How-To: Front Wheel Removal & Installation

[Spidey]

This HOW-TO applies to post-20__ monsters with 25mm front axles.  Earlier models have 20mm or even 17mm solid axles.  Most of the specifics are the same, with only a few differences.  Here’s a summary of the posts to follow.  If you have any corrections, please PM me. 

STARTING OFF

FRONT WHEEL REMOVAL

1.   Place bike on rear stand
2.   Loosen and remove brake caliper bolts. 
3.   Remove the brake calipers. 
4.   Loosen the front axle bolt on the left side of the bike with 28mm socket. 
5.   Place bike on front stand. 
6.   Take off the axle nut.   
7.   Loosen pinch bolts. 
8.   Try to push the axle through with your hand or finger.  Then realize it won’t work.   
9.   Use a drift to remove axle.   
10.    Place axle and spacers on towel. 
11.   Be careful with the front wheel. 

FRONT WHEEL INSTALLATION

1.   Grease up the front axle. 
2.   Check which direction the wheel goes. 
3.   Begin to reinstall the front axle. 
4.   Place wheel with the spacer on the left side in position to reinstall. 
5.    Push the axle through to the other side. 
6.   Clean off excess grease. 
7.   Grease the threads on the axle. 
8.   Position the axle correctly. 
9.    Secure axle in position. 
10.   Tighten the axle nut (keeping the notches aligned if your forks require it). 
11.   Torque the axle nut to 63 NM. 
12.   Prepare to re-install brake calipers. 
13.   Reinstall brake calipers. 
14.   Grease the threads of the brake caliper bolts. 
15.   Tighten brake caliper bolts with 8mm hex socket or allen wrench.  I use my nifty mini-socket and extension for this (not pictured).
16.   Torque brake caliper bolts to 42 NM. 
17.   IMPORTANT:  CHECK AND/OR CLEAN YOUR ROTORS. 
18.   Pump your brakes. 
19.   Seat the axle. 
20.   Test the wheel spin and brake drag.   
21.   Tighten the pinch bolts in sequence using the 12mm socket. 
22.   Torque the pinch bolts to _____.   Safety wire the bolts if they’re drilled for it.
23.   At this point, I like to check wheelspin again.  But I’m anal about that. 
24.   Take the bike off the front stand and the rear stand.
25.   Check everything over.

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STARTING OFF

First, you’ll want to be sure you have the right tools.  You can take off the front wheel with minimal tools.   Here’s what you’ll need:
Stands.  A rear stand, and one of two types of front stand:  pin stand (right) or an under-the-forks stand (left).   Or if you have another secure way to suspending the front end off the ground, great!



Other necessary tools:
•   Torque wrench
•   28 mm socket (axle nut)
•   12 mm socket (pinch bolts)
•   8 mm allen or hex socket (brake caliper bolts)
•   Socket wrench
•   Silicon grease
•   Something to use to bang out the axle (in the pic below, it’s a screwdriver)
•   Something to hit the screwdriver with—a board, a hammer, a rubber mallet, a brick
•   A screwdriver (pictured), or something to hold the axle notches holes in place.  You’ll see what I mean later.   I often use a 5.5mm allen wrench.



Other nice tools to have.  Not necessary, but good to have around.

•   Mini-socket wrench with extension (for quickly removing bolts)
•   Zip-ties (for brake calipers)
•   Large flathead screwdriver (to spread brake pads)
•   18mm socket with socket extension (as a drift instead of screwdriver)
•   Rubber mallet (to bang stuff)
•   Breaker bar (for axle)
•   Cutters (to cut off the zipties)
•   Latex gloves (cuz you’re probably kinky like that)

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FRONT WHEEL REMOVAL

1.   Place bike on rear stand



2.   Loosen and remove brake caliper bolts.  Use the 8mm hex socket or an 8mm allen wrench.  It’s true that you don’t have to take the brakes off to take the front wheel off.  But it’s a huge pain in the butt trying to reinstall the front wheel  if you don’t.   



