I have noticed my roadie will do this if I lightly hold the throttle while coasting at about 10-20 mph. No loose front end bearings. I'll admit, the front tire is getting close (14,700 miles on it) but the roading has always do this. My 650 classic never wobbled like this. Could it be due to the engine looping at slow speeds with all that torque? It just seems to be a sweet spot on my roadie where it will do this.

Front tire is in like new condition, less than 4000 miles on it. 36 psi... I just checked. 40 psi in the back. And, I just rode it a couple miles to check it out and, yes, it does the left-right shimmy while decelerating at modest speeds, e.g. 20 mph. All I have to do is grip the handles with no pressure, e.g. keep my hands there but don't squeeze or control it... and it starts in. This ain't right.

Riding it normally, no wobble. Runs great. But I hate to think I'm riding a bike that's on the edge of going into an uncontrolled wobble when decelerating.

About two weeks ago I left home at daybreak on a two week roadtrip loaded down with camping gear. I'd rode about 150 miles, and was passing a string of 18's on I-55 when I blew a front tube. I was just clearing the lead truck , front end was starting to wobble a little, and had to pull back in a lot sooner than I wanted to. Fortunatly there was an off ramp right there, trying hard to slow down and keep the bike straight, I barely made it to the top. It took me 5 hours to get it fixed, but not one complaint from me. I was just glad I was still around. I keep my bars slightly pushed forward for just such times. Not the most comfortable position, but I can lock out my arms as Clifford said. Has saved me on more than one occasion.

I had new tires & tubes installed three days before I left out. Apparently the guy who did the install just crammed the tube in the tire, and didn't blow up the tube before he mounted the tire. The tube had a fold in it, which caused a 2" and a 3" rip as soon as the tube started to heat up. Always, Always, Always make sure who ever installs your tires, puts in the tube, then airs it up, then removes valve stem before they mount the top side of tire.

Sounds about the same as my deal, Robert. My 1996 Virago 750 won't wobble at all. Maybe it's a rake issue... the Virago has a more chopped, wheel-forward look to it.

My bike has done the same thing. I was unable to locate anything I thought was loose. Afterwards I began to think maybe the asphalt was to blame. I have since tried this "trick" on several different locations and have yet to have it happen again.

Judging from the responses, it seems that this problem isn't unique to me. I'm surprised I haven't heard more about it. Not to be dramatic, but this is the sort of bike problem that can be a BIG problem.

I HAVE THE SAME ISSUE WITH MY 07. ON DECEL. ABOUT 35MPH. TOLD THE DEALER AND THEY SAID NOT TO TAKE MY HANDS OFF THE BARS,THEY ARE RIGHT BUT YOU AND I KNOW THATS CRAP!!! IVE RIDDEN ABOUT 30 DIFFERENT BIKES FROM SCOOTERS TO FULL DRESSED HARLYS AND I JUST LOVE COASTING DOWN LONG HILLS AND NO HANDS BUT I DONT RECCOMEND THIS. ANYWAY MY POINT IS THAT IVE NEVER HAD A BIKE SHIMMY LIKE WE TALK ABOUT EVER!! ACCEPT FOR THIS ROADSTAR AND I CANT EVEN KEEP IT GOING STRAIGHT WITHOUT HANDS ON BARS (ITS JUST NOT RITE)
YAMAHA WONT HELP EITHER CAUSE IT GOES AGAINST THERE SAFTEY GUIDE MANUAL. WELL GUESS WERE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT GOING NOWHERE.

the only time i´ve noticed a front end shimmy is when my rear tyre gets down to the last 3mm and is squared off (funnily enough, the MT66 pirelli was the worst for this).

other than that, my`01 has never had any kind of shimmy `hands off´.

I've been reading this so I tested my bike this morning. Rock solid; not a bit of wobble. I'm running Avon Venoms with about 2500 miles on them.

I have, for very sort periods of time (like 3-5 seconds) taken booth hands off on decel. I've yet to have any wobble or shimmy at all. It's pretty much like I had just left my hands on the grips. Mind you, this is under 30 mph and not often at all. Maybe like 10 times total in the past year.

Tires are stock with about 7500 miles on 'em.

I'll be way more careful IF I do this again. Thanks for the thread.

M7