Get some speed (say 70km/h) and I let go of the handlebar, the bike would turn left itself. It just refused to run straight line on its own. Feel's like it's leaning left slightly... :(

This is the first bike that will go straight for me, not that I make a habit of riding no hands and I typically don't.

Bent front fork? Tweaked alignment? How bad was the initial fall?

Bent front fork? Tweaked alignment? How bad was the initial fall?

At 70km/h, it leans slightly after half a second the handlebar is let go. It always lean left.

This is the first bike that will go straight for me, not that I make a habit of riding no hands and I typically don't.

No, I don't do that too. and I believe it won't bother too much. but it's just there and I know there's something wrong.

Could a bent handlebar contribute to it?

Check your wheel alignment front and back... Back... by making sure the rear tensioners are 100% equal on both sides. Front... Lift the front, (Barely leaving the tire touching the ground. loosen all the pinchbolts holding the forks in the trees and tighten them back again. (Commonly required after a fall)

Check your wheel alignment front and back... Back... by making sure the rear tensioners are 100% equal on both sides. Front... Lift the front, (Barely leaving the tire touching the ground. loosen all the pinchbolts holding the forks in the trees and tighten them back again. (Commonly required after a fall)

Thanks~ I will start with the fork first.

Coming from a dual sport background, I'm used to wrecking A LOT. More than one of my mishaps have resulted in tweaked forks. There have been times when I've had to hold the handlebars at a 20 degree angle in order to go straight down the road.

It's possible that the forks are bent, but very unlikely I'd say. More than likely they are just a little tweaked. The cure for tweaked forks is a bit of pain, but not too bad really. Actually, it's quite easy except for the fact that it's a hassle to elevate the front wheel off of the ground on the Versys.

The steps are as follows:

Elevate front wheel (see below for one idea of how to do this)
Loosen the front axle a bit
Loosen bolts on the triple tree that hold the fork
Hit the front tire with a board
Check alignment of front wheel with handlebars held straight
Tighten everything up
Ride!


Hopefully that will get you where you want to be, but if not then I'm sure there will be other valid suggestions of things to check. That is where I would start, though.

As for a method to elevate the bike, I'm fabbing up one of these bad boys (http://www.versys.co.uk/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=45&topic=3665.msg41067#msg41067) (courtesy of hr100 on the UK forum).

I had to do this procedure a month or so ago. Since I still haven't made the jack, I just used two jackstands and a long metal rod. You just remove the two covers over the footpegs and slide the rod through the open pipe that is in the frame.

Good luck and remember to report back on your results.

DragonBreath has the right idea... Upon getting up from the fall, you can usually starighten it back right away by holding the front of the front wheel between your knees while twisting the handlebars to tweak the forks back in line.
Of course, depending on the severity of the impact, the triple clamps, forks, etc, may be bent and need replacing. Hopefully your frame is still straight...

DB,
You're sure getting fancy with your adjustment!! We used to just pull up to a tree, bang it back straight and ride on!!!

DB,
You're sure getting fancy with your adjustment!! We used to just pull up to a tree, bang it back straight and ride on!!!

Well, I guess you're right, and in a pinch that's exactly what I would do too. Being a bit on the anal side, though, I would always wonder if I overcompensated doing it that way. Even if I did that during the ride, I would probably still go through the the detailed procedure back at home.

I wish I could relax a little bit more, but I guess that's my cross to bear. :o

Yeah, I remembered just leaning front of wheel against a tree or wall, etc too... Easier than holding the wheel between your legs.