TIP:  Once I get the caliper bolts loose, I like to use my mini-socket wrench with an extension to get the bolts out completely.  It’s easier to use and much speedier than a normal socket wrench.



TIP:  Place all the bolts on a paper towel and keep them organized.  You don’t want to have to scour the floor for them later.  It’ll keep them from picking up muck as well .  I put grease on all my bolts, so they’re a bit messy if I don’t put them on a towel or somewhere clean.

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3.   Remove the brake calipers.  Once the calipers bolts are removed, the brake calipers might slide down the rotor a bit (see below).  Don’t worry.  Now, try to take them off the rotor.  If they make contact with the outer part of the wheel, twist them a bit.  They should come off smoothly.   

NOTE:  DO NOT TOUCH THE BRAKE LEVER WHILE THE CALIPERS ARE OFF THE BIKE.



TIP:  Do not leave your brake calipers hanging on the lines.  It’s not good for them.  I like to use two zip-ties and attach both calipers to the frame (see below).



TIP:  Put a Post-It or something on the brake lever so that you don’t touch it while the calipers are off.  But don’t worry if you do.  It’s an easy fix (see Front Wheel Installation No. __).

4.   Take the 28mm socket and loosen the front axle bolt on the left side of the bike.  You don’t need to secure the right side at all.  I find the breaker bar makes this task really easy (and I’ve got one lying around).  If all you have is a socket wrench, use that.  A 28mm wrench or adjustable wrench can be used, but they’re not ideal. 

NOTE:  DO NOT USE A TORQUE WRENCH TO LOOSEN THE AXLE.

Axle nut.



Loosen it.

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5.   Place bike on front stand.  If you want, you can do this before you loosen the axle nut or take off the calipers.  Doesn’t really matter.



NOTE:  I almost always prefer to use a pin-stand.  However, for axle removal, I like the under-the-forks stand.  The pin stand has a habit of getting in the way when I’m trying to take the axle off.  For those of you who don’t get how a pin stand works, check out the pictures below.  It fits into a hole under the lower triple clamp.  The picture does not show the Ducati adaptor for the pitbill, which makes the pin fit the hole better.  A pin stand is more secure and it allows you work on the forks because the weight of the front end of the bike is going through the steering stem, not the suspension.





TIP:  You don’t need to spring for a front stand.  You can suspend the front end of the bike from the rafters with tie downs, or even from a ladder over the bike.  There are a million shade tree mechanic solutions to get around needing to purchase a front stand.

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6.   Take off the axle nut.   You should be able to see the threads of the axle.  It’ll look something like this. 



7.   Loosen pinch bolts.  Take the 12mm socket and loosen the fork pinch bolts.  There are two on the bottom of each fork leg.

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8.   Try to push the axle through with your hand or finger.  Then realize it won’t work.   



Contemplate getting a BFH (big f’n hammer) and beating the hell out of it.  Don’t do it.  Settle for a rubber mallet instead.  Strike the axle with the mallet until it’s flush with the fork leg. 



You’ll see some of the axle come out the right side, though not quite as much as in the photo below.



NOTE:  If the axle does not move, you probably have one of three problems:  the pinch bolts aren’t loose, the axle is binding in the fork leg on the other side or the axle is bent.  My solution:  check that the pinch bolts are loose and then keep hitting the axle.  Seriously.  Many times, people won’t grease the right side of the axle and it will bind in the fork leg.  It just takes a rubber mallet and some pent up anger and it’ll move.  Besides, it fun to hit stuff. 

