Centering Swing Arm

[criminaldesign]

Giving the bike a look over and thought I would share.

When I center a swing arm, I place a 3mm allen wrench in between the frame and swing arm on each side to keep it stationary while messing with the pivot pins and lock nuts.

This is on an '88 R100 Mono

Right Side
<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DpZII2_aJ8C6Ix6ppsQLbg?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_QUlLxCsQNp0/TYJQlrdQ-wI/AAAAAAAACtk/tsMqTqTTpHc/s800/SwingArm-Right.jpg" height="600" width="800" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/houstonmcintyre/Random02?feat=embedwebsite">Random</a></td></tr></table>

Left Side
<table style="width:auto;"><tr><td><a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/3coiHyAbxxGGNRTBHPmuDQ?feat=embedwebsite"><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_QUlLxCsQNp0/TYJQZXsrsmI/AAAAAAAACtg/zepHpZYaNiM/s800/SwingArm-Left.jpg" height="600" width="800" /></a></td></tr><tr><td style="font-family:arial,sans-serif; font-size:11px; text-align:right">From <a href="https://picasaweb.google.com/houstonmcintyre/Random02?feat=embedwebsite">Random</a></td></tr></table>

 

[bikerfish1100]

i like a stack of feeler gauges to measure each side. easy to adjust as left & right move in/out.

 

[toooldtocare]

I use a vernier caliper. A cheap one from Harbor Freight.

 

[manicmechanic]

I use twist drills as gages in this application.

 

[mneblett]

I use a vernier caliper. A cheap one from Harbor Freight.

+1 -- simple, direct, and avoids reliance on fixed-width gauges which can cause torque errors if the gauge is left in place when the opposite pin is torqued down (i.e., if the gauge becomes the load path between the swingarm and the frame, effectively unloading the adjacent pivot pin such that, once the gauge is removed, the adjacent pivot pin is not be inserted far enough to maintain the desired pre-load between the pivot pins).