Hoping someone can give me some insight.
I've got a 2005 Kaw Vulcan 2000 with less than 7k miles on it.
The other day I started hearing this noise when the bike was moving, powered or not, just a little ticking sound kinda like a playing card in the spokes sound.
I had a similar sound when I first bought it when it had 2600 miles on it, the dealer adjusted the belt and said I was good to go.
Within 2 days it has turned into a horrible noise, not quite a grinding but just a racket that I can definately hear when slowing down or just taking off. I figure it is there all the time (when moving) but just can't hear it over the engine and exhaust.
I looked at the belt and all the moving parts and see no sign of wear, cracking or anything on the belt.
Had someone looking right at it as I pushed it to see if they could see anything and nada.
Does anyone have any ideas on what it could be?
Hoping its nothing major like the bearings in the rear wheel or something, this is my first belt drive and I'm still not convinced that it is a good thing.
Thanks in advance
Rich

First, thanks for the info. 8^)

I can hear it riding, pushing, any moving. Just can't see anything.
My buddy told me that he would hear the noise as the wheel rotated but not with each revolution, It would take about 2-3 revolutions of the wheel to hear it each time.
Not just overnight, it is all the time now. Also moving forward or backwards.
Seems to sound the same acc or dec.
The dealer had replaced both tires and the battery before I bought it so hopefully that's not it.
I was hoping not to have to trailer it up to the mechanic but he is like 30 miles away so I don't want to get stuck halfway.

put it on a stand and spin it plus you can see it a little more clearly. Could be the bearing?   Good luck. Keep us posted

keymaster,
I did think of that but I don't have one. any ideas on a safe makeshift stand?
Keep in mind it weighs over 800#.
I've read a little about this model having bad bearings and that is what I'm afraid of.
Got tight budget going on right now.

thx

Without a stand it could be almost impossible to track down.  If it is only doing it every couple of rotations you would need to crouch down next to the bike and crawl along for quite a while to track it down - if you could.

A lift is handy to have for many things... even just cleaning the bike.  This is the one I have and it's on sale for $101.99  http://www.sears.com/craftsman-motorcycle-atv-jack/p-00950190000P?prdNo=1&blockNo=1&blockType=G1 ; or you can see if anyone you know has a lift.

If you can get it on a lift you can spin the tire endlessly until you track it down.  I would even recommend taking the belt off and spinning it to see if it is really the wheel or wheel bearings.  Could be something on the belt itself, but again that will be hard to determine with the bike on the ground.

dont know of anything you could safely use around the house as a lift.... I do know that here anywyas sometimes you can find some decent ones on Craigslist for 50-100 bucks? Its really nice to have one just for situations like this plus oil changes and a bunch of regular maintenance stuff that make it easier... I have one from Harbor Freight that I love.
Anyways those bikes have been known to have bad bearings in them. If you could narrow it down to that it shouldnt be a tough job to do or expensive.
If I was closer I would give you a hand.....

If not the bearings, is it possible you have wire spokes that need the spokes tightened? Possibly a saddlebag that is poorly positioned and only touching the wire spokes when the bike is with riders weight in saddle? I have put my bearings on my next visit to the shop to be checked, on the front.I could check if I had a lift, but I'll let the shop do the lifting.

The saddle bags were the first thing I thought of because I saw what I thought were rub spots on the belt pully. I removed the bags just to see and made sure the belt guard was not rubbing, unfortunately that wasn't it. I have throw over saddle bags and it looks like the guy just bolted them under the back rest bracket, they are soft bags and he didn't bother getting any kind of frame or spacer to hold them from sagging in when loaded. (Finding lots for my list.)
No spokes they are cut wheels.
I've also started looking around for a lift, even if I don't use it for this problem it sounds like a good investment for cleaning and I see some of them come with wheels so I could move the bike around the garage a lot easier as well.
thx for the help, I appreciate it.

Really? You don't know how to get the bike off the ground? A regular car jack will do with a block of wood between the frame (across the frame) and the jack. Once you get it up have someone slide a couple more pieces (blocks) of wood underneath.

Jimmy, thx for the advice but I will be by myself and I'm not looking to drop an 850# bike on myself. 8^).
My floor jack I use for my cars has about a 3" disk on top and I don't think i would trust it to balance very well.

My first thought was the rear wheel bearing,the Honda VTX's have a similiar issue,the rear wheel has a flange bearing that has failed on a number of the bikes.Not an easy fix either as some machining of the bearing seat is required and addressing the damage that is caused as a result of riding on a broke bearing.

Look for a local group of Vulcan riders or a board devoted to Kawi's, that could be your best bet on finding a solution and or finding someone w/a lift & experience who can do the hands on help locally.
I know a few guys on the vtx board have built their own lifts out of plywood and 2x4's,your car jack would work to do the lifting in this case. I bought a decent lift for less than 60 new at Rileys Auto parts.That was 7 yrs ago tho,prolly more expensive now.
Good luck & hope you git her back in working order!!

I would suggest not riding it until you find out for sure. Unless of course you like gambling with your life...LOL. If the bearing happens to seize up on you it will sling you off the bike and that would be no good. Good luck brother!

I have a cradle that I built using 2x4's that I can put the front tire into then strap the bars. Then I use the hydro car jack and piece of wood to lift my RK (825#). With the front strapped, it can't fall over while lifting or working on it.

.....Jeeeeeeeeez..... get a toothbrush and brush your pulleys with either brake cleaner or similar non-residue alcohol, then just get the clean toothbrush and clean the belt, there will be something sticky there even if you cant see it... I am guessing you dont get out much on this bike...7k?

Its very possible that the belt has gone hard...

If its not a deposit on pulleys or belt - change belt.....

Thank You everyone for your help and advice, I appreciate it.

Jet...I don't ride as much as I would like to but I just bought it earlier this year so I've put about 4k on it in about 4 months.
We have a few more months of good riding weather so I'll definately get things figured out as quickly as I can.

Hey Vulcan.....Then its found a home right?

Oh definately, Aside from whatever this little issue is, I love it.
I've already told my wife I'll be going down to daytona bike week.

I wont be there this Biketoberfest unfortunately...

Well I caved and trailered it to the shop the weekend. Will have to wait and see what the verdict is.
Hopefully nothing to expensive.

Im sure its nothing to major. If its that bearing youll have it back in no time! Good luck!

What was the verdict???

  Don't leave us behind.

Sorry, have been offline for several days, My youngest turned 21 on Sunday so from Friday until this am it is been one long party, including but not limited to.....amusement park, bowling, shooting pool, football, rock climbing, an afternoon at the gun range and of course lots and lots of liquid intake. 8^)

Final verdict is it was the wheel bearing and they had to order it, hopefully will hear from them to day so I can pick it up.
Thanks to all the suggestings and support, I will definately be getting a lift and a book on it so I can start taking care of some of these things myself.

Glad you found the problem. On an outrageously sad note; totally ridiculous to have to "order" a wheel bearing for a 2007 motorcycle. It's not like you have a 46 Knucklehead for God's sake. What's up with that anyway?