jack position to remove front wheels

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

thanks I had the shop put 25 in them, I'll go let a little out, and go for a ride...

At 25 psi, the actual tire will not be able to flex much ….. any car tire has much stronger sidewalls and can safely go as low as 14 psi., tires are part of the suspension system and if they can't flex the ride will be harsh. Plus at 15-17 psi they will have better traction , especially if the road is wet …… Mike

[Realtor]

best money I've spent in a while.... smooth, handles much better, did I say it was smooth? he he much better ride....

[Mikey]

Good job!!!!

[trikermutha]

I ran 19 psi on my formozas until I blew out one tire hitting a pothole. Not sure if I will continue with 19 psi but maybe higher. The tires gripped well for the few years I had them on the Spyder.

Tried a new brand tire out and have to wait till spring for further driving on them.

[Peter Aawen]

I ran 19 psi on my formozas until I blew out one tire hitting a pothole. .......

Jeez, if you blew a higher load rated CAR tire running 19psi in it just hitting a pothole, I can only imagine the damage it would've caused to you/your Spyder's frame/suspension if you'd had more air in there!! Or if you were running the OE Spec Kendas!!

Did it damage the rim at all?? Still, & regardless, I reckon you were REALLY LUCKY that the tire was able to flex enough to do its job as part of the suspension properly & absorb most of that shock! Admittedly, there is a point of diminishing returns (which for most modern radial car tires, is usually as low as about 8-10 psi) but just like in party balloons, higher pressures generally make tires LESS able to withstand that type of shock-load!!

Talking about Party balloons, you can demonstrate this in action for yourself using party balloons - get 2 normal party balloons & blow one up to a reasonable size, but no more than about half way to what you think is its maximum size, and blow the other balloon up as tight & close as you dare to 'full size' without exploding it. Then in turn, press each balloon up against a sharpish edge (not a point - not yet, anyway) and see how the lower pressure balloon flexes & conforms over & around the edge, while the tighter balloon just doesn't - and if you try to press it harder against the edge so that it gets the same degree of flex & conformation as the lower pressure balloon, there'll very likely be an explosion, just like your tire on that pot-hole!! If you don't quite go that far, so you've still got 2 balloons, get yourself an array of progressively 'pointier' objects, and gently poke each balloon with them in turn, using the same pressure and working up from the most blunt to the pointiest & sharpest; poke the lower pressure balloon first, then the higher pressure balloon, and move from the blunter objects thru to the pointier/sharper objects. You'll find that the lower pressure balloon will withstand being poked by a more pointy object than the higher pressure balloon, because there's not enough flex in the tighter balloon to flex & conform over the point without causing the balloon to explode!

If you've got another pair of balloons (after exploding the first pair trying the previous stuff) you can do the same low pressure/high pressure thing to demonstrate how lower pressure tires have more traction than high pressure tires (& resist hydroplaning better, too!) simply by pressing each balloon in turn against the wall, or the carpet (or a wet bench top) with the same degree of force, and then gently trying to slide it along the surface a bit. The lower pressure balloon will 'grip' each surface better, often either forcing you to let it roll it along the surface or not allowing you to move it at all because it grips the surface so well; while the higher pressure balloon will either skip over the surface in a juddering 'slip, grip, slip, grip' sorta way, with demonstrably less 'grip' on the surface for a given moving force, or it'll simply explode! Doing the same 'press onto a surface then gently try to slide it along' thing with the 2 balloons on a smooth wet surface should highlight how the lower pressure balloon still grips the wet surface while the higher pressure balloon simply slides along....

However, please be aware that, like I said earlier, there IS a point of diminishing returns. You CAN go too low with your tire pressures and create a whole 'nuther set of issues, like excessive heat generation & tire delamination amongst other things, but as Blueknight & I have noted a number of times, for a Spyder & the loads you'll be able to reasonably place upon it, with 'normal' car tires (as opposed to the OE Spec Kendas) that 'too low' pressure is pretty low, down around 8-10 psi. There is a whole lot of math & calculations to support this (that I won't bore you any more with) that goes into it, but the end result is that the 'sweet spot' for those 'normal' car tires up front on your Spyder is going to be somewhere between about 14 & 18 psi - for a 'normal' car tire on the rear, it's going to be somewhere between about 16 & 22 psi. Running anything either side of those 'sweet spots' in pretty much anything but an OE Spec Kenda (that really NEED those higher pressures due to their weaker construction) will almost certainly be something of a compromise in terms of the optimal balance between ride, handling, traction, tread wear, fuel economy, & a bunch of other things, but if you choose to go there in your car tires on your Spyder, that's fine by me, just so long as you are aware that you are making something of a safety compromise! Hey, I've done 'fuel economy runs' with over 65 psi in tires labelled Maximum pressure 30psi, but I drove KNOWING that the tires' rolling diameter was maximised (more distance covered per tire revolution) and their rolling resistance was minimised (easier to drive & roll along) & the steering FELT really direct & responsive, but the tires actually skipped & slid a helluva lot easier so steering was compromised & at the same time the ride was excessively harsh; plus because the tires actually bounced over minor imperfections in the road surfaces their traction was severely reduced, so the vehicles' cornering and braking was also massively compromised.... and I could go on, but won't for the sake of those who've persisted this far!

With all that said, while it might've seemed long, here endeth your really, Really, REALLY short course in party balloon handling & tire pressures for 'normal' car tires on your Spyders!

