Front wheel out of alignment

[redhat]

Not sure if this is in the correct forum...feel free to move it if needed.
Hi, having a bit of a problem with my Honda CBR 250R (MC19) after crashing it a few weeks ago. The front wheel isn't pointing straight while the handlebars themselves are pointing straight.

Now I know for a fact it is not the forks bent (anymore), as I have spent all weekend pulling them apart after seeing this and with a little help - straightening them back to near perfect. They were about 13mil at the most bent part on one, and the other was about 8mil. Put everything back together after changing the oil (+ the 20c mod) and the wheel still isn't pointing straight. :blink:



What are my options here? I feel stuck after fixing the forks. Any help would be appreciated.
Btw, it looked a little worse than this before pulling the forks out to find them both bent.



Here are some pictures to show yall what I am talking about -

As you can see the bars are straight here.
http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/1401/dscf2837.jpg

Top view while the bars are straight.
http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/4817/dscf2838v.jpg
http://img715.imageshack.us/img715/4847/dscf2839x.jpg
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/5840/dscf2845k.jpg
http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/8333/dscf2849t.jpg
http://img580.imageshack.us/img580/5660/dscf2850.jpg


This is a shot directly down the forks, see the bottom black bracket on the right - I think this might be the root of the problem?
http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/7672/dscf2852m.jpg


This is with the wheel straight (as you can see, don't mind the mudguard)
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/4760/dscf2856m.jpg


And this is the bars out of alignment with the wheel pointing straight.
http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/3289/dscf2855p.jpg

[HenryDorsetCase]

couple things to try. (I am assuming you have not bent the frame when you binned it)


sit the thing on a stand or center stand if it has one, with the front wheel pointing straight ahead. do the forks line up if you eyeball it from the side? If not the forks might be twisted in the triple clamps. undo the top clamp bolts, then run it into a wall and tug it straight (brutal but can be effective).

Have you assembled it correctly? is there a long spacer and a short spacer and you've swapped them over then used 90Nm of force to make it all fit? (When I was young and stupid I actually did this....... bloody numbskull.)

its not just an optical illusion because your handlebars or clipons are bent is it? or front subframe.

If once you've pulled it to bits and checked everything, you might need to get it checked. F1 Engineering can do it, not sure where in NZ you are.

[DrunkenMistake]

HDC do you think it could be caused by a kink in one of the forks?,

Push down on the front of the bike holding the front break, so simulate heavy braking and give it some force, do it 5 to 10 times then check if there is fork oil leaking out around the top of the seals, they could be bent, I dont know if this would cause it, but its worth a crack, But check if your triple clamp is still straight, it could be twisted or one of the forks could have traveled a few mm up in their spot.

[celtickiwi]

firstly check and check again that the headstock has not been bent in the crash,look for signs of stressing in the welds,if you want to be really sure take the front end off, place a long pole down through the headstock and with a string line running on the floor in the centre of the bike check the pole is in line with string line,if it isnt you will be pissing into the wind forever more trying to get the wheel lined up.remember 1mm out at the top makes a big difference by the time you get to the bottom of the forks/wheel.if that is all good then you need to slacken every thing off on the front end, wheel,bolts that clamp the forks into yokes top and bottom etc etc.then run a string line down either side of the rear wheel to the front and get the front wheel centred between them then tighten everything up again and IF the forks and frame are straight it should all line up. did the fork tubes slide in to the top and bottom yokes easily after you straightened them or did they take a bit of persuading??????

[FJRider]

What does it look/feel like as you ride it ... ???

[redhat]

Cheers for the replies guys, kind of got it sorted now. Ended up turning the wheel straight and straightening the bars a little instead. Kind of a derp moment but it's sorted I think.

Just got my cast off today so put the bike back together and took it for a ride. Handling and everything feels great, like it did before the crash. The only thing is that the throttle feels a little stiff and I'd say the exhaust sounds different as well... could just be my new helmet not letting in as much noise.

Was thinking I might just be not used to the sound/feel of the bike after a couple months of not riding, I'll see how she goes.

Anyways WOOOOhoooooooooo riding again! :scooter:

[hayd3n]

maybe you have a loose exhaust to?

[riffer]

I wiped out my bike (FZR750R) about seven years ago and the impact was so bad that not only were the forks twisted but also the triple clamps too.

Damon at Cycleworks discovered it for me by putting 2 metre long lengths of 41mm tubing into the triple clamps and seeing what the alignment was like at the end of the tube. That way we were able to straighten them out by gentle heating and twisting.

Didn't help the bike survive when my garage burned to the ground but that's another story people who've been here over 6 years already know.

[gatch]

Cheers for the replies guys, kind of got it sorted now. Ended up turning the wheel straight and straightening the bars a little instead. Kind of a derp moment but it's sorted I think.

Just got my cast off today so put the bike back together and took it for a ride. Handling and everything feels great, like it did before the crash. The only thing is that the throttle feels a little stiff and I'd say the exhaust sounds different as well... could just be my new helmet not letting in as much noise.

Was thinking I might just be not used to the sound/feel of the bike after a couple months of not riding, I'll see how she goes.

Anyways WOOOOhoooooooooo riding again! :scooter:

DURP !

10char..

[Laava]

If everything was straight you would have great difficulty bolting it together and it being out of whack by that much that you could see it. I think you need to very carefully check your bottom yoke for twist damage and the positioning of the clip ons. You should be able to gently slide every thing into place and just nip them up. If you have had to rack the steering and then tighten to keep it straight, I would be very wary. When you are riding along on a dead flat surface can you let go the steering and then gently turn from side to side with shifting your weight?