After dropping the rear of my fatboy I noticed that the rear wheel is not centered to the fender which is causing the wheel to rub on the inside of the fender when I two-up. Is their a fix for this? The wheel needs to move to the right an 1/8" or so looking at the rear of the bike. The problem that I see is that I can not cut down the spacer on the brake side because it will cause a misalignment of the brake pads and the rotor. that my predicament.
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I'm not familiar with that model but if you have had the wheel out and there are spacers either side make sure they went back in the right sides. I have found that the wheel spacers on the HD's I have worked on have spacers of unequal lengths.
Failing that, if its under warrenty get it back to the dealer, if its not check wheel alignment. If its nothing straight forward like non standard tyres etc., then I would drop the wheel, measure the spacers with a micrometer and if you require say 1/8th to the offside I would make a spacer 1/8 shorter on the offside and a spacer 1/8th longer on the nearside.
Just thinking out loud really.
WB
__________________ Road King 2009 Road King Classic 2007(sold) Nightrain 2004(sold) Triumph Speed Triple 2002(sold)
Sounds like the spacers were put on the wrong sides when you reinstalled the wheel. On my Heritage the left spacer is considerably longer than the right side, not sure if I could even get it to fit in the wrong position.
__________________
They told me during CPO Initiation not to trust the even numbered Chiefs.
Now I can't believe a word I say.
Navychief, that is not possible due to the brake calipers and rotor on the right side of the bike. I really think it came from the factory that way. I am going to go by the harley dealership and ask them what I could do, but I don't expect much help from them.
If all else fails, you may have to do it yourself. Go to my web site under Do-It-Yourself than go to Harley Davidson Wheel AlignmentMade Simple. Decide how far you want to go. Good luck!
LINK: http://motorcyclemetal.com/
Rear wheel and fender on many HD models do NOT line up, the wheel has to be aligned with the swingarm and engine, and then, where ever it falls under the fender, is where it falls.
Did you use the axle adjusters to ensure the tire is aligned and there is proper tension on the final drive belt? Pro-motion makes two great tools for this. One to check proper tension on the final drive (10 pounds) and the second to make sure that both sides of the axle are the same distance a set point on the swingarm.
If it didnt rub before removing the tire, the axle adjustment should be the first thing you check.
I have talked to a few manic mechanics since I posted this thread and they all say that someharley rear wheels are not aligned perfectlyto the center of the fender, that they are offset, course some more than others. They also said that you can have amisalignment of up to 10mm. Thetire itself seems to be aligned correctly with the appropriate tension on the drive belt. I don't see a problem there! The mechanic said I have three choices, do nothing, cut the spacers, but that still doesn't make sense because unless they actuallymachine down the brake assemblyabout 10mm and add spacers between the wheel and the sprocket it won't work, or remove the fender and move the fender braces over 10mm.
Mine wasn't center either which was fine until I installed a 150. Then it would have rubbed the fender. I spaced it further to the right which involved changing spacers and milling down the brake caliper mount to keep it lined up with the rotor. My Fatboy was a 2001 which came stock with the 130 which fit fine.
Rear wheel off center?