[Realtor]

I have my tires at 20 PSI, I figured that would be good. they seem to handle great.... dont like to go to low, the max on these tires is 44 PSI...

[PMK]

I have my tires at 20 PSI, I figured that would be good. they seem to handle great.... dont like to go to low, the max on these tires is 44 PSI...

Same here, 20 psi on all three tires. 2014 RTS ridden 2 up.

[2dogs]

My general operating pressures are approx. 20 PSI. Cold psi on the front pair is 16/18 depending on whether a high/low pressure cell is moving through the area and what the outside temps are. Rear tire about the same. After several minutes (30 or so) of operation, depending on outside influences (ambient air temps, speed, elevation and sun angle) my tires psi can very from around 20 to sometimes 24+. Rear tire can climb even higher especially if I'm 2 up. If I were really picky about the psi I was running I'd have to stop more often to adjust psi than stopping for fuel. Beyond that there's been times when my left front tire psi can be 2+ psi higher/lower than my right front tire. Turn around and go back the other way can produce the opposite within minutes. It's some times interesting to watch this variation take place without any deviation in performance. Tire temperatures can and do change by quite a bit as well. All three of my current tires are car tires. What I've gleaned from all this info is keep my tires aired up throughout the seasons, and most of all, enjoy the ride.

[2dogs]

By the way, how'd get we from jack position to psi; again! LOL

[trikermutha]

It started around Post 23

[UtahPete]

Here's a picture....

This is the way I do it.

[Realtor]

By the way, how'd get we from jack position to psi; again! LOL

HAAAA lol, rode abut 80 miles today... all went well with the 20 (pis or so) PSI in the front car tires.....
in another note, I now have a tire repair kit in the trunk. since there is no safe way to jack the bike up along side the road....

[Dog6]

can someone tell me where i can place my floor at on my 2013 can am spyder rt limited front end, I like to take both front tires and rims off and put more rims on?

[ThreeWheels]

….The frame is always the best point from a strength standpoint ….. However I have an Auto scissor style jack that I re-moved the ring and welded a 5/8 nut to ….. to change a wheel put a small sturdy piece of wood on top of the jack so it spans both arms of the suspension close to the wheel and just lift it enough to re-move that wheel..... good luck …. Mike

I'd rather swim through a boiling lake of lava than agree with Mike on anything, but in this case I have to admit he's right, this is the method I use and it works very well.

[FlyBoy2121]

I Boys

FlyBoy2121IMG_0528.jpg

[Lew L]

Some of the tightest Lugs, I've come across in a good while..... applied some anti seize for that unexpected emergency along the road... I see a design flaw...... Wheels are off, and will have the new ones on tomorrow... Thanks for the tips....

Crack the lug nuts loose while the wheels are on the ground. May have been assembeled to the wrong torque. Auto dealer once way over torqued lug nuts on my Magnum R/T--- hand to stand and bounce a bit on an 18" breaker bar to loosen. Dealer got an ear full. SOOO-- use a decent torque wrench.( any kind of lube on the bolt/nut will change the torque rating!!! )

Lew L

[trikermutha]

Crack the lug nuts loose while the wheels are on the ground. May have been assembeled to the wrong torque. Auto dealer once way over torqued lug nuts on my Magnum R/T--- hand to stand and bounce a bit on an 18" breaker bar to loosen. Dealer got an ear full. SOOO-- use a decent torque wrench.( any kind of lube on the bolt/nut will change the torque rating!!! )

Lew L

Be careful on those magnum nuts they are just a tin covering and they like to spin on the inner nut.

[Eckhard]

Do not lube, oil or grease, or use NeverSeize on any nut where the instructions don't call for it. These products reduce the torque required to get the proper bolt tension and torquing to the nominal level will stress the bolt beyond its working limits. This can lead to bolt failure.

Install the nuts clean and dry and use a torque wrench to tighten to the proper torque. It is generally good practice to check the torque on the bolts after a hundred miles or so.

[Lew L]

Be careful on those magnum nuts they are just a tin covering and they like to spin on the inner nut.

They have all been changed to higher quality aftermarket lug nuts. OEM's are SOOOO cheap sometimes.

[Possible]

Do not lube, oil or grease, or use NeverSeize on any nut where the instructions don't call for it. These products reduce the torque required to get the proper bolt tension and torquing to the nominal level will stress the bolt beyond its working limits. This can lead to bolt failure.

Install the nuts clean and dry and use a torque wrench to tighten to the proper torque. It is generally good practice to check the torque on the bolts after a hundred miles or so.

Those are rather broad instructions. Provided one is aware of the caveat of lubing threads, it's not an issue and will insure you don't try to remove a corroded bolt at some point.
I lube almost all bolts that are subjected to outside conditions, and have never had one fail. Ever. Also I've never had to try to remove a corroded bolt either.

[Brad0414]

Those are rather broad instructions. Provided one is aware of the caveat of lubing threads, it's not an issue and will insure you don't try to remove a corroded bolt at some point.
I lube almost all bolts that are subjected to outside conditions, and have never had one fail. Ever. Also I've never had to try to remove a corroded bolt either.

[Bensonoid]

Do not lube, oil or grease, or use NeverSeize on any nut where the instructions don't call for it. These products reduce the torque required to get the proper bolt tension and torquing to the nominal level will stress the bolt beyond its working limits. This can lead to bolt failure.

Install the nuts clean and dry and use a torque wrench to tighten to the proper torque. It is generally good practice to check the torque on the bolts after a hundred miles or so.