Fork Alignment Triumph Street | GTAMotorcycle.com

Fork Alignment Triumph Street

stangn99

Well-known member
Hey all,

I noticed with the bike pointing straight (headlights, flyscreen etc), the front wheel is ever so slightly pointing right. I'd say maybe 2-3 degrees.
I'm assuming this is from potholes as the bikes hasn't been down/dropped.

On my old bike, which had been down when I bought it, I loosened all the bolts from the front axle nut up to the triple lower triple. Then I bounced on the top stem nut a few times, which straightened everything out nicely.

On my Street Triple doing the same thing made no difference...as in everything was still very "tight". I'm pretty sure all bolts where finger tight. I couldn't even adjust it by twisting the handlebar because everything was still tight!

Anyone have experience with this on a Street Triple? I Would really appreciate some help.

Thanks!
 
any chance the light, screen etc are off center?
maybe fooling your vision/brain into thinking it's the wheel?
 
any chance the light, screen etc are off center?
maybe fooling your vision/brain into thinking it's the wheel?

I thought about that. I normally don't take my hands off the bars, but last night while riding I let go of both hands.
The bike tracked straight for a few seconds then started shifting right (again..very slight). I did this a few times in the centre lane, left and right - all with the same result.
I did hit a few potholes at the beginning of the season. In retrospect I should have probably waited till roads cleared up/repaired a little.

I'm considering purchasing the Motion Pro ForkTru tool to check for alignment.
 
yeah it's hard to tell eh?

wonder if you found a quiet road
and rode on the wrong side and see how the bike tracks?

it's hard to see sometimes, but all roads are crowned for runoff
but I'm sure you thought of this

btw, rear wheel misalignment can cause track issues too

https://www.motorcyclistonline.com/...le-wheel-alignment-mc-garage-tech-tips#page-6



I won't lie. Now that i've seen it's off I can't un-see it, and it's driving me crazy.

I must have spend about 2 full days making sure the rear was aligned. I did both the string method and straight edge method (using home depot thick square steel bars).
When I have the rear stand on and spin the tire by hand, I can visually see the sprocket in the rear is aligned well with the sprocket in the front. The chain doesn't wiggle/bounce around.

But now I'm wondering if my rear alignment is inaccurate if the front is off by a few degrees.


I guess I could do another test in a big empty parking lot. This is one of those things that's going to bug me until it's 100%.
 
Suggestion - keep the axle bolts tight, axle pinch bolts loose, and loosen off the bolts on the upper and lower triple clamp. Stand in-front with your legs holding the wheel while you try to twist the handlebars.
 
Suggestion - keep the axle bolts tight, axle pinch bolts loose, and loosen off the bolts on the upper and lower triple clamp. Stand in-front with your legs holding the wheel while you try to twist the handlebars.

Hmmm... I thought you're not supposed to loosen the upper clamp bolts because of risk of forks sliding through.

Also, is it necessary to loosen the head stem nut (32mm on my bike)?
 
Support the bike so the weight is off the front end. I'd keep the stem nut as-is (but check the tension/fall-away once complete).

Disclaimer: I'm not a mechanic, and I haven't stayed at a Holiday Inn for a couple of years.
 
Leave the top triple alone. It should be tight.

Loosen the bottom triple pinch bolts.
Loosen the pinch bolts at the bottom of the fork leg that the axle doesn't screw into.
Tighten the axle to spec.
Jounce the front end a couple of times.
Tighten the axle pinch bolts, THEN the bottom triple(not too tight, just snug).

You're done.
 
Alright. So I spent about 30 minutes working on it last night. I have no idea why it seemed to work this time. I did the exact same thing I did last time, with the only difference being a yard waste bag under the front tire.

To my untrained eyes it looks perfectly straight now. Took it for a quick ride (50-70km/hr) and let go of both hands. It seems to track straight now UNLESS I'm somewhat closer to the right track of the lane...I'm going to assume that's just the crown on the road.

Again..not sure I did anything different this time. Left the top triple alone and the stem nut untouched.

Hopefully it stays straight :)

Thanks y'all
 
great video link.

I've always thought mechanical work teaches perseverance. You took the time to go through everything, twice. and it payed off. maybe a bolt wasn't quite loose enough the first time. nice work!
 

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