9.    Use a drift to remove axle.   At this point, the axle is flush with the fork leg, but it won’t budge.  You need to get something to drive the axle through.  This requires (a) something that acts like a drift and (b) something to strike it with.  For (b), you can hit the drift with a rubber mallet, or a board or a brick or your significant other’s favorite cookware or the neighbor’s cat.  Whatever floats your boat.  For a drift or (a), you can use a bunch of different tools.  Some people use the plastic back end of a screwdriver.  I did that for a while, but I’ve found a better tool:  a Craftsman 18mm socket turned backward with a socket extension.   Like this--



If you look at the picture below, you can see that the socket is about the same diameter as the axle. 



Just stick the extension on the socket, hold the socket flush against the axle and hammer away.  Perfect!

NOTE:  Be careful what you choose to use as a drift if you have a hollow front axle (i.e. a later model monster).  You don’t want anything wedge-shaped because it will cause the axle--which is fairly soft metal--to flare.  The ideal drift is something that doesn’t fit inside the axle, but just rests right on the edges of the hollow cylinder. 

TIP:  If you can support the wheel underneath to take some of the weight off, the axle will come out more smoothly.

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10.    Place axle and spacers on towel.  Remember the towel to keep stuff neat.  Put the axle, the axle nut and the spacer there.  In case you forget later, the spacer and the axle nut go on the left side. 

NOTE:   I’m not certain what the spacers look like for older monsters.  Just be sure to keep track of where the spacer(s) goes on the axle.  It often helps to lay it out on the towel in the same order you’d find it on the bike.



11.   Be careful with the front wheel.  Make sure you don’t get grease on the rotors.  Don’t scratch or bend the rotors.  Don’t lay the front wheel down flat on the floor without protecting them.  If you’ve got a clean towel, lay the wheel on that and cover the other rotor.  I don’t like propping the wheels up, because it’s too easy for them to roll off or get knocked over.

Congrats, you’ve taken off the front wheel. 

[Spidey]

FRONT WHEEL INSTALLATION
   
Installation of the front wheel is a bit more exact than removal.  Be patient, be careful with where you get grease, and be prepared to repeat the process.  You can do it perfectly the first time and still have the front axle bind. 

1.   Grease up the front axle.  First clean off any gunk or old grease.  darylbowden suggested using brake cleaner, which is a good idea.  That way you start with a clean axle.  Then grease that sucker up.  I use silicon grease.  Grease will protect the axle from water and muck, and will make it easier to remove in the future.  Don’t use too much grease.  It’s not for lubrication.  A thin layer will do.  I probably used too much if you look closely at the pics a couple of steps below this one.   Re brands, I haven’t found one grease to be better than another (and I’m not sure how I’d be able to tell), but I bought this tube of Redline a while ago and I’ve still got tons of it.  I like that it’s red.  Dunno why.  <shrug> 



TIP:  If you usually use gloves (or no gloves), this is a good time in the process to switch out for latex gloves.  It gets greasy from here on out.  Besides, it’s kinky.  <thumbs up>

2.   Check which direction the wheel goes.  The wheels will have a directional signal on the sidewall, telling you which direction is front.  You DO NOT want to install the front wheel backwards.  Do enough tire changes and eventually you’ll do it, but it’s annoying to have to re-do everything, and potentially dangerous if you don’t catch it. 



TIP:  If you have Dunlops, look very carefully for the directional marking.  The Dunlop logo often looks like an arrow.  It always points in the opposite direction of the directional marking.  If you’re not paying attention, you can screw it up.  Ask me how I know.  <sigh>

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3.   Begin to reinstall the front axle.  If I don’t have someone to help,  I like to hang the greased up axle through the fork leg while I get the wheel and the spacer in place.  By the way, there’s too much grease on that axle.



4.   Place wheel with the spacer on the left side in position to reinstall.  DO NOT FORGET THE SPACER.  Also, you have to put the spacer against the wheel before you lift the wheel between the fork legs.  If you try to fit the spacer between the wheel and the fork leg after you’ve forced the axle through the wheel, you’re going to struggle.



NOTE:  I don’t know what the spacers look like on earlier monsters or even some of the later ones.  You might have different spacers (or spacers in different locations) than what is shown here.

