[rkjjeep]

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Well, I took everyone's advice and pulled the steering head apart to check bearings, etc. Not fun but very satisfying. Found bearings loose but not notchy. Clean up, pack with grease, re-assemble tomorrow. The most difficult part was the bars and wires and cables. Honda obviously engineered the bike with initial assembly in mind - if anybody in service engineering had had any political power there'd be a couple handy connectors in there.

Bob

 

[07Silver]

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Did you get them set up properly, and if so how does the steering feel now?

 

[rkjjeep]

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Gonna take a few days (nights) to get the forks like I want em and put it all back together. I'll let you know.

 

[Renegade]

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You're right about the difficulty in taking a motorcycle apart.. Automobiles are worse.. The manufacturers do not want anyone other than a "technician" working on their products. I found when I was an auto mechanic that the Japanese imports had as many at 17 vacuum hoses connected to the carburetor (it was a Toyota Supra), and if just one was not positioned correctly the engine would not run right. Forget about taking out a dash board or pulling a transmission.. It was a nightmare.. HOWEVER,,, this is where the Japs had it way over the American makers.. All the Jap parts fit together smoothly, the nuts and bolts were plated to resistcorrosion and things worked when you were done...

 

[Jason]

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Renegade wrote:

HOWEVER,,, this is where the Japs had it way over the American makers.. All the Jap parts fit together smoothly, the nuts and bolts were plated to resistcorrosion and things worked when you were done...

This is why the Japanese bike industry wiped out all the big names all over the world. Their motorcycles started on the button, ran well and didn't leak oil. In comparison, bikes from the west were like old Trabant cars from eastern Europe. Japanese motorcycles and cars are continually evolved and problem parts are upgraded each model year instead of being left as is for the whole life of a model.
The same has been happening with the car industry. I know that the Ford market share in Ireland is only around 7%, twenty years back it was 29%. Only brand loyalty in home markets is what keeps them alive now. The Japanese cars and bikes almost always do it all better and more reliably.
The same is happening in the camera, video, computer, music and other markets. The Japanese are taking over while the western industries sleep.

 

[rkjjeep]

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Maybe this belongs in another spot and I can only speak for our cars. DCX cars have approached and in many cases passed the Japanese for quality - both in terms of reliability AND customer satisfaction. That's not my opinion, objective data backs it up. We were so far behind it was silly - now we're catching and passing them at a rate that should scare the heck out of em . We have an obsessive focus on quality right now - we work hard to prevent issues and we fix EVERY issue that arises. My comment about my GL was that it could have been more service friendly. Bob

 

[Renegade]

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What is a DCX car? Never heard of it... Jason is absolutely correct in his assessment of car makers.. I can remember when the most popular car of the 60's (Ford Mustang) had a heater box made of a paper composite. When the heater core leaked after a few short years, the box would absorb the coolant and slowly disintegrate. Unfortunately, Toyota had major problems with the heater assemblies on the Corona model. All the cars were scrapped at the receiving dock in California as they came off the boat.. it was cheaper to junk these brand new machines vs fix them or ship them back to Japan..

Not too long ago, the History channel (or was it The Learning Channel) had a one hour show on making the GL1800 new at the factory.. You would be amazed at how simply and quickly they were assembled... Try making repairs... SHEEESSHHH! It takes an hour just to replace the air filter..

I'll still take a Jap bike over a HD any day.. Don't care how complicated they are to work on. Bottom line is, how often do you really need to work on them???:baffled:

 

[Silverfox]

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Nearly true Jason, except, if you turn things over and look at the label, chances are it says "Made in China" on the label now!!!:baffled:The manufacturing industry is changing fast and sadly, you are correct, USA and GB have fallen way down the ladder. The Japanese have at least got the sense to carry on holding the reigns, whereas we have handed them the horse, cart and the flipin' reigns!!!!

Pete

 

[Silverfox]

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rkjjeep wrote:

Maybe this belongs in another spot and I can only speak for our cars. DCX cars have approached and in many cases passed the Japanese for quality - both in terms of reliability AND customer satisfaction. That's not my opinion, objective data backs it up. We were so far behind it was silly - now we're catching and passing them at a rate that should scare the heck out of em . We have an obsessive focus on quality right now - we work hard to prevent issues and we fix EVERY issue that arises. My comment about my GL was that it could have been more service friendly. Bob

Bob,I am not qualified to answer for the US market, but I am afraid it is a case here, that the Japanese have taken the market, and the reason is answered in your text, if a problem arises you fix it. well the fact is, here the Japanese equipment doesn't need fixing!! They make it right in the first place. They build a reputation for unbelievable reliability and firms like Toyota can hold their heads high and prove that they have almost no problems to fix.

I bought a new Mercedes van one year ago, thinking that German technology was second to none, I yesterday took the van to the garage for 3 recall items to be fixed,plus, a window that goes up and down of it's own accord and a seatbelt pretentioner that has gone duff. Oh and a loudspeaker that has gone wonkey. Now I love the van and haven't lost faith yet, but if that sort of thing continued I would go Japanese again!

Don't even ask me about the British motorcycle industry and it's death I will chuntter on for hours!!

