So, first post. I've had my Vulcan about 3 months. It's been turned into a bobber style bike. Ive always had to steer just a tick to the left to cruise straight. I have tried several times to align the forks thinking that was the source. But I noticed today that the wheel is not centered in the forks. Could this be my issue. Are these wheels normally dead center? What would cause it to be off center? Bushing, spacers, bearings? Anyone got any ideas?
How far off center? A photo would help.
Isn't there a clamp on one fork that holds the non threaded part of the axle...is the wheel more towards that than the nut side?
Again, a photo would help. Can the wheel be off center and not touch the fender?
I think the spacers Spockster pointed out are not interchangeable, one rides between the wheel bearings.
The axle on the right side has a hole through it near the end. This hole should be very close to the part on the fork that clamps that end of the axle. Like 1/16".
If it's sticking out more than that, or the hole is covered, something is definitely wrong...
Thanks guys. I'll get a pic tomorrow. But to answer a few of your questions. It is definitely closer to the fender on one side. Barely able to fit a finger between the tire and fender. And the axle appears to be correct in the space mentioned. Thinking it might be something with the spacers/speedo. Thinking of pulling it apart this weekend. Its not a terrible pull but enough that you absolutely could not let go of the bars even for a second.
Another thing that seems odd. When sitting still on the bike, if I slowly turn the bars to the left it's about the same resistance until full lock. If I do it to the right it gets to a point and just falls right without any resistance or imput required
Different resistance in bar direction could mean the steering head bearings are bad. However you need to make sure it's not just the clutch cable causing the resistance.
It's also possible the bike was in a wreck and has damage to the front end. Sounds like something is EF'd up there.
Are the brakes and/or rotors worn unevenly? You can see the wheel is off without the tape line against it. I’m not a mechanic but would assume a bent axle would have some shimmy in it. Is that left fork flared out a touch? Or is that an optical illusion??
Hmmm, didn't even notice the fork. But it does appear out. I'll have to look closer when I get back home. No shimmy though. And believe it or not everything is wearing evenly on the brakes.
Maybe even 3/8 to 1/2" or 1.5cm. I need to go look at mine, will do that today.
One thing is to be sure the rotors are both equal distance from the wheel. What i mean is, if both sides aren't built/designed symmetrically then a different measuring point must be used. I seem to recall it being unequal from side to side when I laid it down to change the tire, could be wrong, that's was 5 yrs ago.
I tried gauging off the bolt bosses on the forks, but I think the sight angles are different in the pics.
Looks like the inner brake pads are really thin, I wonder if the wear is angled. And the tire pattern looks equal, have you put any miles on it?
Look at the top of the forks, where the caps are. Are they an equal amount above the triple tree? Not sure that could do it, but it's a spot to look at, have seen a few bikes that were really unequal there.
Will throw a tape measure on mine. You have the end of the tape on the flat part of the wheel bead, or the very edge of the wheel where it's rounded?
I'm not an alignment specialist, and the pictures seem to have a little fish-eye distortion, but in the long shot it looks like the tire isn't just offset, but is non-parallel to the forks. Is it possible that one of the fork tubes shifted upward in the triple clamp?
Might be worth checking the distance of the brake rotor to the fork at the axle and at the apex of the rotor's arc, just to see if there's a difference there. Putting a ruler across the span of the rotor at the axle will give you a solid surface to measure to.
There's a spacer between the fork and the bearing seal on the right side of the bike (opposite side from the speedometer linkage) but I don't think it can really be installed in such a way that it would move the tire laterally.
I'm not an alignment specialist, and the pictures seem to have a little fish-eye distortion, but in the long shot it looks like the tire isn't just offset, but is non-parallel to the forks. Is it possible that one of the fork tubes shifted upward in the triple clamp?
Not sure what to tell you here. Went out and measured the wheel on my project bike, which right now doesn't have brake calipers or a fender on it. Using your measuring points, mine is 1-1/2 on the right side and 1-3/8 on the left.
Granted I just slapped the wheel on to move it, so can't say for sure that the wheel is supposed to be perfectly centered.
What you do need to measure is how far out of line the front tire is from the rear wheel. If the forks are slightly tweaked, it would cause you to hold the bars off center to go straight.
I'd also take the wheel off and check if the forks are perfectly parallel. (They should be)
So. More measurements. The rotor is the same distance from the wheel spokes on the left and right. Approximately 2& 3/16". The forks measure the same length from end to end, and every other in between measurement I could come up with to check. It absolutely appears that something within the wheel/axle/bearing/washer/spacer must be off. Im not sure that this could cause the need to counter steer. You guys tell me, could the wheel being off center be the cause by itself. If I can find time before this weekend I am going to pull the front wheel and go through everything. If not before this weekend I know my plans this weekend for sure. Having fun with my little bobber, just want to get this last mechanical thing straightened out.....see what I did there. Lol. Again I appreciate all suggestions and all the help. Keep em coming.
Oh and as far as wear. I've only got 400 miles or so. Had to give her some love when I first got her to get her on the road. So far no real tire wear to speak of and the pads appear to be even and wearing flat
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