Yesterday I found a screw in the front tire. Removed the wheel took it to the local indy, and had the tube replaced. When I remounted it It looks like there is too much space on the right side of the axel. The wheel tracks true, but there is this gap between the right spacer and the right fork. I know that the spacer is in the correct location. Does this look normal? If not what may have gone wrong.

 

That is normal.
There is a shoulder on the axle holding that spacer in place.

 

Thanks THC. Neither the spacer nor the wheel move laterally. It spins freely, and test rides good. I just don't remember it looking like that when I took it off.

 

It probably wasn't like that. First you need to place a 7/16in drill bit in the hole in the front axle before tightening the pinch bolts on the right fork leg.

Then tighten the axle nut on the left side until secure, then the pinch bolt on the left side.

If you did this I couldn't tell from the picture but it looks like the axle is not installed correctly.

Remember if there are tapers on the spacers, they go against the bearing.

 

Actually mine looks exactly like that.
What does yours look like?

There are 2 ways to do it.
1) Tighten pinch bolts, tighten axle nut, loosen pinch bolts then re-tighten them when the forks decide where they want to be.

2) Insert a screwdriver into hole on right side of axle (or anything else that will fit into the hole that you can hold onto to keep the axle from turning), tighten axle nut, tighten pinch bolts.

I don't know why you use a drill bit as it seems to be a very poor tool for this application.

By the way the spacers are more accurately describes as having a chamfer not a taper.

 

Because that's what is says to do in the factory service manual?

 

I'm gonna have to check mine as I find it hard to believe that they would tell me to do something that silly.

Grabbing a drill bit by the sharp parts and using it to hold the axle in place seems incredibly silly to me.

 

FWIW i just checked my service manual and it said nothing about a drill bit.

It told me to use the first procedure I described in post #5.

I wonder when they changed their procedure.

 

The method described me is in my 1985 HD manual.

So I would ***-u-me that the procedure was around in 1985!

 

Double post, WiFi seems to be on the blink tonight because of severe thunderstorms in area.