I have an 05 636 that I recently purchased, when I rode it home it had no issues at all. I stupidly let a friend ride the bike and he hit a curb going 5 - 10 mph. Now the handle bars shake about 1/2" when you take your hands off the bars, it gets worse the faster you go.

The rim is scratched and slightly dented, doesnt look bad though. Here are some pictures.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo...eat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo...eat=directlink

I also wonder if it is the tire pressure being too high, the front is currently at 40PSI.

Also, there is no wheel weight on the front wheel, I cannot find any mark that there ever was a weight on the wheel.

My other guess is that the forks got bumped out of alingment. The only other thing I can think of is that the axle is somehow bent and that it needs to be replaced.

Any ideas what I should do to get my bike back in working condition?

 

Do a static balance of the front rim
As you mentioned, check your forks alignment. loosen the pinch bolts up and relax the tension as your try and realign.
Bummer about your buddy damaging your ride without training wheels.

 

If he bent the rim you really gotta check the balance at a minimum, replacing it would be best. Tell your buddy he owes you $300 just for the rim, hope thats all you need.

Check your tire while your at it, sometimes a good smash will weaken the rubber and give you a bulge

Welcome to KF!

 

I agree with Prom and Dragone. The front wheel is definitely out of balance now. Start there, and if that doesn't fix it, buy a new rim and get your friend to cover at least half the cost. Good luck.

 

chances are, your front rim is out of balance or even bent. I would start there as you need to nail something pretty damn hard to bend the forks on these bikes. you can put it on a front stand and loosen the trees and re tighten them but being the lower tubes turn, it will not cause a feeling of a bent axle. if your front tire wont spin freely while in the air, then worry about an axle but i think youll be ok, start with the cheap stuff.

 

Ya mate owes you a rim

 

i say since he hit the curb and was able to damage the rim then he messed up the balance . i would say start there and if that doesn't fix it then he may have bent one of you forks.

 

Hey guys, thanks for all of the great responses. I took it to the local kawi dealership and they said the wheel was slightly bent. They balanced the front wheel and now it rides perfectly again! What an amazing motorcycle!

 

congrats on the fix, enjoy and keep your friends off of your ride. lol

 

+1 congrats bro, never let anyone touch your ride, unless you know they can and will buy it if they break it, lol