Front wheel bearing noise?

[MagnaRider]

Thank you for the effort Cormanus, it happened before the new Road Comet was installed so that is out of the picture.
That was honestly my thoughts as well. My fork gaitors and PAIR delete are the only differences from last year. Maybe the gaitors are causing the howl? Who knows. I'll keep my eyes on things and see if it gets better/worse. My big worry with it more was a potentially bad wheel bearing but every test I do to that proves otherwise (rocking back & forth, no excessive heat etc)

[suhawk305]

MagnaRider, my comment is probably irrelevant. Last year, I had Bridgestone T32 tires installed on my CB1100. While driving on most local roads, I noticed various mechanical like noises that I thought may be the cam chain. The noise would vary according to the texture of the pavement surfaces. I read comments in this forum that others experienced noise issues from their T32 tires.

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

I talked to a co-worker who has LOTS of experience with super cars (Ferraris and others like that) and all kinds of bikes. His thought was yours. Wind noise of some sort. He said bike bearings (front at least) are bad at all speeds, not just one and are usually obvious.

I didn’t think of the tires or cam chain. I would think the gaiters could be eliminated by wrapping them with something and going for a ride.

[MagnaRider]

Thanks again, I really appreciate anybody's suggestions you guys are all awesome! I'm less worried about the noise now but would like the piece of mind of figuring out what it is!
I like the idea of wrapping the gaiters to see if they are the noise culprit. I also had a thought last night that this year I have been wearing a new helmet that might also be the noise culprit. I will switch back to my old helmet and try to wrap the gaiters to see if there is a change. Sadly, we just got snow and rain the past two days so might be a moment before I can ride again.

[Cormanus]

Be interested to learn what you figure.

[the Ferret]

one step at a time. Wrap gaiters, ride. Swap helmets, ride.

[peterbaron]

I'm still somewhat new to motorcycles specifically, and don't have access to advice besides what I find on the forums so any help is appreciated.

My 2014 CB1100 (20,000 miles) developed a high pitch whining noise in the front after its sit over the winter. I did have the front tire off to put gaitors on but reassembled it according to the manual. Even realigned the axle twice to verify I didn't mess it up. (The part where you move the forks up and down before tightening the pinch bolts.) And greased the axle.

I feel like its a bad wheel bearing, but the thing is it ONLY happens at ~60mph. If I cruise at 50mph, quiet, if I cruise at 65 it goes quiet again. But at 60 MPH regardless of gear/rpm it makes this noise. Also hitting the front brake doesn't seem to make a difference either. Any ideas? I've put over 100 miles on it so far with this new noise thinking it might work its way out but still whining.

Thanks for the help!
Colin

Based on this info is less likely that your noise comes from a wheel bearing.
Usualy a bad wheel bearing produces a grinding, growling, or humming noise that increases with speed and may worsen when turning.
Piched-whine noise are more associated with gears i.e transmission or pinion-crown gears which usually increases with the speed or load.

1. When the front wheel is off the ground, does it have excessive radial/side-to-sidel play?
2. If the noise is loud at 60 mph, as stated, does the noise change when cornering left or right?
3. With the front wheel off the ground put your hand on the front axle/lower fork tube, spin the front wheel as fast as you can, do you feel any grinding, growling or humming?

I had a car in the shop and the owner complained about a wheel bearing noise that we were unable to reproduce during our road test. After three days and while driving on the highway, the noise was loud and replacing the wheel bearing was a permanent solution. Based on this example, periodic bearing noise is difficult to diagnose, but it does not happen often.

[MagnaRider]

Well, it was nice enough yesterday I was able to do some testing. Wrapped gaitors did not affect the noise, however when wearing my old helmet I cannot hear the noise. My new helmet is much quieter than the old one, making me think this noise might've existed last year when I bought the bike and never noticed it. I confirmed it's not the helmet either that is making the noise.
I checked the front wheel again afterwards, no excessive heat on the brakes or hub, no radial/side to side play when mounted and spins freely. And I would not say that the noise gets worse or better when turning at 60mph. Tonight, I'll verify there is nothing weird with the rear tire and might just order some new front wheel bearings since they are not expensive. Thanks again for the suggestions and help

[1973cb750]

What tire are you running my z8 whines on the front more than it did when it was new

[MagnaRider]

Update for this. Definitely was a front tire noise. My new tires are 100% quiet.