I wanted to share a few pictures of the process to grease the steering stem head bearings. I had sticky/notchy steering, specially at low speed and everything pointed to these bearings that I had never greased. This is not a how to and this is the first time I have done this. I just want to share with the forum as others share what they do with their KLX. I followed online tutorials and the service manual for specifics and torques.

KLX up on my stand made of concrete blocks. Wheel and caliper removed. I would recommend removing brake MC from bars and the guide rings on the fork so you can completely remove it from the bike and have it out of the way.


Handlebar removed from steering head and draped forward.


Steering head removed from chassis and draped forward as it is attached by the key switch wires. I used a 30mm socket. I saved a lot of time not removing anything from handlebars or key switch, but I needed someone to help me hold the dash/headlight/steering head all the time, or move it when needed to access the bearings easier. I detached the headlight/dash assembly from the steering head by removing the 3 bottom bolts and 2 tops bolts, but did not remove any wires. I did remove the forks completely, make sure to measure how much the forks are raised above the top triple clamp.


Steering head hole where the stem goes through. Due to the grime I had to hit the head with a mallet to get it off the stem. I cleaned this out after.


Steering Stem top threads. Also cleaned this.


Top bearing and race looks pretty good other than being low on grease.



Lower bearing and race looks completely shot. Notice the grimy sand under the bearing? The front fender was missing one of the front bolts that have threads open to the top of fender straight to the lower triple clamp. So what? It seems the spray from the front tire was being fed directly through that hole and hitting the bottom bearing almost directly. This would explain the difference in condition between top and bottom bearings.




Bearings after being cleaned. That is the best I could the bottom bearing.



I packed the top bearing using the "palm swipe" method I saw throughout the internet. The bottom was harder to pack because I didn't remove it for fear of damaging it as I don't have a press, but I got it done good in the end.

I removed the castle nut, or stem nut, using a mallet and Interchangeable Head Screwdriver with no tip so I would damage it. I took note before of the position of the nut so I could have a reference to tighten to again.

To install the stem insert it in the head and then place the top bearing over it in its race then put the stem rubber cover then the stem/castle nut and hand tighten tighten it while pushing up on the bottom triple tree. After this the manual says to install the steering head, washer and nut and tighten it lightly, then torque the stem/castle nut. I did that but I had not way to measure the torque so I tightened to where it was before.

My searches and the manual have 2 criteria for determining whether the steering head is correctly tightened: 1) there should be no play in the steering head or stem, 2) the steering components should turn freely and smoothly. I confirmed this was the case by moving the triple clamps side to side and front to back. I repeated these checks after installing the forks into the triple clamps. You torque the top triple clamp fork bolts, then the stem head nut, then the lower fork clamps.

The steering head felt a lot smoother while the bike was raised after this clean/repack of the bearings, almost to "light" but there was no play at all. I test rode today and it feels normal while riding. Guess this it how it should feel when correctly greased. Steering is no longer notchy or sticky at low speeds that I was having the most issues before. I will still be replacing the bottom bearing as soon as I can get it from the US, but should I also replace the top bearing? It looks nearly new, but the manual recommends the replacing both at the same time.

 

Looks good!

 

that bottom bearing is totally f#cked and needs to be replaced. It's the one that not only cops all the road grime (as you found) but it bears all the weight s well. Your steering will still be notchy unless you don't do them up tight enough.....

 

I will definitely replace it, maybe both while I'm at it. I tightened the stem/castle nut to where it was before, maybe a bit more. Rode to work today and it feels real good, no notchiness or sticking at all. I'm sure with new bearings it will feel like a dream jaja.

cheers

 

Yeah, it's not unusual even for bearings that look like that to become smooth again, because you've "disturbed" the indexing "dents" that are probably present. Since a steering head bearing moves very little as compared to a wheel bearing, that "set" between the flattened spot on the rollers and the flat spot on the race are not "timed" to each other anymore.

 

I definitely would not go to all that just to put new bearings in if you fix i'm good! Rotating can minimize the issue. But as you know, if you go in, you might as well replace.

 

@TNC That makes sense as it moves very little.

@Durielk Are you saying I shouldn't replace the bearings if the problem is fixed?

 

Let it develop.
Until then enjoy riding it.

 

If it was a dirt bike, you would never notice it again.
Running a SM, I don't know, if you rotated the races, maybe? Did you?

If you can't notice it any more, it is not like it is going to break and you wreck, cause it isn't.

 

No, I didn't rotate them, but I can't notice anything notchy or sticking at any speed. Maybe the steering feels a bit too light so I may tighten the stem/castle nut a bit more, like 1/16 of a turn.

Thanks