Hey guys, I noticed on my bike this morning on my way home from work, when I hit a bump in the road, there is a knocking sound. It sounds like something is banging around below me. I checked everything to make sure it was all nice and tight. Checked under the seat, exhaust, fender, everything you can think of that would make such a noise. Has anyone else noticed this. It has not done this since I have had it. I bought it June 19 or there abouts, and have about 1400 miles on it. :confused:

You may be bottoming out... What are your rear and front suspension preload and damping settings at?

I haven't changed them from the way I bout it. So let me say, Uh, I don't know. Will check it though. I haven't seen or felt any signs of scraping though. It could just be paranoia setting in, but at slow speeds, like moving across an intersection from a stop I will hear it. I have stood on the pegs and bounced and don't hear it. I have been told that I am borderline so maybe I am just finally losing it. I will get under her tomorrow for a good feel around and see what I can come up with.

Maybe something under the seat (tool bag, rubber tie down straps)??

Another thing to check is your swingarm where the kickstand goes up near the foot. If there are slight scratch marks on the swingarm that would be my guess.

Bear, I checked under the seat, that was the first suspect since I put new exhaust on the other day. TBR Carbon Fiber pics forthcoming. I put a hugger on too. Thought maybe it was bouncing off rear wheel. I made sure that everything was tight under the seat. I thought I may have left the two rubber straps loose.

Bad, You might be onto something. I didn't think about that.

Thanks guys

I got mine from the dealer with the rear preload and damping at softest setting. It's now perfect at #3 preload and 10 clicks out from stiffest damping setting (I'm 185 lbs). With my forks at highest preload for a good balance and feel, rebound damping is set at only 1/2 turn to control the extra stiffness, which also prevents a sharp kickback on bumps. I can ride it hard and fast now on rough roads and it's remarkably smooth.

Mine is pretty stiff, if I don't raise my backside over bumps, it throws me. I should probably check my shock. The front end is pretty soft. As I am sure you can tell, I am just learning and trying to learn as much as I can to work on the V myself. It's easy to to add stuff, i.e. hugger, exhaust, etc...but adjusting and modifying things I am very new to. So if I sound like I don't know what I am asking or saying, chances are I don't. I will check that. The rear could be too tight, thus making me bounce, thus bouncing the kickstand down.

That is possible... Try my settings which work remarkably well for my weight (185 lbs minus 12 lbs with lighter muffler). You'll probably find it rides and handles much better.

Will do and will let you know thanks.

When i have ridden on rough roads (potholes) i also hear a noise from under/forward. I think it is where the cable is fastened to the front fender in my case.

If you have a pyramid hugger they are utter crap , the chain catches and you get a knocking sound when you hit a bump

I have a pyramid Mac, that was one of my first thoughts.

gambling, did you do anything to yours, were there any visible signs?

If you havnt seen this, check it out motorbum. I fixed before it became a possible issue. http://forums.kawasakiversys.com/showthread.php?t=239

It could just be paranoia setting in, but at slow speeds, like moving across an intersection from a stop I will hear it. I have stood on the pegs and bounced and don't hear it.

If you typically hear the "clunk" after a stop, it could be your brake pads. There is some free play and after braking they are all the way to the front, so they could be bouncing back a bit as you hit a bump. You will hear a similar "clunk" the first time you apply the brakes after the bike has sat for a while.


Gustavo

Two bad points about piramid hugger 1 , does not cover chain properly it needs to be over chain another 4 or 5 mm, 2, get down and look how close chain is to hugger then lift chain up (bet it hits with a clunk) take it off and grind it back, hopefully problem solved.

I have a Piramid hugger...I don't have any knocking sounds from it. I don't see how the chain could catch on the back of it unless you have a really bad chain problem. Maybe you got a bad cast or something...or maybe I was lucky! My guess is that you are hearing the chain slap back down on the chain guard that is on top of the swing arm after a bump. It's the black thing under the chain just in front ot the passenger peg in the picture...that sound is pretty common to most bikes.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/K4XA/GIVI02.jpg

I have a Piramid hugger...I don't have any knocking sounds from it. I don't see how the chain could catch on the back of it unless you have a really bad chain problem. Maybe you got a bad cast or something...or maybe I was lucky! My guess is that you are hearing the chain slap back down on the chain guard that is on top of the swing arm after a bump. It's the black thing under the chain just in front ot the passenger peg in the picture...that sound is pretty common to most bikes.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a28/K4XA/GIVI02.jpg

Hooligan you were right. I checked it and found that the chain is actually hitting the hugger above the area your talking about. Now the question that comes to my mind is my chain to loose? There is about a half inch up and down.

With the suspension fully extended, chain slack should be between 1" and 1.4" ( 25mm -35 mm).

Yea, I did some quick reading on it and found that it was alright. I feel much better now that I figured out what it was. Thanks for all the info.

Glad it was nothing to worry about.