The number of required modes to provide accurate force information in a truncated model of a flexible structure is investigated. In the case of modal truncation of a distributed parameter system, the difference in convergence rates between displacements and forces is discussed. The residual flexibility. a term from past literature, is used to recapture some of the lost force information in a truncated model. This paper presents numerical and experimental results of a study where the residual flexibility is used in conjunction with a Kalman filter so that accurate force information may be obtained from a small set of displacement measurements wish a reduced-order model. The motivation for this paper is to be able to obtain accurate information about unmeasurable dynamic reaction forces in a rotating machine for diagnostic and control purposes.