Ahh, no problems!

[philosopheriam]

So, as part of this year's maintenance routine, I decided to check the condition of the steering head bearings in my 2007.

From some of the pictures I have seen, I was expecting to find a rusted, pitted mess. To my surprise, both bearings and races were in excellent condition with no water contamination, excessive wear, or damage.

So, after a quick cleaning in some kerosene, I repacked both bearings, retorqued the steering head to spec, and everything moves silky smooth

I know a lot of people swear by the All Balls upgrade, but I suppose my logic is this - if it ain't broke, don't fix it. A simple disassembly, cleaning, and repacking can make the OEM bearings last quite awhile.

 

[Motogiro]

Curious to know if the naked bikes suffer water contamination more in those areas as apposed to faired versions...???

 

[ChevyFazer]

Curious to know if the naked bikes suffer water contamination more in those areas as apposed to faired versions...???

Unless those bikes are left outside in the weather uncovered I would think it would just be a coincidence, my bike always stays dry in that area...even riding in the rain. But then again mine is far from a stock naked setup lol

 

[motojoe122]

I agree, I just pulled the swing arm off my 09. After reading all the stories I'd thought I'd check it out....No rust or water intrusion there or in the wheel bearings. I went ahead and wiped, re-lubed and torqued to spec.

All is rainbows and unicorns, and the universe is in alignment:BLAA:

 

[FB400]

Amen to that.
I had the bike apart this winter and was expecting after 6 years and 19k miles there would be something unpleasant for steering head bearings. Not so.

I cleaned, greased and put it back together. This maintenance was much easier than I thought it would be.

While I had it apart I also changed the fork oil.

 

[iSteve]

I think it may have to do with washing especially people that use pressure washers.

I repacked mine a few months ago and they looked almost new. I was thinking it was because I only had it two seasons with 14k miles. I only washed it two times but I do wipe it all down after every ride and wax it a lot.