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Greasing your steering head bearings is tedious and time-consuming job, but it’s an important one since the condition and health of your head bearings has a huge effect on your bikes steering and handling. In this video from the MC Garage, Ari will walk you through the process.
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Greasing your steering head bearings is tedious and time-consuming job, but it’s an important one since the condition and health of your head bearings has a huge effect on your bikes steering and handling.
Your front end pivots on two bearings, one at the top of the headstock and one at the bottom. To get to them, you’ll need to support the bike and raise the front end, then tear off the entire front of the bike. Here’s a tip: Before you remove the forks, handlebar, or clip ons, take some measurements and leave yourself some index marks on the handlebars or clip-ons so that everything goes back where it belongs.
Most modern bikes use caged ball bearings or caged roller bearings, but bikes from the 70s and earlier usually have loose ball bearings that are going to try make a break for it during this next step. If you’ve got a vintage bike, put a rag under the steering head to catch any loose bearings that fall out.
With the front end stripped, it’s time to reveal those bearings. Unscrew the top triple clamp nut and remove it, then pop the upper triple clamp off, then pull the lower triple clamp out of the bottom of the headstock. If it’s giving you trouble, give it a hit with a soft-blow mallet. The upper bearing is a loose fit in the frame and you can just pluck it out, but the lower bearing is press-fit on the steering stem.
Using a rag and solvent, thoroughly clean the old grease from all the parts, then inspect the components for dents, pitting, or corrosion. Inspect the seals, too. Anything other than a smooth, clean surface on the bearings and races means it’s time for fresh parts. We’ll cover bearing replacement in another video.
Repack the bearings with quality waterproof grease. The best way to pack a bearing is by putting a glob of grease in your palm and pressing the bearing into it, so grease gets packed in between the balls. For the lower bearing, carefully press grease into the bearing with your finger. If your bike has loose ball bearings, you’ll need to apply grease to the outer races and then carefully set the balls into place.
Now reassemble the triple clamp by sliding the lower triple up through the headstock, drop in the upper bearing, the inner race and seal, and spinning on the adjustment collar. Then put on the triple clamp and spin on the triple clamp nut.
Don't tighten anything down yet-you need to set the tension on the head bearings. Slide the forks into place to align the triples and snug the lower pinch bolts, then adjust the bearings so so there's no play or drag.
With that done, all you have to do is reassemble the rest of the front end! Yeah, like I said in the intro, this is a pretty tedious job, but your bike with thank you. Make sure you reference your notes and pictures, and make sure you torque everything down according to your shop manual.
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