Bent Rim
Thread Starter
|
Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 1,342
Likes: 8
From: Milwaukee, WI
Bent Rim
Went to the dealer to get a new front tire put on. As the mechanic wheeled my bike onto the lift, he said it looked like the front rim was bent. It looked like there was a sort of wave in one spot, but nothing that looked unusual. After the new tire was put on and balanced and back on the front end, he called me over and showed me that a few spokes were loose too.
The mechanic tightened the loose spokes up and said that I need to either replace the rim or the whole wheel. He said with the bent rim the front end could wobble and possibly collapse on me while driving. He said I should limit my driving to only in the city and no highway driving. Funny thing is I have a 3 day, 800 mile trip coming up in a week.
Not sure if this is true or just a scare tactic by the mechanic to get business?
The roads here in SE Wisconsin are not in the best of shape so I'm sure I could have hit a pot hole or something. I've never had wobbles on the bike and I just got back from a 800 mile trip 2 weeks ago and the bike was fine.
Any advice you guys can give me? Should I back out of my trip this weekend and get it fixed immediately or is it something I can let go?
The mechanic tightened the loose spokes up and said that I need to either replace the rim or the whole wheel. He said with the bent rim the front end could wobble and possibly collapse on me while driving. He said I should limit my driving to only in the city and no highway driving. Funny thing is I have a 3 day, 800 mile trip coming up in a week.
Not sure if this is true or just a scare tactic by the mechanic to get business?
The roads here in SE Wisconsin are not in the best of shape so I'm sure I could have hit a pot hole or something. I've never had wobbles on the bike and I just got back from a 800 mile trip 2 weeks ago and the bike was fine.
Any advice you guys can give me? Should I back out of my trip this weekend and get it fixed immediately or is it something I can let go?
Club Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 16,320
Likes: 306
From: Boynton Beach, FloriDuh
I don't like giving advice on things like this without erring on the side of caution. I can't see how bad it's really bent. So the safe answer is to have the hoop (rim) straightened or replaced. There should be no reason to replace the whole wheel.
I'd start calling around to some local indy shops and see if you can't find someone that can true your existing wheel or re-hoop it.
I'd start calling around to some local indy shops and see if you can't find someone that can true your existing wheel or re-hoop it.
Thread Starter
|
Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2011
Posts: 1,342
Likes: 8
From: Milwaukee, WI
Just put the bike on the jack to spin the front wheel. The right side of the rim is fine and the left is where you can see just a slight wave. If it wasn't for the mechanic bringing this up, I never would have known. No wobbles and just looking at the wheel without spinning it I could not even see a dent.
Club Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 16,320
Likes: 306
From: Boynton Beach, FloriDuh
Just put the bike on the jack to spin the front wheel. The right side of the rim is fine and the left is where you can see just a slight wave. If it wasn't for the mechanic bringing this up, I never would have known. No wobbles and just looking at the wheel without spinning it I could not even see a dent.
Road Warrior
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 1,948
Likes: 4
From: Ottawa, Ontario
Yep. It's not like the thing is going to collapse right under you. I'd just keep a close eye on it during your breaks/stops.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Iron lHorse
General Harley Davidson Chat
43
Jan 2, 2016 07:40 AM
