Ducati Monster Forum

This is a weird question maybe... I had meant to query ya'll about this for a while. 
I get the feeling when I am riding along that my 07S2R1000 is slightly tilted to the right when I feel balanced and straight upright.    If I tilt the bike to what feels perfectly straight, my body feels tilted.
Its always kind of felt like that.  I was just wondering if anyone might have some insight if there could be an issue, or if maybe it's just how I sit on it, or if anyone also feels slightly tilted.  The handlebar is not visibly bent, but the bike has tipped over on the right side a couple times in the past. 
I just keep wondering if it may be alignment of the frame, or if thats even a possibility.  Fork issue maybe?...
I was planning to replace the handlebar soon to see if that corrects things.
Appreciate any input. 

riding on a crowned road? 

I have the same feeling - depends on the road, wind and such, but never feels relaxed straight.

Local national SBK champion said he never could get a straight ride and doesn't think much about it.

You can probably guess what my dealer said ........ 'that's normal'  :P

could this encite the right/left side drive?  I've read that right side drive is better, this being one of the reasons.  I'm no engine guru so I'll let others define the "physics" of this.

Wow!  I didn't expect anyone to also have the leaned over feeling. 
It's not that it causes any issues or makes me feel unsafe, it's just a weird sensation. 
My first thought was that it was the crown in the road, but I tested the theory on several roads and decided it was not the crown on the road.   
My worst fear was that ya'll were going to suggest it was my frame being crooked, but my guess is that if this was the case there would be much more severe issues riding.  The leaned over feeling I get is very slight and almost hard to notice, but I'm really OCD about the bike so sometimes it really irritates me that I feel like I'm riding crooked.   

maybe its your equilibrium, [drink]

It could be just you and a weird sensation or it could be a real issue with your bike.  Your handlebars could be bent.  Your front and rear tire could be out of alignment.  There are a few ways to check that.  Your forks themselves could be mis-aligned, which could cause them to bind during compression and rebound.  So if you think this is real issue, not just imagined, do some searching in the tech section for tips and then do some simple checks on your bike. 

I noticed that on my S2R1000 when I'm coasting with hands off the bars I have to lean one way to keep going straight.

Find a friend who riding "straight", switch bikes ?

I have had that feeling, but only on my brother's 1977 XS650. It is very noticeable when I first jump on that bike, but after a few minutes the feeling goes away.

Probably way to simple, but have you looked at your body position.

When i started riding i sometimes felt that way, and realized it had to do with my foot (and as a result body) position.

I had a tendency to want to be able to reach the back brake and would find my right foot on the heel and left on the ball, twisting my body off center on the bike.

Ever been on a Wii balance board?  pretty amazing what it can show you about body position - i have been ski racing for 20 years and it changed my stance on the skis completely.

Or, maybe you could move to Australia - don't the toilets spin the other way down there?

I don't think it's just me since some people here have said similarly.  But I'm not sure this maybe nothing wrong with the bike and instead stemming from slight asymmetry of my riding position or even just my body. 
My handlebar, well only way to see if thats it is get another.  I havent ever checked the fork alignment, so I'll look into how to do that and would appreciate any tips on that.  The rear wheel alignment is a bit different for me, this is my first SSS, but I had ducs with DSS's. 

I'm curious about that "left/right ride" mentioned earlier ...is this really something many people have expressed feeling when riding (enough so to define a phrase like that)?

Which side do you lean to when doing this?   I also get the same feeling and it is to the right.

Since you have a SSS on your bike the mis-alignment between the front and rear wheel that I mentioned earlier is highly unlikely.  That is one of the beauties of the SSS.  A close examination of the handlebars could tell you if they are bent.  The handlebars could also be shifted to the right or left. You could get quantitative and take some measurements if there is no visual sign of being off.  As for the forks.   What can happen, when the front wheel is removed and then replaced the axle is tightened without allowing the forks to self align.  It can be fixed by loosening the pinch bolts and working the forks up and down or riding a short distance, slowly, over some gentle bumps.  After doing that, tighten the bolts back to spec.  I've also had steering head bearings go bad and make the bike feel unbalanced.  Steering became notchy, something you would notice.   

The steering head bearings are something I have wondered about.
I have the tool to tighten the special nut for the steering head bearing so I was going to take a look at that.  I don't feel anything out of the ordinary when I turn the handlebars that would make me think it's the bearing, everything is smooth and has no freeplay, but it's more just a sanity check.
Thanks for the tips on the fork alignment, that sounds really easy and quick.

The way to test for steering head bearing problems is to lift the front of the bike off the ground and feel for play in the bearings or notchyness.  Something else I just thought of to check is the front tire.  Is it wearing unevenly or cupping?  I've had problems with all these possibilities at one time or another on my bikes. 

On my first bike, back when I was young,still good looking and stupid, I had several of these problems at the same time on the same bike.  That bike always felt like it was riding at an angle.  I didn't know how to check the front to rear alignment, and I saw that the front tire was wearing on one side.  But what the hell, there was plenty of tread left on the other side.

(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xl3M7Z4MMeE/TfGxNVpB0_I/AAAAAAAAAgg/wCn6McXPmY4/Picture%2525207.png)

Yes.

In all seriousness, I have nothing to add, except tha ak knows his shit.

most males refer to their bikes as females....... maybe yours has a tilted uterus