Hey guys last weekend i took my bike to a shop to get the front tire replaced and had them do what they call a "Mini Service" in which they looked over the bike, oiled the chain and tightened various things and came back with a list of things wrong:

- rear tire R&R
- steering bearings notched
- throttle cable needs replaced, making throttle stick

When they say steering bearings, do they mean front wheel bearings?
Is there a good how to so I can do it myself?

 

No, they're not referring to the wheel bearings. They are referring to the bearings in the steering stem/tripple tree. Did they explain how they came to that determination ? Is there play in the front end/forks ? Is there any binding when turning ? I'd be really surprised if they were in need of replacement unless the bike has a long history of doing wheelies.

As for the throttle cable, is it frayed in any way, or have kinks in it ? If not, then cleaning it and lubricating it should suffice. They are not expensive, about $20 each, but if you don't have to spend that $40, why spend it ?

Wheel bearings are not difficult to replace with simple tools. They are also easy to check to see if they're good or bad. With the wheel off the bike, simply insert your finger into the bearing and check to see how well the move/spin, and that there is no end play or lateral movement in them.

 

Why don't you just call them back and ask? lol

If they mention the rear tire, it probably means it could be replaced.

Dirt explained the bearings.

Throttle sticking could be due to the grip, and it contacting the switch housing. Mine started doing that at some point. Or it might not need replacing, just adjusting.

 

Ya I deff noticed my rear tire is getting low, as for the tripple, I grabbed on to my handlebars and tried to jiggle the bars but it seemed super solid to me. and I'll be oiling my cables tomorrow, thanks for the tip Dirt! I did notice as i was rolling my bike around my garage there was a little scraping noise from my front wheel area. Maybe my pads sliding on the rotors?
I could...

I did roll back both ends of my grips and had no difference so ill try to oil them

 

A little lubrication may just do the trick. I've see where some people will take the cables off the bike and put one end of them through the bottom of a plastic sandwich bag. They rubber band it tightly and then poor some kerosene into the bag, then hang it with the cable dangling down. As the kerosene slowly drains out of the bag through the cable, it cleans out the inside of the sheathing. Naturally you'd want something under the cable to catch the dirty fluids that come out of the cable.

Afterwords, you can use the same setup, but fill the bag with oil and allow it to drain down the cable. This will make them good as new. (almost anyway)

 

http://www.motionpro.com/motorcycle/partno/08-0182/

Get one of these, the local bike shop should carry one similar to it.
Then just use WD40 (first, to clean it) and a graphite/molybdenum-based,
cable lube. IDo just likes to illustrate the possibilities,
but I bet he has one for his cable maintenance needs.

Ern

 

OK, you got me, guilty as charged. Any opportunity to purchase a new tool and I'm all in.

 

Brake pads rest against the rotors normally, so hearing a bit of sound from them is normal.

 

coming from a 1000rr that has some very smooth steering, the F4i feels like crap. i thought i needed new bearings at first, but now i'm used to it.