Right steering rest is much further than left

[Irtron]

I noticed that the throttle grip reaches much closer to the faux tank than the clutch grip.
Eventually I had to turn the grip to raise the brake lever to move throttle cables away from the faux tank after a few nasty scratches appeared next to the right triple tuning fork.
Also I have to move the handlebar from the right rest position quite a bit to be able to lock the steering head.

Today I disassembled the head for bearing replacement. Apparently the steering stop rest is not on the centre. I've measured the distance between the stop rest and the yoke stops and it's 22mm on the right (left on the pic) and 26 on the left.

It looks like the rest was wrongly welded by 'feel' in the first place as there is no sign of refixing it.

Is this common on 1st gen frames? The bike is 1994.

How to fix the issue? I'm a bit cautious about welding a bead to the left side of the rest.
First of all I have no welding experience whatsoever although I acquired a cheap single phase arc welder recently. That's fixable though
Another thing is I believe that the bearing seat is machined after all the welding in this part of frame. Wouldn't the heat distort the seat? What if I weld the bead with the old race still inside? Will that help?

Thanks.

PS.
The yoke on the pic is in its centre position. I can tell by the 'notch' on the overtightened bearing.
The brake line distributor holes are asymmetrical. The outer headlight case holder holes give better reference.

 

[Miles Long]

I re-shaped my faux tank years ago, and added different bars. Consequently, I had to restrict the steering head movement a bit, or the bars would hit the tank.
Which was easy. I drilled and tapped (#8x32 t.p.i.) a hole in each stop on the lower tree, and then put in a machine screw. They can be screwed in from either side, and a locknut can be added . The screws can be adjusted to limit travel to whatever amount suits your needs.
Cheers!

 

[Irtron]

Raised countersunk M5 worked just fine indeed.

The steering lock engages right at the right rest, no need to fiddle with the handlebars to find the locking position.

Thanks Miles.

 

[jfeagins]

Nifty fix guys.

 

[wildweasel_pt]

I would put the bolt the other way around or it will round up the head in time rendering it difficult to remove afterwards.

 

[Irtron]

I would put the bolt the other way around or it will round up the head in time rendering it difficult to remove afterwards.

Would it be easier to remove the screw with crushed thread end? :hmmm:

 

[wildweasel_pt]

If you cut it yes, as if you cut the head i don't see it going anywhere.

 

[Redbone]

How about using a dome head nut?

 

[jfeagins]

How about using a dome head nut?

Like this one?

:biglaugh:

Or did you mean an acorn nut?
Like this one?

:rofl_200:

sorry - slow day

 

[Irtron]

If you cut it yes, as if you cut the head i don't see it going anywhere.

In my case I'd rather use an 8mm spanner to drive the screw out by the locking nut :eusa_dance: