stiff steering on 96rt

[plpklt@xxxxxxx]

I have a 96rt that I bought new, always loved the bike.? I also recently bought a 2006 R12GS which steers much lighter and even more nibble.?? Infact it was so light steering I had to adapt to it.? Now when I go back to the RT? it handles like a mac truck,? Much more work to coax thru any turn and even rolling it around the garage you can tell a really big difference.

My question is with almost 85K miles on it,? could it be in the front ball joint or steering head bearing set?? on the lift the front wheel seems stiffer to turn from side to side,? no notching or general looseness but just offers more resistance than I would expect.

The tires are not new but I even inflated them to thier upper limits and the bikes steers somewhat better but still is truck like.? I just think it is more than the difference between an RT and a GS.

It is almost like the grease in the ball joint has gotten supper stiff.? the rubber boot is intack and there is no sign the grease has leaked out like when a CVC joint goes bad.

Thanks for any and all advice.

paige
Florida...