Hey all, I'm relatively new to the forum so bare with me. My brother picked up a '77 Ironhead Sporty. It was running well but needed wiring, oil pump seals, and the frame needed paint. Anyway, we're in the middle of re-assembly and can't seem to get the rear wheel aligned. The chain looks pretty straight but the tire is closer to the right side of the swing arm than it is to the left. When looking from the back of the bike, it also looks as thought the center of the tire is just to the right of the center of the frame back bone. We have installed 12" shocks to lower the bike also and the tire is rubbing on the right fender strut. All of the stock spacers are in place and, as far as I can tell, in the correct order. Any suggestions?

Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!!!!

 

It is not unusual for the rear wheel to be offset to one side. If it is to stay that way you just have to ensure that the fender mount bolts do not protrude in so far as to contact the tire.

First thing to check is the spacers on each side. For this it is helpful to have the parts catalog 99451-78B, and the Service manual 99484-78.

Secondly, if it is a spoke wheel you can have the spokes adjusted to center the wheel.

 

The problem lies with the wheel. Simply put........ The spoke nipples on the right side of the rim have been run in too far, pulling the rim to the right side of center.

There is only one fix........ Move the rim over to the left. This is done by starting at one place (like the hole for the tube neck) and going around the wheel..... Loosen a right side nipple 1/2 turn, then..... tighten the next nipple (this will be a leftside nipple) 1/2 turn, next nipple loosen, next nipple tighten etc, etc.

You may have to go around another revolution of the wheel, or perhaps several times, depending on how far to the right the rim is. Just be sure to hit each spoke turning it in the correct direction, alternating loosening the right and tightening the left.
This sounds simple, but I can assure you it is very easy to forget where you are in the middle of this exercise. What happens then is you have induced a wobble in the rim.
So it is best done with a clear head and a lock on the beer fridge.
You can unlock the fridge after the rim is pulled back to the left.
pg

 

Great information guys. Thanks. I'll see what I can come up with and keep you posted.

 

Hey PG..
I have the same situation with my 74XLH. I am replacing tins and I can slide my fingers in with a bit of room to spare on right and and less than half that on the left. I can tell that old fender was strong armed into giving up the clearance. Still offset though. Dealing with a 16" set up. How much movement can I expect to retrieve when I reset the spokes?

I have the same situation up front. Have been running on a 100/90-19 with no clearance. Previous owner removed the downstraps from the fender to the lower legs and then twisted everything to fit. Even if centered I have problems. The tire measures a strong 4" inflated. I have 4" only between the mounting hardware at the legs. I really don't want to beat this thing into submission. I plan to run a narrowwer tire but I am not sure I want to replace the 2.5" with a new 2.15" rim. If I do decide to put a new rim in play I think will go to a 21".
Couple of questions.
What is the narrowest tire I can put on a 2.5" rim? I see inflated dimensions varying all over the place. My current tire is a HD/Dunlop.
Do you think an older style tire will fit better? The older tires had that more square profile. Are they even readily available?
If I go to the 21" rim will it fit OK under my stock fender?

Lots of questions I know....

Thanks,
Bucaman

 

Got it backwards. I have room on the left with none on the right.

 

Hi Bucaman........
OK, I am going to just make a wild guess here, but I believe you can expect to have your rim move sideways approximately 1/8 inch for every half turn on the nipples. Just an approximation though. I never measured it when I build a wheel. Sometimes I go too far and have to go back in the other direction.

You will not notice it moving until you get a ways around the wheel.
If the rim runs true now (and you want to keep it that way..... I know you do) just loosen a nipple either a quarter or half turn, your choice, then tighten the next nipple by the same amount. As you loosen a nipple (leftside) it allows the rim to move away from that side and as you tighten a nipple (rightside) it allows the rim to be drawn toward that side. I prefer to use quarter turns when I build a wheel because this allows precise control over what is happening. Going around the 40 spokes a couple of times does not bother me.

By not missing a spoke nipple and loosening and tightening each an equal amount, the rim remains true for the most part.
At the end you may have to touch a nipple or two to get it perfectly aligned, but that's all.

Where I have my greatest trouble is finding myself tightening a nipple when I meant to loosen it, or vise-versa.
So just pay attention to what you are doing.

I would remove the tire and tube to do this and then just mount the wheel back in the frame on the rear. Use the spacers and tighten down the axle nut just like you were going for a ride.
You can rig up a piece of wire to use as an indicator to ride close to the rim edge. This is going to show you the rim coming over closer and closer to the end of the wire.
Mount it off the swing arm or even the shock.

Before you move the rim over though, measure how much you want to move it over to center the rim between the fender brackets.
Also put one drop of oil (Triflow is good, or sewing machine oil. 3 in 1 etc) on each nipple where the spoke screws into the nipple.
This will seep down around the threads and make turning the nipples easier.
Use a good spoke wrench that fits the nipples.
No Cresent wrenches used here!
That covers the rear wheel.

For the front wheel, a 4 inch wide tire is most likely too wide.
Right now I am running a Dunlop Elite 90/90-19 which measures 3-11/16 wide at the wide spot. This leaves a good 1/2 inch clear of both fender braces.
My Dunlop is a rounded profile tire.

Originally these bikes came equipped with 3.25-19 Goodyear tires that had a square profile (my description) Terrible tires! I would not recommend you get such a tire shape at all.

For the rims...... I am using the aluminum rim that came on my bike. This rim was ' made' for the old Goodyear tire, the marketing hype said. The Dunlop fits fine on this rim.

If I were going to change rims, I would buy a 21 inch rim from Bucannan and a Dunlop tire to fit.
In fact, that is exactly what I did with my Dyna's front wheel.
The outside diameter of a 21 inch tire is almost the exact same size as the outside diameter of a 19 inch tire.
The difference is the 19 has a 'tall' sidewall and the 21 inch does not. The fender on the Dyna was no problem at all. In fact, the 21 looks better than the 19.
I believe the fender is mounted to take either size wheel because as we know there are options of 19's or 21's and you cannot be expected to encounter spacing problems with a fender, nor did the factory want to make a fork with fender mounts for a 19 inch, another for a 21 inch, etc. So they compromised. The 19 has greater 'air space' above the tire and the 21 inch fits much better. The pics don't show that clearly but,,,,,,
What do you think?


The 19 inch wheel......


And this is the 21 inch wheel.

Let me know if I can help any or if you have other questions...... pg

 

Thanks PG..
Another question. Can I mount a tire calling for a 2.15" rim max. on my 2.5" rim?
I have people advising that but I am a bit skeptical.

Thanks once again for all the good info. I will let you know how I make out. I laced a few wheels up many years ago...I think I still have the patience for it.

Bucaman

 

Sorry to be a pain in the *** but what size wrench do I use? I tried using a 1/4" wrench to turn the spoke nipples but it was loose. I went to a 7/32 and it wouldn't go on. Then, I went to a 6mm and it was loose also. I don't have a 5mm. I'd hate to round off the corners.Where can I buy a good spoke wrench if necessary?

 

I would mount the tire without a second thought on that wider rim, unless........ It is something like a 2.75-19 or some such smaller than normal tire. A 2.75 I believe I would use the 2.15 rim.
Now, that is what I would do but I am not claiming to be an expert on this by any means.
My old aluminum rims always looked wider than what one would like to see and they were made for the old Goodyear tires that came on the bike, but I have had any different number of Dunlop and Avon on those rims over the years and never had a single problem.

Yes, once you have laced a wheel (or many) it always seems to be something that you want to do yourself and not have someone else do for you.
That's my outlook on it anyway. Wheel building is great therapy! Better than yoga.
pg