Doodle's Crash Shows Janus Motorcycles May Be Unsafe

I can't really remember the OLD Kanofsaki W650's but I am familiar with the new ones. They seem to have all the bugs ironed out... However they load massive amounts of weight onto the front wheel, so if you go onto SAND - it just ploughs in and washes out....

Like riding a 10 speed racer onto the beach.... front wheel goes straight in - real deep, and over the bike goes.

The Kawasaki 2 strokes of the 70's were classic for wobbles and they even developed a perpose buit Damper for the bikes the fitted the top of the folk yoke and onto the down frame at the front end, that cured it and it was adjustable as well. In the 70's Yamaha solve the problem with a screw down damper on the head stock you could adjust by simply turning a knob on the middle of the top yoke by the bars. I had plenty of Honda's and don't ever recall the need for dampening?

@mrghoster: Just had an ancient memory..... many motorbikes going back to the very beginning in the 1910's etc., onwards, had frictional steering dampeners... The Vincents had them too... "Steering Damper: Very often one finds the Vincent damper plates greasy from over-use of the steering head grease fittings. This is asking for trouble ! Remove the assembly and give it a good cleaning and sanding of the friction surfaces to restore bite. Incorrect assembly can impare its proper function, and it MUST be able to clamp together quite noticably, the later double disc pattern is advisable. I always mark the knob to indicate when barely biting -- and mildly -- and when fully engaged for speeds above 65/75 mph. This to enable a glance to inform one that it is indeed tightened to the working mode. Jack up the front end to ascertain the effectiveness at selected positions of one's knob, the mark to be pointing dead ahead. Racing brake plates up front assist in wobble control because weight forwards of the steering head compounds the pendelum effect so overpowering the dampers ability to regain control of the flailing mass. For the same reason I usually pull-in and lower the headlamps position by relocating the lower headlight stays to bolts nearby on plate FF-32. Looks neater and more compact as well. Sid Biberman 01/25/01 "