Vibrations on the handlebars ? / A comparison -

[skiper]

Very short post here : I got to ride and compare an NT 700 with two thousand miles and mine with seven thousand. It had significant high frequency vibrations , which have certainly smoothed out on mine. It wasn't a perfect comparison but my conclusion is - vibes go away as miles go on.. It reminded me of my bike when brand new. These matters can be subjective of course - but this was very clear. If you have some vibes you don't like , relax because they will fade away. I still have a slight low frequency "chug" I call it , when gunning it to pass or whatever, but it has smoothed and is no where near what a bike with 2000 miles has. My conclusion is - these beauties get better the more you get to know em.. More to come on this tonight or tomorrow --

 

[Warren]

While the vibration inherent in the engine design of the NT has never caused me any problems I recognize that it is there. Since a 52 degree V twin without counter balencers is going to have some degree of vibration due to it primary imbalance I am not sure why over time it would vibrate less as the mileage increases. I have not noted that has been the case with mine.

 

[artemedes]

I remember distinctly how I was a little disappointed with mine when new. Seemed better by 4,000 miles, and was really smooth by 6,000 miles. Just this morning I rode the NT to work and was impressed at how smooth it has become. I don't think it is any smoother now than ~6,000 miles, but it is noticeably smoother than my DR650. The DR650 is known for being smooth among the big singles. I have been alternating between the NT and the DR650 and have added grab-on grips to both. I think the foam in the grab-on grips helps reduce some vibes quite a bit.

 

[DirtFlier]

[...Since a 52 degree V twin without counter balencers is going to have some degree of vibration..."

Yes the cylinder inclination is 52-degrees but the Honda crank uses offset crankpins to make it feel more like a 90-degree v-twin. As far as I can recall, there was only one Honda V-twin that used didn't use offset crankpins and that was done to make it vibrate more - it was a cruiser.

 

[Rocky]

I am coming up on 13K miles and pulled my bars back a bit last night so I could sit a little farther back in the seat. On the drive to work today I notice how smooth the bike runs, and it is getting better. the vibration never really bothered me though...

 

[RedNigel]

I just ride

 

[Rob]

here we go again

 

[Warren]

It is interesting that with the NT some find it vibrates to the extent it is uncomfortable and others say its smooth. Other bikes I have ridden are usually described one way or the other. No one on my XS650 list would deny that the motor mostly resembles a paint shaker. Most of the posts on the list are how to reduce the vibration so one can ride more than 30 minutes without their teeth coming loose.

 

[charlie b]

I would not call it vibrate, but, a buzz. Mine had it when new and at 28k miles. My Guzzi has it at some RPM settings too. Smaller 4cyl bikes also buzz the bars quite a bit.

 

[mikesim]

What, the NT vibrates? Impossible!

Sam

Glad to see yer finally comin' around....



Mike

 

[Phil Tarman]

Since a 52 degree V twin without counter balencers is going to have some degree of vibration due to it primary imbalance I am not sure why over time it would vibrate less as the mileage increases. I have not noted that has been the case with mine.

We may have a 52-degree twin, but the crankpins are offset so that it runs like a 90-degree twin. Better balance than a 52-degree twin would be.

 

[Warren]

I am aware of the 90 degree offset that Honda uses but the question raised in the post was that for some the NT seems to vibrate less after it accumulates milage and the point I was making is the vibration is due to the motors inherent design which doesn't change with milage.

 

[suvcw04]

I had a Yamaha YDS-2 250, twin cylinder two stroke many years ago. An hour on that bike and you had no fingernails left. They just vibrated off.

When I'm riding the NT and I notice a little handlebar tingle, I just think of that old Yamaha. The NT smooths right out.

