Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!! UPDATED QUERY

Afternoon all from sunny Norn Iron,

A quick question - my nephew is considering buying a bike - a Raleigh Ritmo, from me. He tested it last night, as did i. When riding the bike around a corner, you get a feeling as if you are 'falling off' the edge of the tyre. The tyres have no miles on them but may be old. I have had a similar problem with motorbike tyres in the past so today i changed them to new tyres and tubes.

The bad news - this did not work! I took the bike for a ride and found it to be unstable at slow speeds - it has a ridiculously short stem and fairly narrow bars so i thought this might account for this but when i tried to ride with no hands the bike was dangerous. My balance was fine - no beer in me!

Any ideas why the bike is a bit unstable?

Thanks all, have a great weekend,

Richard

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

Damage to the front forks or even crash damage to the frame steepening the head tube perhaps?

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

Headsets not indexed is it?

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

That sounds strange.........factory bikes are set up out of the box to be easy to ride and not dangerous. As Hamster says, any tell tale signs of a front ender?

Shaun

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

Is the headset too tight ? Is the handlebar stem aligned straight with front wheel ?

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

Third vote for the headset.

A tight headset can make the bike feel like you have an unstable giro attached, it's a very weird and unsettling feeling, almost like the front of the bike is slightly disconnected from the rest.

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

NeilM":jj30auji said:

Third vote for the headset.

A tight headset can make the bike feel like you have an unstable giro attached, it's a very weird and unsettling feeling, almost like the front of the bike is slightly disconnected from the rest.

Click to expand...

Would it generate a kind of gyroscopic weave at Normal speeds? If so you have solved a problem for me!

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

The History Man":1ffx7bkl said:

NeilM":1ffx7bkl said:

Third vote for the headset.

A tight headset can make the bike feel like you have an unstable giro attached, it's a very weird and unsettling feeling, almost like the front of the bike is slightly disconnected from the rest.

Click to expand...

Would it generate a kind of gyroscopic weave at Normal speeds? If so you have solved a problem for me!

Click to expand...

Yes, and you can also feel like you are falling into the corner.

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

I would have thought a tight / brinelled headset would have been obvious from the build. Whip off the front wheel and try and turn the forks by the forks themselves, The forks should move under the weight of the handlebars. using the handlebars to urn with the wheel in place gives a false impression as even if tight there is enough leverage.

Shaun

Re: Unstable bike or unstable rider - you decide!!!

Apart from the headset, check that both wheels are dished correctly, and are lined up and straight when in the frame. A frame and/or wheels that aren't straight can also cause handling problems.