Front wheel removal and reinstall

[MP]

I am going to be taking off one front wheel, and reinstalling another front tire and wheel.  Is there a link to proper procedure here somewhere?  I searched, but did not seem to find one. I remember talk about the proper procedure, or there will be problems.
Thanks.
MP

[Bone]

Scroll up the page and click on Shoptalk.
Click on   "Tire Change and Rear Spline Lube ".
There you will find some reading on front and rear wheels.

[DeathWishBikerDude]

The most important thing to remember is to double check your wheel clearance when reinstalling the wheel.
The wheel must be centered between the forks,with the correct clearance so the rotors don't drag against the pads when you tighten down the axle and pinch bolts.
You may need a thin piece of wood to pry between the fork and wheel to adjust the clearance.
Taking the wheel off is a pretty straight forward task.

[R J]

What model and year is the donor bike and what model and year is the recipient bike........

Does make a difference in some cases.

[MP]

I have a 97.  Other is newer.  So has the larger bearings.  But, that is outside, axle is the same size.
MP

[MP]

Got the front tire and wheel replaced.  Followed the Honda service manual.  Tightened left side.  Tightened rs axle nut.  Then, bounced it up and down hard a few times, and tightened the right side clamp bolts.
I get some dragging when spinning by hand.  No hard rubbing.  Seems centered.  Spun by hand, will do 2-4 revolutions before the drag stops the tire.  Does this sound about right, or is it too tight?
I have not ridden it yet.
The used front rotors are real good.  I have only 20,000 miles on my bike.  The 10,000 I put on are on the plains.  Not a lot of braking.  I spread the pads to get them on.  Then needed to squeeze the brake lever several times to get them moved out to the discs.

Am I good to go, or too tight?

Thanks.

MP

[DeathWishBikerDude]

There should be no dragging at all.
Wheel should spin for a while.
Untorque the axle and pinch bolts and try again.
 

[Chrisj CMA]

There should be no dragging at all.
Wheel should spin for a while.
Untorque the axle and pinch bolts and try again.
 

Not so fast here......slight dragging of the pads on the rotors is very normal.  If you torqued  the axle nut to the required 67ft lbs and there are no rotor rivets rubbing on the calipers, then all is fine

[DeathWishBikerDude]

I've had my wheel and tire off quite a few times.
My guess is the rotors will warp and the pads will wear out pretty fast.
The first time I replaced my tire,I had dragging brakes,and made an adjustment using a piece of wood between the forks and tire and have absolutely no rubbing when correctly aligned.
I advised about this before he even started the job.
Do the job right.

[MP]

How do I tell which way to move it?  All the pads seem to be in contact.  I see no gaps anywhere. Do you pry after you have torqued the axle nut?
MP

[DeathWishBikerDude]

Usually one side will drag louder,try moving the tire/wheel slightly outboard.
You'll need everything loosened up,pinch bolts and axle nut.
Make small adjustments,and spin the wheel again.
You'll eventually by trial and error,get a truely correct wheel placement.
Doesn't take much to change the clearance,as were probably only talking thousands of an inch.

[MP]

Thanks all.
I took it for a 5 mile spin at over 85 mph.  I stopped using just the rear brake.  Rotors were at air temp.  No heat at all.
If they were out, they should be generating heat? Right?

Sounds like it should be ready to go??
Thanks.

MP

[DeathWishBikerDude]

After rereading the post,I'm guessing you kept the same pads that went with the old tire/rotors?
The pads and rotors wear together,so you may have had a mismatched wear pattern when installing a different wheel.
Probably should have changed the pads out while you had the wheel off.
I just bought an extra wheel today,so I can have my next tire ready when my front wears out.
I may have to rethink the setup and swap out pads and rotors when going from one wheel/brake setup to another.
The rotors aren't cheap,i'd like to make them last.
Glad your back on the road.

[MP]

Thanks for the ideas Deathwish etc.
I agree.  The old pads are good to go, so I used them.  I also considered that they might need a little wear in time to even out and match up.

MP

[Ricky-D]

I use those cheap organic pads and don't worry about how fast they wear out. Saves the rotors and the last four sets I bought cost me 50 bucks.

What I am commenting here is about all the centering wheel talk and related stuff.

First: I want to say the wheel position cannot change if you do not change any spacers. The wheel (bolts and torques) up tight to the right leg shock lower. This include everything on the axle.

The only part that can move (or change position) is the left lower leg which is held in position with the pinch bolt arrangement at the bottom of the leg. It lock up on the large part of the axle. Note. It is always wise to be sure when re-securring the  left leg it is exactly in the same place on the axle. This will avoid any possible damage to the shock seals and/or shock slider bushings.

Second: Thinking about using the front brake calipers to locate the wheel (or anything) is faulty science since the calipers are a floating type caliper and should be freely able to move in or out adjusting for pad wear or any other reason. They are not locked down solid!

[daytona]

 

[daytona]

Ricky-D is spot on with this!  The manual caused me to visit Mr Jack Daniels saying the R-pinch bolts isn't to be tightened until the forks are collapsed to center the wheel!!!  What can move on the right side after the axle cap bolt is torqued? nothing!! All the alignment has to be done on the left side, which will make a huge difference. The axle end will be flush with fork lower hole, and the rotors will be the same distance from the caliper brackets after all is torqued. My Interstate has all the chrome covers etc which make this a PITA. Get it wrong and everything drags!! 

[daytona]

What am I missing here ? This is Like leaving the the 4 final drive nuts hand tight! until after tightening the axle shaft nut on the rear wheel.

Front Wheel Installation
1.      Lightly grease axle to prevent corrosion and make for easier removal
2.      Roll wheel under the front fender
3.      Insert right side spacer
4.      Grease inside of speedo gear box and insert on the left side being certain that the rotation stop on the speedo gear box is just behind (toward the radiator or rear) the stop on the left fork leg
5.      Lift the wheel with your feet and align
6.      Insert the axle from the left (of the bike) and push it in until it is flush with the outside of the fork leg (top to bottom)
7.      Insert and torque the left (only!!!, not the right) axle pinch bolts (6mm hex) to 16 ft.lb. (22Nm)
8.      Insert and torque the axle bolt on the right side (22mm) to 67 ft.lb. (90Nm)
9.      Do NOT tighten the right axle pinch bolts yet!!! The correct sequence is critical to maintain correct fork alignment!!!  
10.  Gently spread the pads in the calipers with a tire iron or large screwdriver
11.  Install both calipers (12mm) and torque the mounting bolts to 22 ft.lb. (30Nm)
12.  Align the slots in the speedo cable and insert it into the speedo gear box – if the cable won’t go in all the way, gently push on the cable while turning the wheel – insert and gently tighten the phillips screw (careful – it can break easily)
13.  Insert the brake lines into the holders on the fender
14.  Insert the speedo cable into the wire holder on the left caliper
15.  Check the front wheel for relatively free rotation (some brake pad drag)
16.  Pump the front brakes until pressure returns!!!!!!!!!!!
17.  Lower and remove the Cycle Lift
18.  Straddle the bike, apply the front brakes and pump the front forks up and down several times to seat the axle (or you can compress the forks with straps and then tighten the right axle pinch bolts)
19.  Only now do you tighten the right axle pinch bolts to 16 ft.lb. (22Nm)
20.  Insert the chrome caps into the 4 axle pinch bolt heads
21.  Pump the front brakes to be sure they are working!!!

[Warlock]

Sounds like you have it. If it still drags loosen it back up and move the axle a little and re tighten the left pinch bolts. But like Rick stated look at the position of the axle on the left side. Put it back to the original place and used the steps and things should be fine.
David