Working on a rear tire change, need some quick help

[Eviltwin]

So I looked at finless's video as well as lamonsters and read a bunch of threads and thought I had a handle on it all. I tried to drop the lower bolt out of the shock, but it kept pushing down and twisting. I eventually managed to work it out, but reading some more realized that the air suspension is probably the culprit. Somewhere under the seat there is supposed to be a valve or cap to let the air out?

I eventually got the wheel off after loosening the adjustment screws to give it some slack. The belt was very difficult to move off the pulley, even with the wheel hanging down. I managed to remove the hub and got the new tire mounted by a local shop. I've got the hub back on and torqued and am now trying to get the belt pulley back on the wheel, but am having issues with the rubber parts that fit inside. When the pulley came off, I didn't see or take note of whether the splines in the pulley fit in-between the slot in the rubber or they fit in-between the rubber and the metal of the wheel. I tried with the lithium grease as finless suggested, but it still isn't going anywhere. Would appreciate a push in the right direction with this one.

The tire shop left the old weights on. Should I remove those? They were not able to balance the wheel, but folks here seem to feel like thats really not necessary. Overall, I would say this isn't the easiest machine I've ever worked on.

[Eviltwin]

Well, I found the cap for the shrader valve and released pressure on the shock, once that happened, I was able to maneuver the bottom bracket and bolt it back in. Still need some help on the rubber pieces going back into the wheel. Somebody has to know the trick to getting them all back in, there has to be a trick to doing it Im just not figuring out.

[AeroPilot]

When changing tires, the rubber cush spacers used to be a pain to to get the sprocket forced back down. Last several times, after wiping the pocket clean with a damp rag, I spray a little Armorall protectant on the rubber, make sure the rubber ORing is good and has a little film of grease, and then lay the tire on a carpet or rubber mat square, and sit on the sprocket to ease it down into place. Works for me...

[Peteoz]

Sorry Evil, I can’t help with the rubbers, but I did remove the weights from my rear tyre after my Kuhmo replacement and it feels pretty good. As long as the tyre shop has put the dot next to the valve, the balance is usually pretty good. At my next tyre change I will be putting Lamont’s balancer on, just for added peace of mind.

Pete

[Eviltwin]

When changing tires, the rubber cush spacers used to be a pain to to get the sprocket forced back down. Last several times, after wiping the pocket clean with a damp rag, I spray a little Armorall protectant on the rubber, make sure the rubber ORing is good and has a little film of grease, and then lay the tire on a carpet or rubber mat square, and sit on the sprocket to ease it down into place. Works for me...

Do the rubber spacers go in with the slot facing up toward the sprocket? I think that is how I saw them when it came apart. Are you placing the rubber spacers inside the rim and than trying to seat the sprocket on top of them? Is that the basic method?

[SpyderAnn01]

When you get the rest sorted out don’t forget to clock the pulley so that the spokes on the pulley line up with the spokes on the wheel. If you skip this step checking your tire pressure will be a total pain in the rear

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Do the rubber spacers go in with the slot facing up toward the sprocket? I think that is how I saw them when it came apart. Are you placing the rubber spacers inside the rim and than trying to seat the sprocket on top of them? Is that the basic method?

I can't remember which way I've done it! Sorry. But from the diagram in the manual it looks like there are grooves in the spacer and they go into the sprocket. I do remember once I had the sprocket sitting on the wheel I pushed down on it and rocked it until it seated all the way.

[Ben Burped]

When changing tires, the rubber cush spacers used to be a pain to to get the sprocket forced back down. Last several times, after wiping the pocket clean with a damp rag, I spray a little Armorall protectant on the rubber, make sure the rubber ORing is good and has a little film of grease, and then lay the tire on a carpet or rubber mat square, and sit on the sprocket to ease it down into place. Works for me...

Thank you for a good idea. I am going to replace the rear tire this winter and every bit of help is appreciated.

[Peteoz]

Thank you for a good idea. I am going to replace the rear tire this winter and every bit of help is appreciated.

What are you riding, Ben? If it’s an F3, I’ve got some detailed (read “anal”) instructions from when I changed my F3-L. They may help with any newer model Spyder with the wheel with the integrated hub.

Pete

[Roadster Renovations]

Also, if I am reading this right, you backed off the adjusters. If you didn't count the turns, you are probably in for some real fun getting the belt adjusted correctly. You are going to need a kricket to get the tension correct. Tracking for the belt should be 1-3 mm of of the rear inner flange. I did the rubber spacers on the sprocket on my Daytona when I changed my tire and marked everything so it went back together the same way. It did have to be worked in, but not very bad. Let us know if you need details on the belt adjustment and we'll try to help.