Pete

 

[rkjjeep]

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DCX is DaimlerChrysler and I am obviously speaking mostly about the Chrysler Group North America. I am a newcomer to the forum and appreciate the help I can get here, and hope I can repay the kindness and help others from time to time. I do not want to start or enter into a debate about American -vs- Japanese vehicle quality. The data says we are catching up quickly and at a rate that will allow us to pass our Asian competition soon. The public perception will lag behind the actual objective improvement. I know that everybody has an opinion, story, or anecdote - let's leave it like this for now. I believe we'll catch and pass the Japanese and be the envy of the industry within three years. If not, I'll throw the local party and buy the drinks while you all make fun of me!

Cheers - And thanks again for all the help with my bike. Bob

 

[Silverfox]

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rkjjeep wrote:

DCX is DaimlerChrysler and I am obviously speaking mostly about the Chrysler Group North America. I am a newcomer to the forum and appreciate the help I can get here, and hope I can repay the kindness and help others from time to time. I do not want to start or enter into a debate about American -vs- Japanese vehicle quality. The data says we are catching up quickly and at a rate that will allow us to pass our Asian competition soon. The public perception will lag behind the actual objective improvement. I know that everybody has an opinion, story, or anecdote - let's leave it like this for now. I believe we'll catch and pass the Japanese and be the envy of the industry within three years. If not, I'll throw the local party and buy the drinks while you all make fun of me!

Cheers - And thanks again for all the help with my bike. Bob

I never make fun of people who throw a party and invite me!!:goofygrin::goofygrin:

I hope the industry does turn round and give the rest of the world a run for it's money. We'll keep the debate for the party that one of us must throw eh?

Pete

 

[axelwik]

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rkjjeep wrote:

Maybe this belongs in another spot and I can only speak for our cars. DCX cars have approached and in many cases passed the Japanese for quality - both in terms of reliability AND customer satisfaction. That's not my opinion, objective data backs it up. We were so far behind it was silly - now we're catching and passing them at a rate that should scare the heck out of em . We have an obsessive focus on quality right now - we work hard to prevent issues and we fix EVERY issue that arises. My comment about my GL was that it could have been more service friendly. Bob

I wouldn't take a Chrysler if you gave it to me (well... I'd sell it and buy something else). They sell fast because of the low price, and you get what you pay for.

 

[exavid]

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Dunno Marco, my 1990 Dodge 3/4T truck is still going, 210,000 on the clock, everything works the only parts other than normal wearout parts are two replacement windshields (one at a time). Doesn't use any oil, still gets 22mpg around town.

 

[Renegade]

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Any machine will last and perform as long as it is maintained and cared for.. Including Chrysler products.. Yes, there are many stories and theories about all the manufacturers, BUT,, ever since I was able to turn a wrench all I've ever heard is how the American car manufacturers are gaining and imporving in the quality realm. It's been going on for years and years and still the American car manufacturers continue to lose market share to the Japs... HHmmmmmm.. :battle:

Quality is an issue with everything we buy and the best quality motorcycle is the Jap bike... That's why we're here on this forum and that's why we ride a Goldwing.

Right Redwing??? :toast:

 

[axelwik]

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exavid wrote:

Dunno Marco, my 1990 Dodge 3/4T truck is still going, 210,000 on the clock, everything works the only parts other than normal wearout parts are two replacement windshields (one at a time). Doesn't use any oil, still gets 22mpg around town.

Just my opinion, and my experiece with Chrysler products.


The engines never gave me problems, but everything else aroundit fell apart or was poorly engineered.

 

[exavid]

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This is going to be heresy, but the news is that the Goldwings are good bikes, so are BMWs, the rest of the Japanese stable, the Ducati and many others, yes even including the Harleys. All the modern bikes are great! If anyone thinks otherwise they've haven't been around long enough to remember the bikes that weren't great. Same for cars,none of the 18 or so I've hadin the past 20 yearsfailed toperform as expected,had any seriousproblemsor everleft me stranded. The Japanese don't have a corner on good machines, they are made everywhere.

 

[Tonys96]

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rkjjeep

How'd the reassembly go ?

 

[rkjjeep]

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Tony - The guys at work who are much handier than me made me a socket for the adjuster nut on the strg. head. A piece of 2" pipe with ID opened up a little bit, notched with little square stock welded in to engage the notches on the nut. It's a work of art. Now that I have it down this far I really want to make it right. Rebuilt the forks, orig springs measured spot on so I left em alone (actualy I cut new PVC pipe spacers to add a LITTLE preload. , tonite I'll put the front end back together. I like the mechanical work but was a little annoyed at the snakes nest of wiring to have to unclip and move around. I probably wasted a lot of time actually removing most everything from the bars and removing them - next time I'll undo the wire ties, make some room for things to move and hang the bars from bunjies or something attached to the ceiling. I'll let ya know how it goes. Bob

 

[exavid]

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rkjjeep wrote:

I probably wasted a lot of time actually removing most everything from the bars and removing them - next time I'll undo the wire ties, make some room for things to move and hang the bars from bunjies or something attached to the ceiling. I'll let ya know how it goes. Bob

It does seem that the designers deliberately made it hard to get to the head bearing tension nut. When I took mine apart I did just that, suspended the bars from a eye bolt I had in the ceiling of my shop.

 

[Tonys96]

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Make sure you get that wiring tucked in nice and neat, or you'll be pinching it it the steering stops.