.
I do recall hearing this noise once and while when riding (even when the bike was new -- has 5500 mile now), and others have reported the same.
Has anyone noticed this noise on thier Busa? Loose internal fork components, or maybe it's just a Busa characteristic?
Check yours out in a quiet garage and see if it's clunking or not.
[ 04-02-2001: Message edited by: Busa@11K ]
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Posts: 682 | From: Busa, WA (USA) | Registered: Dec 2000 | IP: Logged
zero
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Member # 491
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posted 04-03-2001 12:42 AM
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Mine too had the clunk and after replacing frnt. brake pads and brake lines the noise has disappeared. I played with front suspension settings too so you might have isolated the mysterious problem. I have read about brakes, loose wiring harness,steering stem bearings etc. I hope you find the answer and solution to your siutation. Unfortunately I do not know what exactly was causing my "clunking" but I do know it drove
me absolutely crazy. I hate weird and especially inexplicable noises,rattles and squeaks.
LOL
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Posts: 44 | From: San Diego,CA | Registered: Feb 2001 | IP: Logged
Which homepage can the suspension settings be found on? I have been fiddling with mine but just cant seem to find the sweetspot.
BTW, the person that e-mailed me regarding the 928, the answer is yes. I dont know your e-mail so cant respond privatly.
Cheers,
Jes
Jessie here are the settings;
Below is are the settings incase they remove the page for the web.
Front
Preload 2.5 lines showing
Compression Out 2 clicks
Rebound Out 2 clicks
Rear
Preload 1.25inches of sag
Compression Out 5 clicks
Rebound Out 7 clicks
taken from;
www.2wf.com/html/bikes/la...age3.shtml
have some extra noises, will start new topic for comments.
More from .org:
Joker
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Member # 454
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posted 04-03-2001 08:48 AM
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Sounds to me that the steering head bearings need tightened. I had to tigheten them on my old 7 that I had, generally caused by to many wheelies. hahaha
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Posts: 14 | From: Kokomo, In, US | Registered: Jan 2001 | IP: Logged
Busa@11K
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Member # 217
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posted 04-03-2001 01:07 PM
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I tried to pin-point the noise again last night, but need to do it with a helper so I can crawl over the front end while the clunking is going on.
I thought it might be the brake pads clunking in the calipers (with brakes on), but discovered that it would still make the noise if the front end was pushed down without using the front brake at all.
I'm back to thinking it is the steering stem bearings, even though I can not feel any play in them. Maybe the bearings are just loose enough to make noise, but not loose enough to detect movement (seems strange).
If anyone else has any info, please let me know.
Thanks!
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Posts: 685 | From: Busa, WA (USA) | Registered: Dec 2000 | IP: Logged
Dave
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Member # 332
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posted 04-03-2001 04:06 PM
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In our Vmax club, it was always the stem bearings. Couldn't see the play, but it was there in the clunkers.
Vmaxes are notorious for a front end wobble on sweepers. The fix was to install a heavy duty fork brace, replace the RUBBER washer between the crown nuts with a steel or aluminum one, and tighten the primary crownnut to anywhere from 15 to 25 ft lbs (the manual said 4 ft lbs).
I found that the higher torque range worked best for me to eliminate wobble and clunk. Make-and-break the primary crown nut at least three times to really draw everything together, then torque to at least 15 ft-lbs. The effect on the Vmax was almost that of a steering dampener (the bike doesn't have one). Another Vmax member pointed out that timpken bearings will take quite a bit more load than what normal steering functions create, so as long as you are not restricting the rotation of the head, then tight is good.
TMH pointed out that the head bearings lack sufficient grease from the factory, so maybe a quick teardown is in order before you start torquing things tighter.
I haven't checked my busa's steering bearings, or changed the crown nut torque (yet). This stuff is just what I learned from tweaking my Vmax.
If it ain't the bearings, then maybe its the cartridge. Again, I haven't studied the busa front suspension yet, but basically all cartridge systems work on a light-load/heavy-load basis. Under light load, fork oil flows through Restriction A. Under heavy load, the cartridge guts slide shut, closing off part of the flow area, forcing oil to flow thorugh a tighter Restriction B (hence stiffer). If the suspension is not set up properly, the transition from 'A' to 'B' occurs too soon, or under too light of a load. Basically, the cartdidge slams shut at the slightest load, and that can make a clunk. Such bikes are basically riding around all the time on the 'B' level, and would be a pretty stiff ride. The transition should require something more than normal load on the suspension, and should be smooth. Not something you notice every time you hit a bump -- clunk! Adjustable variables are the fork adjustment settings, fork oil weight (viscosity), and different rate fork springs.
I'm talking out my ass a little here, but unless the front suspension on the busa is radically different than other stuff, the theory should apply.
Maybe I'll read a little in the manual tonight.
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Posts: 100 | From: | Registered: Dec 2000 | IP: Logged
thanks demeester for putting up all those posts re clunking.
what im getting from all this is that noone seems to know where the hell this noise comes from!
My bike only seems to clunk over certain sharp bumps eg a pothole or suchlike, but its probably the same noise that everyone mentions. unfortunately for me i find rattles and noises on bikes really annoying.
I did try the 'you beaut' suspension settings and that didnt help, although i might try some other variations.
may just have to live with it .........
bye, fenda
Volvi,
Thanks for the settings
Cheers,
JEs
well guys i just picked up my brand new K1 busa and let me tell you all that it has exactly the same 'CLUNK' in the front end as my old one did........ fzzzzzzzzz
cheers
les
Those noises are called "pedestrians"
I have been getting a noise also more like a rotating type of grinding? Was thinking it could be something to do with the drums on the front.But its only when i brake slowly ?
I only have little clunking noises. Is that cats rather then pedestrians?