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Is this Ryker Handle Bar Jiggle normal on lousy roads?

2

2LZ

New member
In the never ending quest to get the front end of my new-to-me 2020 Ryker 600 set up and working properly, I have a few questions for the Ryker Guru's.
A little history first:
The PO took his wife's Ryker 600 and set it up with all factory Rally stuff, plus a few other items. Rally rear shock, Rally front shocks (all KYB, I believe), plus early Rally rims. He also added the rear shock lift block. I then put on the recommended Amazon 400mm front shocks.

I'm still messing with the front shock settings, going from stiff to the least amount of spring tension. Still not happy, but working on it. I've also set the toe-in (tape measure) to .5" toe-in. It still tugs around badly on our lousy Nor Cal roads... but I'm working on it. It could simply be ancient tires... but the date code on the Kenda's doesn't seem to read like a normal tire date code (four number code after the DOT stamp).

The main question... when I hit bumps, and especially jarring bumps (there's plenty), the bars jiggle and wiggle around sometimes violently. Almost like the frame is cracked or the bushings are shot... but when I sit on it parked, they hardly have any movement side-to-side at all.
Is this bar shaking normal on lousy roads? Obviously, I'm new to Rykers after a lifetime of two wheelers... but this seems almost ridiculous.
 
I'm NOT a Ryker rider or expert, and probably should keep my nose out of this... but 2 things in your post bother me a bit.

  1. 0.5" toe-in seems excessive. Generally it's in the order of 0.125"; and
  2. What are these 'recommended Amazon 400mm shocks' you put on? Some no-name rubbish?

Sounds to me that there's been a lot of changes made on that Ryker which might be making things worse, not better. I'd go back to basics... remove the Amazon shocks & put the Rally shock back on; get rid of the rear lift block; & reduce the toe-in.

Spyders & Rykers DO move around a bit on the road. Many new owners don't keep a relaxed grip & try to fight it. Just let it move around... it'll sort itself out.
 
I would add... the steering on Rykers is very sensitive so you will feel any bumps (large enough to deflect either or both front wheels) through the bars. I had much the same issues as you on my Rally when riding rough roads. The fix for me was fitting a steering dampener to absorb the hits, works great... removed the jolts and keeps the wheels from going off line. If you come from two wheels you're probably familiar with them.

You can buy the kit through Slingmods or Martin the Vlogger. I'm also just pulling the trigger on Bajaron Sway Bar Kit

Getting your wheel alignment set up properly is, of course, crucial; you can find the factory setup guide by purchasing the repair and maintenance manual HERE
 
The Amazon 400 mm front shocks are a common upgrade, there's never been a problem reported as far as I know. Let us know how things go 2LZ, that sounds like a nice bike.

Sarah
 
Steering damper will take a lot of that away.
Put one on mine, made a big difference (A 2022 Ryker Sport).
You will still feel some, but not as harsh.
Depending on the setting, steering effort might be a little heavier.
You can get one from Ryker Mods who designed the one that others sell.
 
Going from the stock (just over 14") front shocks to the 17.75" (400mm) set is going to raise your front end (DUH) and change your alignment. When making that much of a change, you really need to get the front end laser aligned to get proper steering back.

Having said this, the Ryker has no power steering unit, so you're going to get direct and strong feedback on rough roads. As mentioned, an aftermarket steering dampener is the best way to go for this. But it won't cure your out of alingment issue.
 
Thanks for the responses gang. A couple things I neglected to mention...

I did install the recommended steering dampener and have been playing with the setting. So far, I'm up to 12. Again, our roads here are absolute garbage. I'm not expecting a Cadillac ride, believe me. I'm more just trying to tame the thing a little. I live in Canyonland and sometimes the darting gets a wee bit unnerving, especially when its a long drop.

I still have the stock sway bar, but did install the fancy end links. Every time I've changed something it's helped somewhat.

I'll have to figure out a way to align it better. It was basically at "0" when I got it and it darted badly. Going to almost a half inch toe-in has helped the darting a lot (along with the other upgrades). Problem is, I'm many hours from a Can Am dealer, out here in the sticks. Most everyone around here including myself are DIY for that reason. I did spend a decade as a chassis mechanic by trade in my younger years, so I have an understanding of setup. Has anyone ever figured out a way to do a good DIY alignment? Invented a gadget? A tape would work great if you could get to both 9 and 3 on the tires, but with the big fenders and the engine in the way, that's impossible. If I was still aligning cars, I'd put the tables on the floor and set up the laser heads. I'll have to check with a local shop.

The PO took amazing care of the trike for his wife. Everything I've run across that he's changed or upgraded has all been done correctly. I've found zero shortcuts or lame fixes. He just serviced all the fluids and filters before he sold it. I did change the air filters to K&N because mice here LOVE to make nests out of paper filters.
Again, I just need to get it to settle down a little more. I'm almost there compared to what it was.....
 
If your toe in is 0.5" per side, then that's approximately just 1.8 degrees per side for a total of getting on for 3.6 degrees toe in, in total.

That would be a lot. If it's 0.25" per side for 0.5" in total, it would be just under 1.8 degrees overall. That would be a bit better.

This all assumes you measure across the width of a 16" wheel rim, not a 15" rim. A 15" rim would be worse. Working in degrees removes wheel size from the equation. Toe angle = arctan(measurement/rim_size)

I imagine the "bit of toe in" Can Am specifies would likely be closer to half of these figures like @TheMariner suggests.

I was running 1 degree in total, half a degree per side, on my prior 2021 Spyder when I set it up myself. OK a Ryker might be different, and I might be totally wrong in my assumptions.

I don't know what Baja Ron sets as toe in angle, but he's likely to be more expert on the ideal value.
 
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