Bye-Bye wobble! Hello Bagger Brace! Pics!

H

Hollygolightly

New member
No, I actually just road my 08 from Atlanta to the Grand Canyon and then I road down to the keys last weekend. Bike is 6 months old and has 15000 miles. I ride all the time and previously I owned a GL1800. This bike does have what some discribe as a wag or wobble when in a sweeper but nothing I think is worth any attention.
My bike is not stock completely as I have cams, pushrods, racetuner, etc. It runs like a raped ape.
I say again I do feel the wag-wobble everyone echoes however its just not that bad on my bike. Maybe I have a good one.
 
Different strokes, Tim. I haven't felt the need to put in cams and pushrods, but tend to ride familiar mountain roads often. The Road Glide wallowed in some turns - that's the best I can describe it - even at low speeds. Adding/reducing power in turns would change the line substantially, and I often felt as though the rear was about to break loose. Although it was usually more pronounced at higher speeds, it would sometimes occur at under 30 on switchbacks. Trailing the rear brake usually helped, but I was seeking a "fix". The deciding factor for me was the introduction of the '09 touring models. Nothing confirms a design problem like a complete redesign, huh? The Bagger Brace works for me - and that was the objective. You are OK with the wobble, I am OK with stock cams.....enjoy the ride!
 
I dont know about fitting but I do know about need....
I have a good friend of mine that rides an 09` Hd Road King as a motorcade and he just had a wipeout on the 91 fwy here in southern California.. When I asked him what had happened he said the bike went into a bucking wobble and threw the bike down. Nothing he could do about it.
 
UK first of all thanks for the write-up you were very convincing and stacey has you to thank for me ordering this yesterday, yes she said she will have one black that she will ship tomorrow friday to me, awaiting anxiously for this I thought I would take a look at my bike and prepare myself if I see any bents in the cross member, everything looks fine however upon close inspection I notice a little peice of what looks like removable copper right in the center of the cross member about two inches long and maybe an 1/8 of an inch in diameter, I am assuming the dog bone has to fit flush to the cross member(at the bottom) and there shouldn't be anything obstructing , so am I to remove that piece? or does the dog bone comes groved to fit over this piece?. thanks for your reply and I hope you know what I'm talking about
 
I am sure if you wade through all these posts you will get an answer for the first part of your question. In reply to the last, Harley has redesigned their dressers for 2009, with a new frame and engine mounting system. The few reports I have read suggest they handle better than an unmodified previous model.

Back to that wobble! The rubber-mount engine, transmission, swingarm and rear wheel are mounted as an assembly into the frame via three rubber mountings, one at the front of the engine, the other two behind the gearbox, one either side. These two have a spindle going through them, which also goes through the frame, back of the gearbox and swingarm bushes.

Being rubber, there is a small amount of sideways movement possible in these bushes. In addition, on earlier models like my 1990 FLHS, the swingarm used flexible bushes where that spindle passed through. So that makes two sources of sideways movement. Later dressers, I understand, have solid bushes in the swingarm.

The front engine rubber mounting has plenty of sideways movement in it, but Harley use a stablizer link to stop that. There is another stabilizer between the cylinder heads (on the front head for 2009 models). Buell models all use a third stabilizer link at the rear of the gearbox, as do the current rubber-mount Sportsters, indeed Erik Buell patented the system in the 1980s. No idea why Harley hasn't used it on all their rubber mounts!

On my bike I have replaced the flexible bushes with solid ones and fitted an additional stabilizer, which goes under the rear of the gearbox. There are probably a dozen brands now, selling these things, but I used TrueTrack. Most of this thread is about the Bagger Brace, one of the alternative choices, all setting out to do the same job, in their slightly different ways. I also fitted a TrueTrack kit to our Dyna, which does not have either front or rear stabilizers as standard.

The benefit is greatly improved handling, both bikes being far more stable in all circumstances, even just riding in a straight line, but especially around bends. They change line better and are a real joy to ride. If you cannot find someone with a modified bike to try, just get a kit and fit it - soon. You will not be disappointed!

Hope that helps.
 
I bet it's one of those traffic light magnets..

See if it has magnetic properties, if it will hold a screw, pull it off of there, you don't need it.
 
Having written my thesis on the subject above, I have just read this post! Makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up thinking about it. I hope he wasn't using only his rear brake?

I have studied the '09 models in my local dealers and the single front engine mount has been replaced by two. These are like small versions of the long-standing rear mounts. The rear mounts are slightly different in appearance to the old variety, but look as if they do the same job. The only stabilizer link I could see was at the front head.

If Harley has gone to the expense of designing a new frame and mounting system, either they are confident of their new system, or have closed their eyes to the flex in their design.

Having fitted an entire TrueTrack system to my old Glide (plus an S&S V107 engine), my Harley specialist of choice reckons it is the best handling one he has ever ridden, indeed the only one he can enjoy riding in the wet!

So stabilizers work! Including my Firebolt, we have three bikes in our garage, each with three stabilizers. I can imagine some of the current stabilizer makers are already turning their attention to the '09 models.

It took years for these kits to come on the scene, so the industry will be looking to capitalise on the new opportunity. Let's see how long it takes them....
 
Back
Top