Riding a motorcycle is probably one of the best feelings one can experience, and all the passionate riders will definitely tell you the same. To be able to experience the riding at its finest and enjoy it to the max, your motorcycle has to be fully in balance (especially if you enjoy riding through curvy roads).
With that being said, if you feel that your motorcycle is off balance or out of alignment, you need to fix that problem. In this article, we will teach you how to do it by yourself.
So how do you fix motorcycle alignment? Release the forks from the triple tree, loosen the axle bolts. Loosen the bolts holding the front guard since the axle and forks will rotate easily to their position. Bounce the front end to align the front wheel. Once you align the front end, tighten all the bolts you previously took off.
The next thing we are going to show is guided step-by-step guidelines. Make sure you have owners manuals to check the correct torque specifications once you have finished the process.
Table of Contents
How to Fix the Alignment
Step 1: Get the Tools and Stabilize the Motorcycle
Get a torque wrench. Stabilize your motorcycle and put it on a rear paddock stand or a motorcycle lift. Take newspapers and place a few sheets underneath the front tire. By doing so, you will let the front wheel rotate later in the process.
Step 2: Loosen the Screws
Loosen the four screws that hold the forks to the lower triple. Most of the time, the screws are located behind the fairing on sportbikes, which makes it complicated because there is little space for you to operate with your hands and tools. Be patient in the process; there is a possibility that you hear cracking sounds while the forks return to their original place in the triple tree.
Here is a great article about How to Check Motorcycle Wheel Alignment, so click on this link if you want to learn more.
You need to loosen these screws one side at a time, release every screw approximately half to 1 turn each because if you loosen one off entirely, there is a possibility that you break the triple tree clamp area since it puts a lot of pressure on the other screw that holds the forks tightly in the clamp. When you start tightening them up, you need to tighten every screw half to one turn before tightening them fully.
Step 3: Loosen the Front Axle Bolt
You will have to loosen the axle bolts and do it by loosening one side at a time. Make sure to release every bolt approximately half to 1 turn each. Loosening one bolt off completely can lead to breaking the axle clamping area because it puts a lot of pressure on the other bolt holding the axle in the clamp tightly. When you start tightening them up, you need to tighten every bolt half to one turn before you tighten them fully.
Tip: Use your owner’s manual to see your motorcycle specifics and loosen the front axle bolt.
Step 4: Assembling Typical Front Axle
Loosen the bolts that hold the front guard to the forks. If you skip this step, the axle and forks won’t rotate back to their position easily. You may have difficulty removing some screws since the forks are twisted in the triple trees, which causes misalignment.
Sit on your motorcycle. Push your motorcycle with your legs to roll forward a little bit and press the brakes hard, so you stop your motorcycle. The front wheel will rotate much easier because of the newspaper placed underneath it, and it won’t have so much drag as it would have on the concrete floor.
Another choice is to press the front brakes and bounce the front end hard enough a couple of times. By doing so, you let the front wheel, fork, and rotor assembly and re-align.
Step 5: Align the Wheel
Straighten the handlebars, stand in front of your motorcycle, look at your front wheel, and see where it is positioned. Tighten everything as it was if the wheel is straight. If the wheel is not straight, you will need to align it a little more.
Tip: I do it by grabbing the wheel and placing it between my thighs, holding the handlebar, and shifting the wheel back straight. This is a very useful method; you just need to be careful not to move it entirely in the other way.
Step 6: Straighten the Fork (Additional Step Not Always Required)
After all the previous processes of moving the wheel around, rolling forward, bouncing, and using the brake as help, the wheel should be aligned. If you still have trouble adjusting the wheel, it could point out that the forks have been bent. You don’t need to be worried about it if that’s the case. Straightening the forks costs around 100$. The worst case that can be is that your triple tree has been bent.
Step 7: Tighten the Screws,Bolts, Axle, and Triple Tree
Once you have finished, you need to tighten all the loose ends. Screw all bolts and screws. Make sure to torque the axle and tighten the pinch bolts as specified in factory specifications. Return the guard. The last thing to do is to tighten the triple tree screws up.
Note: If they are tightened too much or incorrectly torqued, they may fall out over time, and they can even lead to the fork assembly to bind. If that happens, your fork won’t extend and retract correctly.
Front Wheel out of Alignment with Handlebars
Many riders have experienced this kind of issue. Even a simple drop while standing still can cause this kind of problem. Since dropping a motorcycle while standing still is a far better scenario than falling from your bike while riding, it can also cause your front wheel to go out of alignment, although it can be hard to notice it firsthand.
It won’t affect much on your bike’s behavior since the front wheel is always positioned straight while you ride. The only thing you may experience is a strange feeling on your steering wheel, which depends on how severe the misalignment is.
Here is a nice video that shows you How to Check Your Wheel Alignment:
Conclusion
A lot of factors can influence your riding experience. Alignment is one of them. If you have ever ridden a motorcycle that wasn’t 100% aligned, you have experienced that strange feeling in your hands, especially at a higher speed. The worst thing is that this not only interrupts your ride enjoying but also affects your riding safety. That is why you need to react as soon as you notice that there is something wrong with your alignment.
We hope that this article has helped you with fixing your problem. If you have any other questions, feel free to read another motorcycle article.