Hi there, everybody, I got a used DR650 a few months ago, and just changed the tires. I had not had the wheels off before, and now I have some questions for y'all... The previous owner had the rear wheel's chain adjusters set one notch apart. However, the bike went perfectly straight if I took my hands off the grips and coasted. When I put the wheels back on after the tire change, I set the adjusters the same way on both sides, like the manual specifies. Now the bike pulls a little bit to the right when I let go of the bars. It's not way off, but the bike is noticeably reluctant to turn left. So, could the front end be a little tweaked, and the PO deliberately adjusted the rear to compensate? How much difference does one adjuster-increment make? Would I significantly increase wear, torque the countershaft, screw up braking, strain the chain, ...? by having the rear wheel askew by one increment? And lastly, if the front end IS misaligned, can anyone tell me (or point me toward information about) how to fix it? Thanks, any insight would be much appreciated!
The best thing to do IMHO is get an 8' long straight edge (a 2X4 works just lay it down on the floor first to make sure IT isn't warped), a tape measure, and a ruler and put the board up against the tires to make sure they are in line, and then start taking measurements between the wheel, swingarm, and frame until you find where the discrepancy is.
If I align the chain and sprockets on my DL650 the marks on the swingarm are nearly one notch off. The bike handles fine that way. I have not checked the wheel to wheel alignment.
Get a long piece of string to check the alignment. The middle of the string goes through the front wheel spokes, and pull the ends tight behind the rear wheel. This will pull the front tire straight. You can get the alignment perfect this way, since the string will touch the front of the back tire on one side, and the rear of the back tire on the other side, if it's not correctly alligned. Your measurements will always be more accurate than whatever notches are stamped onto the swingarm--take the time to align your tire properly and don't worry about the markings.
Here's another way: http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/howto/string_align_motorcycle_wheels/index.html Any way your do it, checking alignment is going to be much better than going by the swingarm marks.
Thanks for the replies! I will try the string method first, since I don't have a long enough 2x4 or such around. You guys are a big help!
As far as your question about the front wheel being out of alignment-- the front wheel will always go back to where it's supposed to be once you take your hands off the bars (assuming you don't have a negative-trail bike (You don't)), so that's not the issue--it's the back tire.
pretty common to have the chain adjuster marks inaccurate. my ninja is 1.5MM short on the left side and knowing that I just compensate when adjusting the chain The only thing to remember is check the sprocket alinement at the same time. The wheels maybe ok but the sprockets not or vice versa.....
aligning a motorcycle is a two step procedure. first the sprockets are aligned to each other..and then the front wheel is aligned to the back one. the hash marks on the swing arm are rarely exact. and the condition of the cush dampner should be assesed before hand
Thanks, everyone, for all the input! I didn't yet make time to stand the bike up straight and check with the string, but I set the adjusters like they had been before (one notch further back on the right), and rode a little. It went straight, like it had before. So, I expect to find that it's aligned now, and that the adjusters are just a guideline.
+1 On a 06 dr650 I had, the rear cam adjusters were off quite a bit. In addition to using line of sight to judge if back tire was in alignment, I'd rotate rear sprocket and watch teeth engage the chain. If tire was skewed even a little the teeth would favor one side of the chain.
