rear tire changing help needed...

[ERM83]

ok...i got a new rear tire, weights, tire irons, the whole nine yards. i CANNOT GET THE LEFT AXLE NUT TO EVEN REMOTELY BUDGE....to the point where i almost lifted the bike off the damned center stand trying to loosen it. do i need a breaker bar?! am i missing something?! i'm so bummed out...it's going to be relatively nice here for the next week, and i was REALLY looking forward to riding....

[cajun31]

wow

may be a stupid question but did you remove the cotter pin from the nut prior to attempting to break the nut loose? Only other thing is maybe someone put Loctite on the nut. If that is the case then put some heat on the nut. Not too much heat but enough to expand things a bit then try to break it loose.

[ERM83]

may be a stupid question but did you remove the cotter pin from the nut prior to attempting to break the nut loose? Only other thing is maybe someone put Loctite on the nut. If that is the case then put some heat on the nut. Not too much heat but enough to expand things a bit then try to break it loose.

i got the pin out, for sure. i tried putting my lighter up to it for about 15 seconds (didn't want it to explode in my hand! ), and it didn't really help. it started raining a bit, so i covered her up, and now i'm just obsessing over this issue! this'll be my first brand-new tire on ol' dottie/both of my XS', and I JUST WANNA BREAK IT IN! i've been taking it WAY easy, because the back tire that's on there...uhhh, let's just say that i've been pushing it a bit, haha. it needed a new rear tire like, THREE MONTHS AGO. i just wanted to ride...went through hell and back with both bikes, and have been taking it easy on the corners.

next up, a new front tire to match, a TKAT fork brace, then i start the surgery on the SF!

[bikerphil]

do i need a breaker bar?

That would be a good idea, rear axle is tightened to over 100 ft/lb.

[mlew]

Move your wrench and breaker bar to the other side of the nut so you push down to loosen instead of lifting the bike. With the wrench on the nut put your foot on it and try a little body weight to break it loose.

[IanDMacDonald]

If it's that tight, try tightening it a little, then go the opposite direction. Never had to use anything but a 1/2" drive, and muscle to get mine off.

Changing mine in the Spring.

[jetmechmarty]

The 100 ft/lb that it's supposed to be secured with won't likely budge with a short wrench. A two to three foot breaker bar should get it easily enough. Over torqued fasteners are a common issue when non mechanical types put wrenches to these old machines. It's unnecessary.

[motoman]

The 100 ft/lb that it's supposed to be secured with won't likely budge with a short wrench. A two to three foot breaker bar should get it easily enough. Over torqued fasteners are a common issue when non mechanical types put wrenches to these old machines. It's unnecessary.

........or "old age and treachery".

[MPittma100]

Air Power

Use a 1/2 inch impact gun..

[ERM83]

got it off, and changed!

thanks for all your help, everyone...they were out of breaker bars at pepboys, so i got a 1-1/16ths wrench, stepped on it, and it came RIGHT off...no problem. got the new tire on (despite busted knuckles), and it feels like a completely different bike...WAY into it. still in the break-in period, and i have a confession...i know better, but i'm obsessed with riding this thing:

ray (diverRAY) is NOT going to be psyched on this, because after i got it running in august, i did EVERYTHING he'd suggested/advised (go through the brakes, etc), but my crazy-ass was riding on a, maybe 15-17 year old, rear tire. it wasn't dry rotted, had pretty worn (NOT COMPLETELY BALD) tread, but i took it REALLY easy, and it was fine. i just hadn't had time to change it!! *AWAITING THE BACKLASH*...

i can't wait to break this thing in, and lean in a bit on some of these Louisville back roads!

[MaximPhil]

thanks for all your help,

i can't wait to break this thing in, and lean in a bit on some of these Louisville back roads!

Hi ERM83,
Be sure to get a couple of heat cycles into that tire before leaning in to those curves. Needs to melt off the release compound from the moulding process. usually 100 miles is recommended.

Phil

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Eric,

No backlash, just glad to hear you've gotten some good tread on there now.

My bike had died/tranny crapped in '92, parked it, sat outside for 8 years with Dunlop Elite II's ($$) on it. Spent a couple of grand rebuilding it in 2000 with big bore kit, etc, and the budget ran low by the time I got around to the tires. The rear still had plenty of tread depth, and so I also used it....surprisingly much longer and more dangerously than what you did. I rode it on my first rally trip from Va. to Alexandria Bay, NY and back, and then out to West Va. and back, and then another trip down to Suches, GA. Upon my Friday arrival, a fellow Xsive checked out my rear tire, and let me know I was running bald! In the twisties when I would do some downgearing, it would break loose a little and slide the rear a little, but I adjusted for it!

So...we got up a little earlier that Saturday, rode into town, got a new Elite II put on it right there in the parking lot, and made it back to camp for breakfast and the day's ride! Like you said, it was a difference of night and day. No more slipping and sliding in the corners! I also took it easy for the first 50 or so miles to help scrub off the release agent, and then it was yanking and banking with the group!

T.C.

[bikerphil]

The tread may be wiped down with mineral spirits to get rid of the release agent, but still be careful.

[skids]

A tire thread! You gotta love it. But hey, there is very little activity on the site these days. I suspect that one could go to the car wash and hit the new tires with detergent. I don't really think that it takes that many miles to scrub-in tires. The thing to remember is that you definitely don't want the contact patch to move over to the side too far onto the virgin zones by taking hard turns. I have heard of people dumping there bikes right in the parking lot of the cycle shop with brand new tires.

[3Phase]

Yeah, be careful with new tires. I put on a new rear tire and wound up on my side under the bike the instant it hit the paint line only eight freakin' feet out of my driveway.