5.    Push the axle through to the other side.  You’ll need to support the wheel below.  And you may need to use the rubber mallet.  Woohooo!

6.   Clean off excess grease.  Make sure you don’t get grease on your brake rotors.

7.   Grease the threads on the axle if you haven’t already.  Yes, grease the threads.  No, it won’t make the nut slide off.  There’s a long theoretical discussion about this that we can have another time.  The short version is that greased threads evenly distribute torque and actually hold the nut on better.   And it makes it easier to get it off later. 

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8.   Position the axle correctly.  There is a notch on the right fork leg.  There is also a notch in the axle.  Those notches need to line up (see below).  Use a screwdriver or something similar to push on the notch in the axle so that it matches up. It should look like this when you’re done.



TANGENT:  Why is there a notch in the axle?  Because—for adjustable forks only—the suspension adjustment for compression is under the axle.  There is a hole under the right fork leg.  To adjust the suspension, you stick a screwdriver through the fork leg, and through the axle and higher up into the fork where you’ll find an adjuster.  But you can’t adjust it if the holes in the axle aren’t lined up.  Below are pictures of the holes in the axle and a IZ_ picture from under a fork leg looking up.  You can see in that picture that the holes aren’t quite lined up.  That’ll make suspension adjustment difficult.





9.    Secure axle in position.  You need something to keep the notches lined up.  Why?  Because you’re about to tighten the axle nut.  It will cause the axle to spin, and the notches won’t line up.  I use a 5.5mm allen wrench.  Others use a flathead screwdriver (even the same one they used as a drift to hammer to axle).  You can use anything that keeps the notches in place.  Remember, the metal is soft, so don’t use anything with a sharp edge.



Here’s what it looks like when the notches don’t line up.  This is only slightly misaligned.  If you don’t use something to hold it in place, it’ll completely spin around. 

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10.   Tighten the axle nut (keeping the notches aligned if your forks require it).   Use your 28mm socket to tighten the axle bolt.  Don’t tighten it all the way yet. 



TIP:  Do not use your torque wrench to tighten.  It’s not good for the wrench.  Get it tight with a regular wrench or a breaker bar and fine tune with the torque wrench.

11.   Torque the nut bolt to 63 NM.  If you have adjustable forks, make  sure you’re following step No. __ and keeping the notches lined up. 



TIP:  Be sure to reset your torque wrench to zero after you’ve tightened the axle.  You don’t want to put it down (or put it away) if it’s still set for anything more than zero.  It will screw with its accuracy.

TIP:  If you race/track or otherwise have your bike safety-wired, now is the time to safety-wire your axle nut.   That way you know its torque to spec, because it’s it got wire on it, you torque it already.

12.   Prepare to re-install brake calipers.  CHECK TO MAKE SURE THERE IS NO GREASE ON YOUR BRAKE PADS.  And check the brake pads and make sure that they haven’t shifted into a position where you can’t get them back onto the rotors.  It’s not necessary, but I always like to separate the pads a bit before reinstalling them on the rotors.  Take a LARGE flathead screwdriver and GENTLY try to separate the pads.  You can use other tools to do the same thing.  But be careful.  Brake pads are really soft and any pointed tool will gouge them.  I like the large flathead because it doesn’t create pressure points that will mess up the pads.



NOTE:  The picture shows 4 brake pads.  For many of you (unless you have upgraded or have a more recent high-end monster, you’ll only have 2 pads, one on each side.  You may also only have 2 pistons, one on each side.   It doesn’t matter.  The same instructions apply.

TIP:  If you hit your brake lever while the calipers were off the bike, your pads are stuck together.  Get a flathead screwdriver and wedge it between the pads.  Just like with the large flat head above, use the screwdriver to separate the pads.  Then, lever on the pads with the screwdriver to push the pistons back into the caliper.  You may mess up your pads a wee bit (don’t worry), but that will teach you not to hit the lever when the calipers are off the rotor.

