Sidewinder steering slop cures?

[actionjack]

I searched and did not see a direct thread related to SW for steering slop. I seem to have some play at the bushing just above the motor - is there a better aftermarket bushing for this?

The 17mm at the bottom of the post - how do I access that one? Remove A-Arm boot?

Any other places to look to snug up?

Thanks in advance.
Jack

 

[DennyTuna]

I installed new bell crank bushings from mainway solutions and it really tightened up the slop. To access the bolt at the bottom of steering post you need to remove the front nose clip. Its fairly easy to do, there are four bolts on the side you need to remove and disconnect your charge tube . Two of the bolts are torx head (top) and 2 are 3/8" (very bottom ones) crazy but a 9mm is to small and a 10mm is to big. Then there will be a couple of torx head bolts by the fuss box. Disconnect fuss box from cradle before removing nose. There may be a couple of other torx head screws to remove up top just drawing a blank right now. Hope this helps.

 

[Chris Rose]

I searched and did not see a direct thread related to SW for steering slop. I seem to have some play at the bushing just above the motor - is there a better aftermarket bushing for this?

The 17mm at the bottom of the post - how do I access that one? Remove A-Arm boot?

Any other places to look to snug up?

Thanks in advance.
Jack

Contact Val at Mainway Solutions. His kit takes the slop out of the steering. Also his greasable A arm kit will take the looseness out of the suspension. All are straightforward to install, just have a good rivet gun.

 

[actionjack]

I installed new bell crank bushings from mainway solutions and it really tightened up the slop. To access the bolt at the bottom of steering post you need to remove the front nose clip. Its fairly easy to do, there are four bolts on the side you need to remove and disconnect your charge tube . Two of the bolts are torx head (top) and 2 are 3/8" (very bottom ones) crazy but a 9mm is to small and a 10mm is to big. Then there will be a couple of torx head bolts by the fuss box. Disconnect fuss box from cradle before removing nose. There may be a couple of other torx head screws to remove up top just drawing a blank right now. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the replies guys. So I guess you cannot get in there through the steering boot? I'll have a look at removing the nose clip. It does seem that I have play down there at the bell crank. And definitely at the bearing on top of the motor. I see OFT makes one for that.

 

[Yamajon1]

The OFT upper is a must in my opinion, takes all the up and down and side play out of the bars. The sled felt very cheap to me before installing it.

 

[actionjack]

Ordered OFT Viper steering block and Mainway oilite bell crank bushings today. I'm gonna crack open the right side boot to see if I can work on the bottom of the steering post later today.

 

[snowdust]

@actionjack Where did you order the OFT block from?

 

[actionjack]

@actionjack Where did you order the OFT block from?

Not sure if direct linking is allowed or not but OFTRacing has a dot-com webstore.

 

[actionjack]

@actionjack Where did you order the OFT block from?

http://oftracing.com/OnlineStore15/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=34&products_id=155. -
Apologies if posting the link is a no-no, multiple people asked for the info.
Ordered yesterday and shipped yesterday.
Also I removed my Powermadd Adjustable riser and went back to the factory riser as there seemed to be s bit of movement in the PowerMadd riser.

 

[mainedrummer]

So, these Viper blocks also fit the Sidewinder?

 

[actionjack]

So, these Viper blocks also fit the Sidewinder?

I assumed it was when I ordered it. I called OFT (Rick) to confirm, it fits the Sidewinder. Guess we'll know for sure in a few days when it shows up.

 

[DennyTuna]

I assumed it was when I ordered it. I called OFT (Rick) to confirm, it fits the Sidewinder. Guess we'll know for sure in a few days when it shows up.

They are the same. I replaced the bell crank bushings from Mainway on 3 (1 - 14 & 2 -16) Vipers and 3 (18) winders recently and there is no difference in the steering post, bell crank, brackets....nothing. I just ordered 6 blocks from OFT for my crew.

 

[DennyTuna]

Well I was wrong about the winder being the same as the Viper. When doing the bellcrank bushings all you need to do is remove just half of the upper block to slide steering post up. After diving into the install of the OFT brackets it turns out the winder bracket is a 1/2" taller than on the Viper. Easy enough though, just made some 1/2" aluminum blocks and problem solved.

 

[Bigblue1]

I searched and did not see a direct thread related to SW for steering slop. I seem to have some play at the bushing just above the motor - is there a better aftermarket bushing for this?

The 17mm at the bottom of the post - how do I access that one? Remove A-Arm boot?

Any other places to look to snug up?

Thanks in advance.
Jack

This should help.

 

[mainedrummer]

OK, there still seems to be inconsistent info as to whether the OFT block fits the SW?
One member says Yes (then now No), and another member says the vendor says Yes.
Which is it? I ordered mine based on this thread's info and it was just sent to my dealer to install. Will he actually be able to, or did I just spend about $100 w/shipping and tax for a paperweight?