HELP! shaky front end

[1badex]

i just got new front shocks and +3 a-arms and when i get up to higher speed the front end starts to feel wobbly.i'm sort of knew to the quads so any help will be appreciated. thanx:confused:

[daimon1054]

You caster or camber is off, if you do not know how to set up the front get with the folks who sold you the arms and get them to explain it. Then make sure you set the front end up with you sitting on the quad or the settings will not be right.

[Cody_300ex]

maybe the tie rod end is lose. :confused:

[boogiechile]

It will take a little more info from you to help determine the cause. It could be from several things.

Are the arms caster adjustable? (most are not, but if they are it must be set)

What did you set the toe to, or did you set it at all?

are you using the same frt tires and rims that you had before the arms went on?

Is this now a zps or lower frt end with the stock rear shock still on?

I do not think it is a camber problem because when it is off the quad will try to pull to one side or not steer precisely instead of shake.

[daimon1054]

boogiechile is right in that it is unlikely camber but when any setting is off a good bit you front will not be right.

[1badex]

Are the arms caster adjustable? (most are not, but if they are it must be set)

they are adjustable and i tried to get them as close to the same as possible.

What did you set the toe to, or did you set it at all?

no i did not set it, but i dont know what it is either.

are you using the same frt tires and rims that you had before the arms went on?

no, i got new rims and tires.

Is this now a zps or lower frt end with the stock rear shock still on?

yes, i havent ordered the back shock yet. i didnt have enough cash on hand after buying front and rear rims and tires, then +3 a-arms, elka triple shocks, lsr +3 axle, and a new set of handlebars. i was up around 4 grand. that 5-6 hundred dollar rear shock was gonna have to wait a little bit.

thanx for your time tryin to help me man i appreciate it.

:

[Tommy 17]

sounds like u need to set ur toe...


ok ur gonna need a tape measure... a 19mm wrench... 17mm wrench...

#1 loosen ur tie rods
#2 put the tape measure on the front of the tire and measure from the center of one tire to the center of the other tire... write it down...
#3 go to the back of the tire and measure from the center of one tire to the center of the other tire... write that down
#4 by adjusting the tie rods (turn them) u want the front to be .25 of an inch narrower then the front so the wheels look like they are pointing towards each other...


if ur standing directly above the quad and looking down at the front tires u want them to look like this \ /... thats exagerated alot but it'll give u a idea what i'm talking about...

[daimon1054]

Again get a frien to help, as the A-arms and tie rods doe not move along the same arc you will want to make all settings with you on the quad. Last make sure air PSI is right.

When you set your toe make sure the bars are straight and the tires are pointing forward. This sound dumb but it is easy to measure the distance front and rear and they be right but the tire be pointing off to one side. Nothing worse than riding straight with the bars pointed to the side:huh

Now as your arms are caster adjustable I think this is your issue. Look at it this way. A shoping cart has a lot of forward caster (I always get backwards on positive and negative). On a shopping cart the wheel wobbles around because the piviot or castor point in in front of the axel. If you draw an imaginary line through the upper and lower a-arm if it is perfectly vertical that is 0 caster, if the upper arm is forward that is forward caster and your front will do the same as a shopping cart. To far rearward and the tire will want to swing side to side again kind of the same but it will more hunt left to right hard.

I do not know what the factory settings are but I would find that from your dealer or the net and try starting there then add and subtract castor till you like what you have. The reason it is there is because every racer likes something a little different.

Camber is how the tirs lean in or out, you want to measure what you have and make sure they are the same on both sides, the top's should lean in then when you compress the suspension all the way be almost straight up and down. Again this setting is all up to the rider, and I would start at around stock.

[boogiechile]

Are the arms caster adjustable? (most are not, but if they are it must be set)

they are adjustable and i tried to get them as close to the same
as possible.

They must be set to have good handling. You must set the caster before you set the camber. If it is too little (not enough positive) it will make you shake and wander and drift at high speeds but it will turn very quick. This could be your problem. You will need a straight edge and some kind of angle finder to set it. You can get one for a few bucks at Sears. I will include a link to a good tutorial at Lonestar on how to set up your frt end at the end of the post. Positive caster is what you need and about 4.5 degrees. That means that your top ball joint will be further toward the rear than the bottom ball joint.

What did you set the toe to, or did you set it at all?

no i did not set it, but i dont know what it is either.

Set to a total of 1/4 inch less in the frt than the back. See linked tutorial.

are you using the same frt tires and rims that you had before the arms went on?

no, i got new rims and tires.

What offset? if you went from stock rims to 3+2 or even worse 2+3 then you will have more bump steer and the increased scrub radius could cause it to shake as well. You need 4+1 rims, especially with a +3 frt end.

Is this now a zps or lower frt end with the stock rear shock still on?

yes, i havent ordered the back shock yet. i didnt have enough cash on hand after buying front and rear rims and tires, then +3 a-arms, elka triple shocks, lsr +3 axle, and a new set of handlebars. i was up around 4 grand. that 5-6 hundred dollar rear shock was gonna have to wait a little bit.

what this does is rake the frame down in the frt because the frt is lower than the rear. The rake also rakes the a arms the same amount and raking them down in the frt makes the caster go more negative which is a bad thing for high speed tracking and stability. since you say you have adjustable caster you can adjust it right for the rake you have now but when you get ZPS rear you will have to reset it because it will be too positive when the rear goes lower. Try to adjust your rear shock as low as you can before you set the caster.

Set in this order-caster camber toe

here is the link
http://www.lsracing.com/installguides.php?step=4&igid=5

[1badex]

thanx for the help guys, my dad helped me and we got it all taken care of.my poblems are solved.:D