Front wheel removal

[red lion]

2001 Rosso Mandello.  I loosened the pinch bolts on the front wheel.Then began to remove the axle but the whole axle turned. Is the axle threaded on the left side of the bike?

 

 

[docc]

2 minutes ago, red lion said:

2001 Rosso Mandello.  I loosened the pinch bolts on the front wheel.Then began to remove the axle but the whole axle turned. Is the axle threaded on the left side of the bike?

 

 

Some early axles thread into the left fork leg, others are "nutted" on the left fork.

Yours?

[red lion]

There is no nut on my axle so it must be threaded.  Thanks Doc.

[activpop]

I have an axle removing tool with various sizes for big allen sizes. Haven't done my front tire yet so i don't have it in my head what size the allen is, but would this work?

https://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/removing-female-hex-on-an-axle/

[footgoose]

any socket that fits will work for removal. You'll need that socket and a torque wrench to put it back correctly. You'll want a torque wrench for many tasks on the bike, especially front end work. Money well spent.

[activpop]

Agree. I just thought that was a nifty way to MacGyver it if you didn't have the right allen...if it was the right size. I'm set on torque wrenches, the only way to go. I wish I had my old Craftsmen torque wrench from the 70's. Would like to see how accurate it was compared to todays preset and digital ones. Lent it out and never got it back.😞

[footgoose]

Craftsman still have old style clickers. I bought two new ones a couple years back. They’re great. 

[activpop]

8 hours ago, footgoose said:

Craftsman still have old style clickers. I bought two new ones a couple years back. They’re great. 

I'm talking about the old style with the pointer on a graduated gauge...remember them?

[guzziart]

Yeah, I had Craftsman beam types for decades and then gave them away decade ago for click type, it began too get difficult focusing on the reading & too bulky.  FWIW, brag, brag, brag, I have a genuine AC Sparkplug ratcheting flex head click type 3/8dr. torque wrench I bought in the '70's for my short stint as an A & P mechanic in general aviation.  My other click type ratchet heads are:  Proto 1/2"dr.ftlb, Precision Instruments 3/8"dr.ftlb, Snap-on 3/8"  dr.inlb.   My Precision Instruments TW looks exactly like a Snap On but for a 1/3 to half the price and it is a flex head too.

There was a time where I used to think I had the "feel" and most of the time I didn't need the use of a TW, but not anymore since arthritis and other ailments.  I see HF is selling some pretty fancy looking TW's, I wonder if they're as accurate as they are good lookin'.  Also, at this stage in my life, I don't see myself going for one of those digital jobs either.

Art

[GuzziMoto]

16 minutes ago, activpop said:

I'm talking about the old style with the pointer on a graduated gauge...remember them?

I have two different old beam style torque wrenches, the ones with the pointers are typically called beam style torque wrenches because they use the flex of the wrench beam compared to a reference to gauge torque. One is a classic beam style, with the pointer (probably like yours). The other uses an interesting setup, possibly called a split beam torque wrench. It has a two piece beam in something of a scissor arrangement where instead of a pointer it has a sliding scale where it scissors. I don't think it is any better, but it is interesting.

While I have two beam style torque wrenches, I rarely use them. Occasionally they are the right torque wrench for the job, but usually a clicker or digital torque wrench is the right torque wrench for the job. Beam style torque wrenches have a couple advantages, including they generally keep their calibration where as a clicker or digital style can loose its calibration over time.

But for general work, like installing a wheel, the clicker style or digital torque wrench is far easier to use and get the right torque value. It is hard to apply the required torque using a beam style wrench AND look at the reading while doing so. Far easier to just apply force until it clicks or beeps. I have had to have a second person when using a beam style torque wrench to watch the reading and tell me when I hit the required torque. Much easier to just muscle it until it clicks.

[footgoose]

2 hours ago, activpop said:

I'm talking about the old style with the pointer on a graduated gauge...remember them?

Yes! I have one with a battery and a little light.

[guzziart]

5 minutes ago, footgoose said:

Yes! I have one with a battery and a little light.

Apparently, you got the fancy upgrade model!

[activpop]

Well my spark plug trick won't work on the front axle of my V11...too big. I have the 14 mm allen it needs though. Won't have time to put the tires on until after Christmas. Hoping for some sunny days to heat my tires up.

[cash1000]

On 12/14/2022 at 2:23 PM, docc said:

Some early axles thread into the left fork leg, others are "nutted" on the left fork.

Yours?

Yes RM front axles are threaded. Tool kit should contain a short length of allen key you can use with a spanner to undo axle