I've run several different front tires. Currently the new Pirelli Scorpion Pro is the worst I've felt on pavement as far as quirky feedback goes. It sticks will for a DOT knobby on pavement in the corners, but it yields a "funny" feel while cruising at speed in the straight-up-and-down position. I've experienced this before, so it's not very disconcerting. Nothing is going to happen. The bike isn't going to veer off the road or have the front tire tuck in. To many riders and especially newer riders, it can be spooky. Now, I also know this feeling will become less notiecable with this tread design as the crown of the tire flattens rather quickly with just a little use. The tire feels great in the dirt no matter what lean position, and it feels good on pavement in a lean/corner.

Joe T. points out a real issue also with the adjusted ride height. The more your bike "sits up" in its travel, the more prone you're going to be to feel these weird feedback conditions sometimes. There are so many variables, but the biggest is the fact that by most 2-wheel standards, the bike is light, it is tall, it has stuff on the handlebar/headlight to react with wind, and it isn't using pure road tires in most applications.

 

I've always done mine with the front wheel off the ground. Best thing I probably should say is to download the pdf service manual, or, consult a Clymers. If you've done in on bicycles before, it's the same basic idea, just different adjusting and locking nuts/rings. It is important to get right.

 

My bike, from the time it was new, had a problem with wobbling/weaving on the road. It took quite a while for me to realize that the problem was in the steering head bearings. When I pulled out the original Kawasaki bearings, I realized the head bearings were not properly adjusted, there was very little grease on the bearings, and the races had gotten divots and uneven wear. I replaced the stock steering head bearings with a set of All-***** bearings, and with that, all steering issues of wobbling and weaving were gone. Stability was further increased by setting the rear sag and bumping all damping settings to just a few clicks back from the max.

I would highly recommend, even if you think you have set the steering head bearing tension okay, to pull the steering head apart and check the stock bearings, and if they look okay, at least you can clean them and pack them with good grease. Then when you reassemble, you can set up the steering head tension yourself, so you know it's good. (and then recheck it after a few rides)

Kawasaki built us a great bike here, but they dropped the ball by not greasing the bearings properly, and in my case, this was exacerbated by the set-up guy not doing his job correctly.

 

Setting aside all tire/bearing/suspension issues for the moment, there are a some riding techniques that can help calm down a bike with a tendancy to wobble. They're not all right for all conditions, but they will help at least some of the problem.

Ride further back on the bike. The further back your butt is, the less the bike will tend to wobble.

Relax your grip (this has already been pointed out). Lots of wobble conditions are induced by inadvertent rider input.

Squeeze the bike with your legs/knees.

Push forward on the bars with your hands - it doesn't necessarily need to be a hard push, just forward pressure from both arms can do wonders to calm down a shaking front end. This is probably the most effective of these techniques, try it and you might be amazed how well it works.

 

Sit back on the seat, lower rear or raise front slightly.

 

My .02...get rid of the tires...I just put on Pirelli Scorpions F/R and WOW world of differece,on the road..directional/radial..balanced and way nice

 

That's the best answer I have seen to date. Plus remember that you are sitting up high on a bike that barely weighs more than you. Lots of things come into play. Tail wind, side wind, vehicles in front of you. The closer you get to a vehicle the worse it gets to a point and then you start drafting (not recommended) I wonder if some of the guys running the Motard setup can chime in and compare with the smooth tires that they run and what they have run into while on the road at 60+

 

"*I wonder if some of the guys running the Motard setup can chime in and compare with the smooth tires that they run and what they have run into while on the road at 60+"

I am on an SF and I have run everything from non-DOT knobbies, to street tires, to dual sports. I have also tuned the suspension extensively and checked all bearings. Perhaps some set ups tend to speed wobble marginally more or less than others but in my experience the KLX is just not happiest at speeds over 55mph when it tends to develop occasional speed wobbles.*

Certainly experiment to see if you can tune a speed wobble out, but if that fails, a steering damper should be your next course.*

Superbike manufacturers use them because they work!

 

I appreciate all the information that you all have provided me with here, definitely great information that I will put to use for the future riding.

I do have knobbies on the bike, and I assumed that was one of my big issues, I've heard a lot about t street tire, or slick tire like the SF.

I moved a little back on the bike and realized that was a little more comfortable as well as reducing the wobbles.

The last couple days my city has been getting pretty odd winds, so I thing this was a huge part as well.

The bike seems to perform really well on the freeway for me, and getting up to 75 is really not an issue for the bike.

I'm most likely going to check the bearings and consider a street tire for sure.

Any information on a SuperMoto style front fender? I've read that this can easily reduce some of the wobble as well, but I would like more information from anyone with experience on them.

Thanks all!!