superhawk(NL)

Hello fellow superhawk riders,

My 98 superhawk makes a weird noise; it comes from the front end or front wheel?
Its sounds like a dragging sound. (I checked the front brakes and they are fine)
I was suspecting the front wheel bearings but I am not sure.

Does it sound familiar for some of you? or do you have any suggestions pleas leave a comment.

Greetings,

From a Dutch superhawk (firestorm) rider.

stangy89

I'm willing to bet it's the bearings, you should probably get the front wheel off the ground and see if it spins quiet and smooth you don't want those failing on you while your riding. I was riding my hawk the other day when my front bearing went out, thank God I got off the freeway when I did as I was only doing about 10-15mph when the gave out. The damage was pretty extensive The bearing failure blew apart the inner lip of the hub and I'm still wait for my replacement to be delivered.

Syclone

at speed or just when you push it around?

superhawk(NL)

The sound is only when driving.

I think i gonne replace the bearings they are around €20,-
The last thing what i want is that i crash because of failure of the bearings :P

smokinjoe73

It does sound like bearings. I had mine "go" when I was @35 miles from home. I rode slow & could hear the sound the whole way but made it. Wasn't my favorite ride ever. Get the front end up off the ground & spin the wheel. You should be able to hear grinding or feel something. Or at least you can find if you have a water bottle stuck in your fender.

superhawk(NL)

I checked the bearings and they dont have any mechanical clearence.
Sow what could it be else.

It sounds a little bit like when you have you car window a little bit open while driving.

8541Hawk

You need to clean your calipers. You can try pulling the pads and cleaning the pistons with brake cleaner and q-tips.

If it is really bad you may need to pull them and completely disassemble them.

Clean the pads and rotors and put it all back together.

Just had to do mine last weekend due to all the "winter" dirt and crap on them.

superhawk(NL)

Alright i gonne clean and check the front calipers thx for posting all.

superhawk(NL)

I cleaned the front brakes, the rear brake and the sound is still there.
Is it possible that it could be the front tire thats causing the sound?
I noticed that the tire wear is not how it should be (angular/gaunt), the guy from who i bought the bike drove a lot of straight roads i think.

CrankenFine

Do you recall about how many miles were on your bike when these went?

smokinjoe73

I dont but it was on my daily rider CBR600. It was stolen with 98k on it. I commuted 75mi each way daily year round rain or shine and did race school on it. I have already replaced the SH front bearings just on suspicion. they are cheap & easy & you WILL need them anyway so cheap insurance.

To 8541's post I would like to ad that usually q tips arent enuff. You should use some scotchbrite to really get the gunk off the pistons. Brake cleen will get the chemicals off but you need to strong-arm(finger) the caked on stuff.

8541Hawk

Very true but if I can't clean them with just a "Q-tip" then it is time for them to be disassembled and completely cleaned.

smokinjoe73

Really? step 1 is q tip, step 2 is disassembly? I would hate to see you clean the engine. Maybe step 1.5 is scotchbrite.

8541Hawk

Not really.... if the deposits are that bad, it is no big deal to remove and clean the calipers.

In fact IMHO it is just easier to pull the calipers and do a thorough job of cleaning the pistons and checking the seals.

I would much rather do this than try to twist the calipers around while attached to the lines in order to try and get to all the dirty spots.

Hell I pull the calipers every couple of years and do a thorough cleaning just because......

Also be careful with the scotchbright as you can damage the pistons if you use a rough grade of scotchbright or get a bit heavy handed while you are cleaning.

uchi

how hard are the wheel bearings to pull? i dont have access to my service manual right now but ive got a friend sourcing out some all ***** wheel bearings for my bike. i get some of the drag thats mentioned and my pads are also a little loose so there will be some upgrades happening in the next couple weeks

smokinjoe73

Pretty simple, same as any bike, you can tap/drift them out & then use the old ones to drive the new ones in.

This is about the procedure http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLQ99...eature=related just on a smaller wheel.

8541Hawk

Instead of All-***** I went to a local bearing house and picked up some "non contact seal" bearings. They have much less drag than standard bearings and are way cheaper than ceramic bearings. Though they can let in moisture, I haven't had a problem with them

Sealed bearings can be of either the contact or noncontact type. The seal in a contact bearing touches the inner race, or the inner track on which the ball bearings spin. This keeps out moisture more effectively but results in quicker wear and higher operating temperatures. Noncontact bearings have a seal that does not touch the inner race. They run cooler and with less friction but are not as effective at excluding moisture from the bearing