Front wheel change

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Red Line

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So is it true that to change the front wheel, you put it up on center stand, put some hard foam under the headers and jack up the headers to raise the front wheel? Headers and their connection to manafold can take the pressue without defect?
Thanks
 
I wondered the same thing. It seems really sketchy having the weight of the bike supported by the header, even if it's not the full weight.
 
Here is the simple way that I remove the front wheel from the bike. I used a 12 dollar pair of light jackstands from Harbor Freight under each frame rail. I see many guys use the "header trick" but I'm not sure about putting that much weight on them. This way it's literally a "one person" job. Bike on the center stand, place the jackstand close to the frame rail on the first side and push down on the rear section of the bike. Slide the first stand into place. Go to the other side and do the same. Now remove whatever you want from the front end without worry!:tup:

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Red Line said:
So is it true that to change the front wheel, you put it up on center stand, put some hard foam under the headers and jack up the headers to raise the front wheel? Headers and their connection to manafold can take the pressue without defect?
Thanks
Click to expand...

It should work just fine. Just be sure to loosen the axle while the front wheel is still on the ground. Also don't forget that the calipers need to come off so that you can remove the front wheel. And I would use some pieces of wood under the headers to prop it up (4x4 and 2x4 combo should work). And for those concerned about it don't forget that you're no really supporting the whole weight of the bike on the headers. By the way I wouldn't try it with aftermarket headers like my Yosh that are assembled in pieces out of much thinner ss.
 
All seems cool, thanks, I just don't get the part on removing the calipers. I would assume once the axil is out, the front wheel would slide down and the rotors would just slip out of the brake pads like my dirt bike?
 
Red Line said:
I just don't get the part on removing the calipers. I would assume once the axil is out, the front wheel would slide down and the rotors would just slip out of the brake pads like my dirt bike?
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Ummm I think you will find that you cannot remove the front wheel with the calipers in situ. The gap between the calipers is not that large. The manual also requires that the calipers to be removed for front wheel removal.
 
Red Line said:
All seems cool, thanks, I just don't get the part on removing the calipers. I would assume once the axil is out, the front wheel would slide down and the rotors would just slip out of the brake pads like my dirt bike?
Click to expand...



The problem is that the calipers sit very far inward toward the center of the rim, so you cannot remove the rim unless they are gone.

However, here is a trick as it may seem a bit hard to get them out without scratching the rim. When you undo the two bolts holding them in place, bring them outward toward the rim a bit, then twist them toward you. That opens up the gap around the pads and the disc, forcing some of the fluid back up into the master cylinder. That allows the caliper to be rotated out a bit so you don't scratch the rim. Just remember before you take the bike off the center stand to pump the brake lever a few times to get the pads back against the rotor otherwise on your initial squeeze you will have no front brakes.

Also, what you don't realize is how little weight is actually on the front wheel when the bike is on the centerstand. Push on the tail when it is on there and you will see what little it takes to lift the nose. What I do is I build a stack of wood just wide as the headers, I push on the tail and slide the wood under the header with my left foot. Same procedure in reverse to get it back down. Simple as that and it causes no harm at all.

Hope that helps some!
 
Good tips PapaGeno21. You are right about the rims being easy to scratch. Another thing you can do is to is put some tape on the rims so if you do hit them with the calipers (which is very easy to do) it will provide some protection.
 
zip tie the calipers out of the way support under the header my bike sat for almost 3 months with no front end on supported like that no problems
 
I use the center stand and push down on the rear of the bike then slide under the headers a 1 gallon paint can. There really isn't a lot of weight on the headers because on the center stand, there is only about 51 - 53% of the weight of the bike in front of it. This is why it takes so little effort to push the rear down and lift the front. :D
 
If you figure the weight of the bike being ~#500 wet, 50% of that would be #250. I don't think there's that much weight on the front when the bike is on the center stand.

Someone with a #300 bathroom scale needs to take a reading after placing it under the front wheel to test this theory... :tup:
 
GPz1100 said:
If you figure the weight of the bike being ~#500 wet, 50% of that would be #250. I don't think there's that much weight on the front when the bike is on the center stand.

Someone with a #300 bathroom scale needs to take a reading after placing it under the front wheel to test this theory... :tup:
Click to expand...

Wait… since the bike is *balanced* on the center-stand with a ~48/52% back/front ratio, that would mean only ~2-4%? of the bikes weight is acting on the front-end.

Think of the center-stand as a teeter-totter... If the front/back center-stand ratio was exactly 50/50 (no matter how much the bike weighed) it would “float” between the front and rear tire – you could slide your cat’s tail under either tire with no hissing or screaming… :)

My guess is somewhere between 20-30lbs “pressuse” on the bathroom scale at the header – and much less than that when the front tire is removed. In-fact, with the front tire off – that may be enough to change the “balance-bias” to the rear tire...

Good info in this thread - I'll be checking my pad-wear this weekend!
 
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