[Richardv]

When changing tires, the rubber cush spacers used to be a pain to to get the sprocket forced back down. Last several times, after wiping the pocket clean with a damp rag, I spray a little Armorall protectant on the rubber, make sure the rubber ORing is good and has a little film of grease, and then lay the tire on a carpet or rubber mat square, and sit on the sprocket to ease it down into place. Works for me...

.... sorry.... but I had to ask.....!!!!

[Eviltwin]

Wheel is aligned! It took about another hour and a half of going back and forth but I finally have it done. One of the things I took note of this time is the outline of the plastic cap on the swing arm vs. where the center of the axle was. On the sprocket side, you could tell that the axle was well back of where it had been previously. To correct that, I loosened both sides by several turns and then used a wooden drift with a hammer to tap the axle forward on that side till it met resistance and then rinse and repeat till I had it roughly centered. I then tweaked the sprocket side adjuster by about a quarter turn to put some tension on the belt and then put a like amount on the other side as well.

I had ordered the Kriket belt tension gauge and it came in today. I checked the tension and it was too tight, about 200. So I backed each adjuster off a quarter turn on each side and used the drift again to move the axle forward. Finally I got the belt tension to about 160 or about a 90 degree turn in the middle with some resistance. Tightened the axle and torqued it to about 90 ft lbs. Took it for a short ride and checked it again, belt had shifted slightly to the middle. I'll put it on the jack again tomorrow and tweak it a bit more, but I think its pretty much done.

Lessons learned: Stop when you are tired or things dont seem to be going right. A day or two in-between did a lot to refocus and see the problems from a different perspective. Second: Nothing is easy the first time. Were I to do this job over, I could probably do it in a couple of hours instead of a couple of days. But you just dont know, what you dont know and as much as you can watch videos and read online, many times it comes to trial and error.

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

Took it for a short ride and checked it again, belt had shifted slightly to the middle. I'll put it on the jack again tomorrow and tweak it a bit more, but I think its pretty much done.

If it's somewhat in the middle of the sprocket, or a bit closer to the flange than the outside, I wouldn't fuss with it any more. I'm inclined to view the BRP spec of 1 - 3 mm as more guideline than strict requirement. Mostly they want to make clear, "Keep the belt away from the flange and all of it on the sprocket!" As long as the belt is between the outside edge and the flange you're OK.

[Roadster Renovations]

Wheel is aligned! It took about another hour and a half of going back and forth but I finally have it done. One of the things I took note of this time is the outline of the plastic cap on the swing arm vs. where the center of the axle was. On the sprocket side, you could tell that the axle was well back of where it had been previously. To correct that, I loosened both sides by several turns and then used a wooden drift with a hammer to tap the axle forward on that side till it met resistance and then rinse and repeat till I had it roughly centered. I then tweaked the sprocket side adjuster by about a quarter turn to put some tension on the belt and then put a like amount on the other side as well.

I had ordered the Kriket belt tension gauge and it came in today. I checked the tension and it was too tight, about 200. So I backed each adjuster off a quarter turn on each side and used the drift again to move the axle forward. Finally I got the belt tension to about 160 or about a 90 degree turn in the middle with some resistance. Tightened the axle and torqued it to about 90 ft lbs. Took it for a short ride and checked it again, belt had shifted slightly to the middle. I'll put it on the jack again tomorrow and tweak it a bit more, but I think its pretty much done.

Lessons learned: Stop when you are tired or things dont seem to be going right. A day or two in-between did a lot to refocus and see the problems from a different perspective. Second: Nothing is easy the first time. Were I to do this job over, I could probably do it in a couple of hours instead of a couple of days. But you just dont know, what you dont know and as much as you can watch videos and read online, many times it comes to trial and error.

Good job. I also tap the right side as you did to seat it also. Those of us that do our own work have that first time adjusting the belt alignment and tension. It is certainly a learning curve. One thing you didn't say was whether the tension you got was off the ground or wheel on the ground. We set the tension at about 90 off the ground. That usually gives me 180 on the ground. Actually I use two different krickets; the black/white - lower tension and the green/silver one - higher tension. Sounds like where it is at if on the ground is pretty close!!
I also view the BRP guideline of 1-3mm as a suggestion also. Our RT is about 5mm of the flange for the last year and has done fine.