Tire rub problem
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3rd Gear
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Missouri
Tire rub problem
I am sure this has been covered, but I am new here & don't know where to look. I have a 94 fxstc with what I think is a fat boy wheels tires and front fender. 130/90/16 up front and140/90/16 in rear. Just got the bike & new to Harley's but my rear tire is rubbing the drive belt, just barely but it bothers me. I bought a clymer manual and aligned the rear wheel this weekend. Buts still touches. Actually someone had it tracking right to try to fix the problem I guess. Question is, what can I do to fix it? Can I space out the rear pulley, or do I have to come up with something else?
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Joined: Feb 2009
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Likes: 53
From: ID Ho
As long as there is clearance on the left side of the belt you can get pulley spacers in 1/16" 1/8" and 1/4". The tire is wider than the stock 130 and the wide *** belt they used until 2000 didnt leave much room.
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Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Bedford UK
I don't know softails, but have used different width tyres in my Glide. Do you mean the tyre is touching the belt, or the belt guard? If it is touching the belt it sounds as if something is wrong with your wheel alignment. If it is touching the guard you can trim the guard away to provide clearance. I would expect a 140 tyre to go in with just enough clearance between tyre and belt - I had 3/16" on my own bike.
Your current tyre is wider than stock, as hog-doc points out. A lot of us use wider tyres, but there are steps to take to ensure suitable clearances are always there.
Your current tyre is wider than stock, as hog-doc points out. A lot of us use wider tyres, but there are steps to take to ensure suitable clearances are always there.
Thread Starter
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3rd Gear
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Missouri
It's touching the belt, not the guard. I am new to Harley,s but I aligned the rear tire like the book said, measuring off the swing arm bolt center on each side. It was misaligned to the right, probably to fix belt rub, but the bike pulled to the left if u let go of the bars. I like the idea of spacing out the pulley, just don't want to create more problems in the process. And I don't really want to replace the tire yet, it's got a little left to give. Replacing a belt sounds like no fun too though! How much belt to tire clearance should I have to be safe? Thanks!
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Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Bedford UK
I would guess about 1/16".
There is a check you can do, to see what your belt clearance is. It may be possible to do this in the bike, but is easier to describe it as if the wheel is out. Imagine looking down the side of the tyre on the pulley side, so that the top edge of the tyre is in line with the bottom edge. If you can see any of the rim round the pulley closest to the tyre, the amount you can see is the clearance you should have with the belt. I hope that makes sense! You can also use a straight-edge of any sort to help do this.
You can measure that using a ruler. When the wheel is back in the bike, adjust the wheel so you have that clearance with the belt.
If you can't see the pulley rim you have negative clearance with the belt! If you use a spacer behind the pulley, to give you some clearance, remember that you are limited by how much clearance you have between the pulley and swingarm, when it is in the bike.
There is a check you can do, to see what your belt clearance is. It may be possible to do this in the bike, but is easier to describe it as if the wheel is out. Imagine looking down the side of the tyre on the pulley side, so that the top edge of the tyre is in line with the bottom edge. If you can see any of the rim round the pulley closest to the tyre, the amount you can see is the clearance you should have with the belt. I hope that makes sense! You can also use a straight-edge of any sort to help do this.
You can measure that using a ruler. When the wheel is back in the bike, adjust the wheel so you have that clearance with the belt.
If you can't see the pulley rim you have negative clearance with the belt! If you use a spacer behind the pulley, to give you some clearance, remember that you are limited by how much clearance you have between the pulley and swingarm, when it is in the bike.
Thread Starter
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3rd Gear
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Missouri
I would guess about 1/16".
There is a check you can do, to see what your belt clearance is. It may be possible to do this in the bike, but is easier to describe it as if the wheel is out. Imagine looking down the side of the tyre on the pulley side, so that the top edge of the tyre is in line with the bottom edge. If you can see any of the rim round the pulley closest to the tyre, the amount you can see is the clearance you should have with the Ubelt. I hope that makes sense! You can also use a straight-edge of any sort to help do this.
You can measure that using a ruler. When the wheel is back in the bike, adjust the wheel so you have that clearance with the belt.
If you can't see the pulley rim you have negative clearance with the belt! If you use a spacer behind the pulley, to give you some clearance, remember that you are limited by how much clearance you have between the pulley and swingarm, when it is in the bike.
There is a check you can do, to see what your belt clearance is. It may be possible to do this in the bike, but is easier to describe it as if the wheel is out. Imagine looking down the side of the tyre on the pulley side, so that the top edge of the tyre is in line with the bottom edge. If you can see any of the rim round the pulley closest to the tyre, the amount you can see is the clearance you should have with the Ubelt. I hope that makes sense! You can also use a straight-edge of any sort to help do this.
You can measure that using a ruler. When the wheel is back in the bike, adjust the wheel so you have that clearance with the belt.
If you can't see the pulley rim you have negative clearance with the belt! If you use a spacer behind the pulley, to give you some clearance, remember that you are limited by how much clearance you have between the pulley and swingarm, when it is in the bike.
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Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Bedford UK
I fitted the wheel and actually used a 3/16" allen key as a 'feeler' guage, to get the clearance with the belt right! I then checked wheel alignment and it was as good as it needed to be.
So while I ran 140s I only ever aligned the wheel like that. Hope that helps answer your question. Almost midnight here, so signing off for now!
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Thread Starter
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3rd Gear
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: Missouri
I had a similar problem on my Glide when running a 140 tyre. I had little clearance with the belt, although they didn't touch. When I did the check I described above I could see 3/16" of the pulley, so that was the clearance I had at the belt.
I fitted the wheel and actually used a 3/16" allen key as a 'feeler' guage, to get the clearance with the belt right! I then checked wheel alignment and it was as good as it needed to be.
So while I ran 140s I only ever aligned the wheel like that. Hope that helps answer your question. Almost midnight here, so signing off for now!
I fitted the wheel and actually used a 3/16" allen key as a 'feeler' guage, to get the clearance with the belt right! I then checked wheel alignment and it was as good as it needed to be.
So while I ran 140s I only ever aligned the wheel like that. Hope that helps answer your question. Almost midnight here, so signing off for now!
I checked out the tire with a straight edge like u said and pulley is inside the tire so the only way this combo ever worked was by misaligning the tire to the right, which is how it was when I first checked the alignment. So I guess the only thing I can do is downsize the tire or try spacing out the pulley so it sticks out beyond the tires width. I would like to try the spacers but I am unsure if that's ok to do, and I don't want to ruin my belt.
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Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 2,005
Likes: 53
From: ID Ho
Thanks a lot for all your help.
I checked out the tire with a straight edge like u said and pulley is inside the tire so the only way this combo ever worked was by misaligning the tire to the right, which is how it was when I first checked the alignment. So I guess the only thing I can do is downsize the tire or try spacing out the pulley so it sticks out beyond the tires width. I would like to try the spacers but I am unsure if that's ok to do, and I don't want to ruin my belt.
I checked out the tire with a straight edge like u said and pulley is inside the tire so the only way this combo ever worked was by misaligning the tire to the right, which is how it was when I first checked the alignment. So I guess the only thing I can do is downsize the tire or try spacing out the pulley so it sticks out beyond the tires width. I would like to try the spacers but I am unsure if that's ok to do, and I don't want to ruin my belt.