[Spidey]

13.   Reinstall brake calipers.  Keeping the pads spread apart, get the calipers back onto the rotor.  It’s the same process as removal, just in reverse.  Start by placing the caliper at an angle to the rotor.   Once you get the pads squeezed between the rotor and the wheel, the caliper will slide onto the rotor.

NOTE:  we haven’t forgotten about the pinch bolts.  We’ll do those at the end.

14.   Grease the threads of the brake caliper bolts.  Some theory as above.  Alternatively, you could use loctite, I guess.   I don’t loctite anything that I take off with any regularity, like brake calipers. 

15.   Tighten brake caliper bolts with 8mm hex socket or allen wrench.  I use my nifty mini-socket and extension for this (not pictured).



16.   Torque brake caliper bolts to 42 NM.  If you have radial brakes, you might have a different torque spec.  Safety wire the bolts if they’re drilled for it. 



17.   IMPORTANT:  CHECK AND/OR CLEAN YOUR ROTORS.  You do NOT want grease on your brake rotors.  You should be careful throughout this process not to get grease on the rotors, but sometimes it happens.  If you find some grease, it’s not enough to wipe it off.  Use brake cleaner to remove the grease. 

18.   Pump your brakes.  Because you spread the brake pads earlier, you’ll need to pump the brakes a few times before they feel normal.

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19.   Seat the axle.  You want to make sure the axle is properly set.  There are two ways of doing this.  First, you can spin the wheel by hand and then hit the brakes abruptly.  Do this a few times.   Alternatively, you can take the bike off the front stand and vigorously bounce the front end a few times.   Personally, I do both just to be safe.  Then I pop the bike back on the front stand. 

20.   Test the wheel spin and brake drag.   Now that you’ve got the axle and brake calipers installed, you want to make sure that there isn’t too much brake drag.  If the wheel can’t spin freely, you’re giving away free horsepower.  More important, it’s a serious safety issue.  Spin the wheel  hard with your hands.  Count the spins.  It should spin more than two rotations (though I like to use three as a guide).  If it’s more than two or three, you’re golden.  If it’s less than two,  that’s not good, and only one rotation is bad.  I’d take off the calipers and loosen the axle and start over.  Generally, once you loosen everything and then tighten it down again, it’s fine.   

21.   Tighten the pinch bolts in sequence using the 12mm socket.  It is important that you don’t just tighten one pinch bolt and then the next.  Start with . . . uh . . . how ‘bout the right side?  Tighten the outer right pinch bolt a bit.  Then tighten the inner right side bolt.  Then the outer.  Then the inner.  Go back and forth until the pair of right side bolts is close to the torque spec.  Do the same thing with the other pair of pinch bolts on the left side.  Don’t overtighten them.  Here's what the sequence looks like

  then then   then then   then .

Other side.

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then then then then then . 

You get the idea. 

NOTE:  if the threads of the pinch bolts aren’t greased, I like to take ‘em out and grease em’.

[Spidey]

22.   Torque the pinch bolts to _____.   Safety wire the bolts if they’re drilled for it.

23.   At this point, I like to check wheelspin again.  But I’m anal about that. 

24.   Take the bike off the front stand and the rear stand.

25.   Check everything over.  Brakes good?   Rotors clean.  Can you push the bike smoothly in neutral?  Front tire going the right direction?  Excess grease removed? 

NOTE:  The stock monster brake-line set up goes from the mastery cylinder and then splits and goes to each caliper.  An SBK aftermarket brake line set-up (as pictured above) goes from master cylinder to caliper and then a separate lines goes from the first caliper to the second caliper.  If you have an SBK set-up, make sure that the brake line is ABOVE the front fender and didn’t get caught below it.  If it gets caught below, it’s a disaster waiting to happen.

Ok, you’re done.  Congrats!  Now go ride.       [moto]   [moto]