 

[skiper]

As a new engine beds in and the factory new clearances wear , they will have different harmonic resonances. I felt the clutch break in first , then the transmission began to click less and had fewer clunky shifts. Could feel and hear the sychros working better the miles under the wheels. The engine / handlebar took a long time to change and the change was so slow in the beginning I wasn't sure about it. Now I'm convinced about these hunches since riding Fieroguys NT. We didn't have anytime to discuss the ride trade since he had a meeting to go to. Larry - won't you chime in and give your impression of the comparison of 2000 mile engine and 7000 mile engine ?

 

[tawilke46]

I had a Yamaha YDS-2 250, twin cylinder two stroke many years ago. An hour on that bike and you had no fingernails left. They just vibrated off.

When I'm riding the NT and I notice a little handlebar tingle, I just think of that old Yamaha. The NT smooths right out.

The same happens to me when I remember the BUZZ of my '72 CB350 at more than 50 mph. My whole body would buzz for hours after a long ride.......long being over 50 miles. The mirrors were useless, just a big blur. The NT feels like a Rolls.

 

[mikesim]

I must admit that I am skeptical of the theory that the bike smoothes out as it accumulates miles. I think that the more likely scenario is that the rider "acclimates" himself to the bike and the perceived vibration becomes less and less of an issue.

Just my .02

Mike

 

[DirtFlier]

[...Could feel and hear the sychros working better the miles under the wheels....] Most motorcycle transmissions are constant-mesh with all the gears spinning all the time so syncromesh rings, such as fitted to some car transmissions, are not used.

In regards to the engine smoothing out with miles, I do feel it is a reality and not just the rider becoming more accustomed to a certain level of tingling or vibration.

 

[skiper]

The reason I'm posting is not to beat a dead horse - though I should mention that the bike comparison is between two silver models - this avoids having to remember a subjective feel from a year ago. We traded 2010 NT700's , one with 2 thou miles , other with 7 thou. I thjought it would be interesting for some folks as these things interest me. I've never had new engines to break in till now. I listen and feel this thing like an instrument, it's fun. When I asked experienced engine people long ago , why one shouldn't run a new engine at constant speed for long periods - the general answers were - the moving parts will wear in in an eccentric way. For instance - on a wrist pin or crank journal , friction is directed in different vectors for decelleration vs acceleration vs steady runnin so as working tolerances are obtained if a variety of load patterns happen there should be less eccentricity. Then less unwanted harmonic resonance. Some resonance can shatter metal , others just vibrate. Cavitation in fluids can break metal pumps. I find resonance fascinating - but don't anybody worry about your bike - it's just a post for geeks and hopefully be uplifting to anyone thinking of getting rid of an NT for vibration. I believe they all smooth out. Everything in relative context as folks mention

 

[Fieroguy]

Larry - won't you chime in and give your impression of the comparison of 2000 mile engine and 7000 mile engine ?

Okay, here goes... I agree that my NT with 2k miles seemed to have more handlebar vibration than skiper's NT with 7k miles. However, it is a highly subjective opinion. There are also other differences between our bikes that might effect the perception. skiper's NT is bone stock. My NT has MCL's 1" bar risers and foot peg lowerers.

I've never felt that the handlebar vibration was excessive, although I will admit there is a high frequency buzz going on. I came away from the bike swap with the impression that the feel of the NT does improve with age (er, I mean miles) like a fine wine. Maybe that is why someone on this forum named theirs "Merlot".

 

[skiper]

Yeah - right on. These NT's / Deauvilles are not shakers. I hope it didn't sound like the vibe was excessive. As many say - older generation bikes that are lauded over and worshiped can vibrate far more than our NT700's. We got a very refined machine . Engine is excellent and made to outlast most riders. The minuses about the bike are fixable , where engine problems are harder to fix. The spirit of my post is to share my observations and promote this excellent bike. It's subjective for sure and time and observations will make it less subjective. I want my NTv.. Larry said it all with "improve with age" - Merlot - . Oh and "Old Man Honda" if you are reading this from some other dimension - I want to thank you for making a company that could produce such a fine machine - and if you could help find us all a solution to the lock latches, please do..