Monster fairing causes head shakes above 90mph

[jerry]

i was not sure which area to put this post ,, so i did it here

any way just refitted the standard ducati healamp fairing back on my S4 and noticed that now above 90mph the front end goes light and wants to wobble ,,,its controlable with more handlebar input and me leaning more weight over the front end but without the fairing it is stable and no wobble ,, seems the fairing makes a big difference to the handling above 90mph by acting like wing ,makes it feel a bit unsafe and not nice for sustained 120+mph blasts ,,


it is the reason i took it off 4 years ago but with new improved 996 front end i thought it worth fitting and also to reduce air blast when touring ....


any one else seen this phenomonon ????/

Plus point it makes me ride slower ...LOL

[utopia]

I get a similar effect when I carry my guitar on the bike, in a soft case carried on my back like a rucksack.
The guitar headstock sticks above my head and acts like a sail, with the wind drag causing my body to lift in response to opening the throttle.
Above about 50mph I have no weight on my arms at all.

And yes, I know, its probably not the safest way to travel.

[Saint aka ML]

Yep normal. Steering damper solves that :)

[Funkatronic]

its doesn't help that the bloody screen flaps about above 70 throwing loads of turbulent air in your face

make some fairing brace stays like these. it helps make the screen push a bigger cleaner hole in the air
http://i38.tinypic.com/2sb0nz9.jpg

i seem to remember stafford an liz have some really nice thin aftermarket ones, might be worth asking them where they got them

steering damper would be v useful on the s4 i would imagine (I'm certainly happier about it being there on the S2r1000)

[Dukedesmo]

I also added some extra bracing as my fairing would start to bounce up & down with the frequency of the engine at certain speeds.

Used a couple of thin strips of aluminium fitted from a screen bolt to the reservoir mount brackets and it's fine now even (allegedly) above 90mph...

http://ducatiforum.co.uk/forum/data/photos/l/4/4557-1405626385-0eac801fafcb3e30d569a4c0ee86e5e8.jpg

[Darren69]

The screen on my S4 has never seemed like it is fixed securely and does push back against the clocks. The fairing stays help, the ones I have were from Spareshack so you won't get any from there unfortunately.

[jerry]

never had nor ever needed a steering damper on any bike i have owned ,, i will make up some stays but if they dont improve the handling the fairing will go onto the m750 in UK as it does not have the same top end as the S4 ,, i am used to riding it at over 130mph completely stable with no fairing ,on bumpy thai roads ,,,,

steering dampers seem pricey for what they are ...

[Saint aka ML]

Funny fairing stays were a stock item on older monster screens (all carbed :D). then they got rid off them as they were "not" needed hee.

[Flip]

Funny fairing stays were a stock item on older monster screens (all carbed :D). then they got rid off them as they were "not" needed hee.

My 900 has them fitted along with the original style fairing from new and the bike has always got a bit of a wobble on (well perhaps more of a weave) when into three figure speeds no matter what make or condition the tyres or the road surface are in.

I remember back in the 80's when handlebar mounted fairings were the 'in thing' (early Kwak GPZ's, Pro-Am style RD's and a few others) most of road tests of the time said they would wobble or weave at high-ish speeds and it was the fairing causing it which seemed to ring true as not long after, many of these morphed into larger frame mounted versions.

Steering dampers only mask inherent problems (such as stability issues) and not solve them- the only real reason they should be fitted is for calming the steering caused by power application.

[bluestoesonnose]

Yep they all do that, just lived with it, and treated it as "character" strangely the M1000 with the same fairing doesn't seems so bad and the front end seems more planted on corners.

I have to say I feel the M1000 is a better road bike than the S4R, but that could be down to my liking of lighter bikes in general....

[Saint aka ML]

My 900 has them fitted along with the original style fairing from new and the bike has always got a bit of a wobble on (well perhaps more of a weave) when into three figure speeds no matter what make or condition the tyres or the road surface are in.

I remember back in the 80's when handlebar mounted fairings were the 'in thing' (early Kwak GPZ's, Pro-Am style RD's and a few others) most of road tests of the time said they would wobble or weave at high-ish speeds and it was the fairing causing it which seemed to ring true as not long after, many of these morphed into larger frame mounted versions.

Steering dampers only mask inherent problems (such as stability issues) and not solve them- the only real reason they should be fitted is for calming the steering caused by power application.

Agreed on damper but in this case if you have fairing on you will have instability so best to hide it :)

[jerry]

Made up some fairing stays and now the bike is stable to about 105mph then a little wobble but not too bad ,, I also took off some preload and rebound but left compression damping the same on the forks and reduced preload ,compression and rebound on rear now its much more stable at 120mph and also the comfort factor is much more compliant over bumps it floats over instead of crashing over and that has improved the handling as well , especially on bumpy bends which are common in Thailand ...

not sure wether to paint the stays which are 11cm long by 12mm wide black, grey or get them chromed???? any suggestions

another benefit is the fairing does not flop and directs air over my head ...good eh

[jerry]

Ah ha now its stable up to 140mph which on thai roads is as fast as anyone sane would go ,, all i had to do was tuck in behind the fairing at over 110mph and thats it the bike is as stable as a battleship .

at normal speeds 90mph fairing does a good job of directing air over my head so thats good too ,,