Bubba Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 (edited) Here's a link to a guy that found his front wheel twisted to one side. They bent it back. Amusing, but it worked.You can see in the first picture that the front triple and wheel don't line up with the rest of the bike.http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=891560 I remember reading that thread and thinking two things right off the bat: 1) Where the hell did they get PERFECTLY STRAIGHT 2x4s?2) It's far more likely that they effectively bent the fork tubes and/or the steering head shaft than the heavily gusseted frame at the head tube. That right there is Redneck Engineering 101. Not dissing all free or cheap home remedies, but riding that bike after they 'fixed it' would scare the hell out'a me!!! As for the OP, that tire wear would make me take a serious look at my bike's history for crash damage. It's not that uncommon for tires to wear unevenly and be slightly more worn on the left side simply due to the crown of the road, but that pattern appears excessive. One of the easiest diagnosis for a bike out of alignment is to let go of the bars while at steady speed and see if the bike tracks straight without needing to use body lean or foot pressure on the pegs. Of course, you must remove any bags or accessories that might significantly influence the bike's center of mass and you must find a road that is as level as possible with little or no crown, and the there can be no crosswind. If you find and fix the problem, you'll be amazed at just how much more easily you can attack cornering--everything just feels right. Edited October 20, 2014 by Bubba Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 Then again being a Brit....too many round a bouts. If he is a Brit or Aussie--his location is shown as Lordstown???--shouldn't the right side of his tire be more worn than the left? They ride on the 'wrong' side of the road, ya know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
max power Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 When you let go of the handlebars does it take off one way or the other?Have you checked the head bearings and the front end? Are the Shock tubes twisted in the triple tree? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scruit Posted October 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 IAs for the OP, that tire wear would make me take a serious look at my bike's history for crash damage. It's not that uncommon for tires to wear unevenly and be slightly more worn on the left side simply due to the crown of the road, but that pattern appears excessive. One of the easiest diagnosis for a bike out of alignment is to let go of the bars while at steady speed and see if the bike tracks straight without needing to use body lean or foot pressure on the pegs. Of course, you must remove any bags or accessories that might significantly influence the bike's center of mass and you must find a road that is as level as possible with little or no crown, and the there can be no crosswind. If you find and fix the problem, you'll be amazed at just how much more easily you can attack cornering--everything just feels right. I have had the bike since new. Only been on it's side once, side bag hit a metal pole at walking speed and fell over sideways into a bush, no damage. If I let go of the bars the steering wobbles side to side slightly like the worlds mildest tank-slapper. Just the bars - not enough to influence the rest of the bike. I'll try the string method as a 4th test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scruit Posted October 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 If he is a Brit or Aussie--his location is shown as Lordstown???--shouldn't the right side of his tire be more worn than the left? They ride on the 'wrong' side of the road, ya know. Born in England. Moved to Ohio. Been here 17 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 In the photos the axle doesn't look exactly straight per the alighment marks. That could just be the camera angle. What tire pressure do you run? The left side should wear a 'little' faster due to roads being crowned, but not that much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 **Slight thread jack** Why do motorcycles still even have any adjustments at the axle? You're never going to it exactly straight. If Buell could design a fixed axle system that used a tensioner for a belt drive, why can't the same be done for a chain drive? Having the tension correct is far more important on a belt than a chain. This is what I miss most from my Buells. The axle was always perfectly straight, and tire changes were simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxus Christ! Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 **Slight thread jack**Why do motorcycles still even have any adjustments at the axle? You're never going to it exactly straight. If Buell could design a fixed axle system that used a tensioner for a belt drive, why can't the same be done for a chain drive? Having the tension correct is far more important on a belt than a chain.This is what I miss most from my Buells. The axle was always perfectly straight, and tire changes were simple.For belt drive it makes sense, but belts and pullies are not chains and sprockets. Adding a tensioner and a 3rd sprocket would increase weight and noise significantly and you'd have a 3rd sprocket to replace PLUS more wear on your chain. It would also probably cause tension issues if you went to a bigger back sprocket because the line of the chain would be at a different spot in the stroke of the tensioner arm...and chains don't need to be nearly as tight as belts because of the engagement depth of the sprockets, and chains need that slack to prevent wear. It would be better if all bikes were just belt drive...nice, quiet, clean, low maintenance belts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 For belt drive it makes sense, but belts and pullies are not chains and sprockets. Adding a tensioner and a 3rd sprocket would increase weight and noise significantly and you'd have a 3rd sprocket to replace PLUS more wear on your chain. It would also probably cause tension issues if you went to a bigger back sprocket because the line of the chain would be at a different spot in the stroke of the tensioner arm...and chains don't need to be nearly as tight as belts because of the engagement depth of the sprockets, and chains need that slack to prevent wear.It would be better if all bikes were just belt drive...nice, quiet, clean, low maintenance belts... Chains stretch over time. Belts don't. All you would need is a small adjustable tensioner sprocket that could be adjusted up and down with a screw to get to the correct chain slack. If you removed the adjustment pieces from the end of the swingarm the weight gain would be minimal if any. Unsprung weight would even be reduced. I doubt chain wear would even be noticeable. The tension on the adjustment sprocket would be a tiny fraction of the tension on either drive sprocket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubba Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 (edited) While you are technically correct, they do wear, thus increasing the distance between links and effectively becoming longer or 'stretching'…. Edited October 20, 2014 by Bubba Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpoppa Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 Chains do not stretch.My chain was 3" longer at the end of last year's WV trip than it was at the beginning. You should have been there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxus Christ! Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 There's a reason Japanese gentlemen with more engineering degrees than you haven't done this, it's probably not a good idea. With patience, a tape measure and an eye for detail you can get a wheel aligned near perfectly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redkow97 Posted October 21, 2014 Report Share Posted October 21, 2014 Just use string to extend the wheel and accentuate whatever angle it's making relative to the chain. Also keep in mind that it's possible, although unlikely, that a loose motor mount would allow the whole engine to be cocked to the side enough that the chain would be a poor alignment guide. But regardless, extending strings 8' behind the bike should show how far off the axle marks are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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