Handling...should it?

[tony101]

Hi, I have recently bought a K75 Standard (with high bars and screen) to do my daily commute to Leicester on and much that i like the bike generally i have to say that the low speed handling is, to put it bluntly, awful! When trying to filter between lines of cars the front follows any grove, overbanding  etc and its all over the place and very very difficult to keep in a straight line (which is interesting with tragkorbs on!!). I have checked the tyre sizes and they are correct (BT45's by the way) and increased the pressure as recommended by Bridgestone (which made it better but its still very bad), head bearings are fine, wheel bearings are fine. So before i start on a full front end rebuild i just wondered if, as the old saying goes "they all do that sir".

I realise its not likely to handle like my 350 Morini, and to be fair to it once you get moving it handles pretty well but low speed just appalling. Thanks, Tony

[johnny]

greetings tony101...

welcome to motobrick.com...

the k75 standard with high bars and high screen... a top heavy straightliner at best...

gonna take some supernatural skills to be a low speed filtering quintessential motobricker...

j o

[TimTyler]

Johhny's right.

That's why I converted mine from an RT to naked. Got rid of the fairing weight and the ABS weight.

[billday]

Didn't the K75 come with a steering damper built in? What's the condition of yours?

Your handling problem might also be tire related -- either the type of tire you're running or their condition.

[rbm]

It sounds like my k100 before I changed the old Metzlers to Avons.  Having now a K75 with the 3-spoke rims, I've fitted Bridgestone T30 radials to the bike and handling is great.  You might want to investigate new tires.  Unfortunately the T30s won't fit on snowflake rims.

One way to sharpen the steering is to change the geometry a bit.  Raise the forks in the triple tree by 20mm to see how handling is affected.  Low speed maneuvering should be twitchier but the steering dampner should smooth that out.

[chico]

I had the same impression when mine was new to me. Same configuration: high bars and windscreen. Fiddling with the rear shock, replacing the front springs and being vigilant with the tire pressure all help a little bit but reading this site, it seems the answer is more "they all do that".

[Methersgate]

I have a K75RT. On a motorway it is a delight, in traffic it is a liability and in a gravel car park it is an absolute swine. Oh, three spokes and Metzelers.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

My K's abhor speeds under 10mph and anything other than pavement .  Otherwise they are a delight. 

[Methersgate]

I have never had a bike that was as bad at low speeds as the brick is. All it wants to do is flop over. You would have to be braver that I am to try filtering in traffic.

I got fed up and sold it, but then I remembered how nice it is at 70mph, and I bought it back again!

The dealer said that in 33 years of buying and selling motorcycles he had never had someone sell him a bike and then buy it back!

In my case, the slow speed handling is made worse by my having a 30" inside leg. I have spent years looking for a low seat...

[Doulting]

Wow! I could have started this post!
                                                     Had the bike since January and agree on all points. Its really bloody awful in slow traffic and as you mention hates filtering. I seriously thought my balancing skills had died and maybe I should give up biking it was that bad sooo.... I invested in a Ram rear shock from the UK. Fitted today, and I've just got back from some slow crawling about testing. Much better so far. It seems to have stopped the horrid light twitchy feeling on the front wheel and is better over the corrugated road surfaces round here. (front forks set at correct height, high bars and all the plastic bits.) I had new dunlop tyres fitted when I bought the bike, they feel fine; but a new back shock seemed to be a good handling upgrade start. And very easy to fit! Out on the open road tomorrow so we'll see what its like at speed and going a little faster.  :riding:

[rbm]

My K75 is very nice at all speeds, including crawling along in stop-go traffic.  I've also a Ram shock fitted along with K1100 front end and Bridgestone T30 radials. 

[Chaos]

Steering head bearings too tight or loose will wreck havoc with high speed handling.  Tires, shocks, forks, get it all sorted out and K75's are wonderful.  No experience with the RT, but a huge tail pac can screw up stability at speed. The beast is a bit top heavy compared to my old R's. 

[Tuco]

For as much as my LT weighs, I think it handles pretty good! I even ride it in my bumpy yard everyday when I get home

[ts888]

Funny to see this thread today.  I finally got my project Brick on the road last week.  I went for a nice long ride after work yesterday.  I have the good fortune to live in the Columbia Gorge of Oregon/Washington (although coincidentally I used to work in Leicester, and lived in Anstey, and my name is Tony...), so I can head into the twisties towards Mt. Adams or Mt. Hood within minutes of my house.

What I was thinking when I arrived home was "Wow, I have seen a lot of less than complimentary observations about Brick handling, but I really enjoy putting this bike through the curves!"  Now, I will admit I don't have to ride in traffic much, certainly not stop/go motorway and trying to lane split (which is generally illegal here).  What low speed riding I do, I don't mind the slightly ponderous handling of my K100.  And I agree, it's no ballerina on loose surfaces.

My bike was an LT, now it has a stripped and cut down fairing and RS bars.  Stock forks, stock Boge Nivomat rear suspender, fresh Bridgestones on snowflakes.  My experience may be informed by the fact that my first "real" bike (not a dirt bike) was a Yamaha 750 cruiser with shaft drive, so my learning experience on road bikes included the joy of shaft-jacking and ponderous handling.

[Methersgate]

My 1993 K75RT has had a birthday: low seat, Hagon shorter rear shock and progressive front springs, forks moved 10mm down in the yoke. It's a different bike!

[Brad-Man]

I don't know what your experience is but mine is basically been with Yamaha rd350 s.  I had a Honda XL 100 and an SL350 back in the early seventies and then bought my first rd 350 - a '75 brand new after an accident I wasn't on motorcycle very much for 35 years till I bought 2 RD350's one pretty much drivable the other a project bike.
I bought a BMW k100 and was able to take it for a test drive in a parking lot underground parking lot didn't seem to have very many problems with that but then I'm 5 11 and weigh 250 pounds - a far cry from the 175 I was back in the 70's.

I took the advanced Motorcycle Safety Foundation riders course and use the BMW and in the slow turns u-turns in both narrow and wide I did better than people on Harleys and other cruisers were doing.

Mine is a naked like yours.

[Dennis de Vries]

Mine is a 75RT model so maybe even heavier on the front then your bike. Over here in Europe the tyre of choice for those older bikes is by default the BT45, to be run at 2.5 bar front and 2.8 back. I've been told that yes it can feel a bit twitchy and nervous at low speed. So maybe on your set up the answer is indeed "yes they all do that"
And very well possible you need a better rear shock (as do i) to tighten things up a bit as the standard shocker is only deemed "acceptable" at best when new by many...
Having said al that, i have little trouble filtering my own RT through traffic, with far from new suspensionparts and my sidecases are on all the time (commuter like you) but i run Avon Roadriders to avoid the rappid wear and front tyre cupping the BT45's are known for.
And maybe my idea of top heavy is different as my previous beast was a Kwaka GTR1000 aka Concours...