What lean angle are you running? I know that the factory manual calls for one degree in toward the sidecar (with a 3/4" toe in).
im running radial rear bike tire and radial sidecar tire - about 1/4" toe in, lean is less than 1 deg in unloaded and less than 1 deg out loaded.
i put a gauge on the shocks and moved the tap so i can fine tune the rear shocks to control rd ht and lean.
im running a liberty 5 deg raked tree
before liberty the trees i was running 0 deg unloaded and 1.5 deg or so lean out, and 3/4" toe in.
to
Play with lean until it tracks good. Run as little toe in as possible and keep an eye on tire wear. Be prepared to re write that manual for youself..lol
running 0 degree lean and about 1/4" toe in. last time i checked. runs straight and true. very stable. best sidecar rig set-up i ever run. hd/hd is the way to go imo.
I started with 0 degree lean. Purchased a Harley TLE manual and tried 1 degree in toward the car which made it worse. Now I run 1 degree lean out! Much better. I just ordered Liberty triple trees so I get to start over.
with a liberty tree try 0 lean loaded to start with - its much much more forgiving of road crown
interestingly - the old bikes with the factory raked trees - when you move the tree to sidecar mode, it lowers the front of the bike a inch plus - on a rigid bike they can be set up 0 lean, 0 toe in with the factory sidecar raked tree.. of course the old panheads with the three speed / reverse were geared for 57mph max....
win some, lose some.
later
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Thanks to all for the input. I dialed in a one degree lean out and 1/2" toe in and the rig seems to handle much better.
Makes me wonder why Harley recommends a one degree lean in.
Originally written by Rotten Ralph on 4/25/2007 2:27 PM
Thanks to all for the input. I dialed in a one degree lean out and 1/2" toe in and the rig seems to handle much better.
Makes me wonder why Harley recommends a one degree lean in.
The deal is that it would be the best of all possible worlds to have the bike absolutely vertical while you are riding. It would tend to ease up on the difference between left and right turns and also, the rider will be more comfortable.
The diagram in the manual shows one degree lean-in so that when seated, the machine will settle down to zero leanout.
The answer for you is to make one more change to 3/4" to 1" toe-in, which is what the book recommends. With more toe-in, it's likely that you can reset the lean to one degree or so in and wind up with the machine vertical with a more neutral-steering unit.
In other words, with more toe-in and less lean out, you could come out with similar characteristics to what you have now....there being more than one way to skin a cat. LOL
Happy Trails!
When ordering my the Liberty triple tree, Pete said he thought the Harley TLE manual was written by lawers. I presume that to mean the lean in recommendation makes it harder to fly the chair. They would rather sacrafice good handling to reduce liability perhaps?
Originally written by Kirk on 4/26/2007 9:11 AM
When ordering my the Liberty triple tree, Pete said he thought the Harley TLE manual was written by lawers. I presume that to mean the lean in recommendation makes it harder to fly the chair. They would rather sacrafice good handling to reduce liability perhaps?
I sorta doubt that premise.......The specifications given by HD are designed to keep the machine as neutral-steering as possible. One degree here or there is not going to permit or prevent the wheel coming up.
As to "flying the chair". I've done it. I don't do it anymore. I ride in such a manner that it doesn't happen. There's no point to it.
When running your sidecar, it's best for all concerned to ride so that all three wheels stay on the ground.
As to lawyers, Harley-Davidson is not the only company that should be concerned about liability. Any company that makes a product that is sold in the chain of commerce could be subject to a product liability suit when something bad happens.
Happy Trails.
With factory spec setup (ie. 1 degree in & 3/4 toe in) have any of you felt like the car was getting real "light" with a cross wind? Going down the freeway at about 60 got hit by a cross wind about 30 mph with my wife in the car, it felt like the car was lifting and I was being pushed into the next lane. I'm on an 06 FHLXI street glide and 06 TLE. Just wondering if the "light" feeling should be normal.
Originally written by joejcr on 4/27/2007 1:14 PM
With factory spec setup (ie. 1 degree in & 3/4 toe in) have any of you felt like the car was getting real "light" with a cross wind? Going down the freeway at about 60 got hit by a cross wind about 30 mph with my wife in the car, it felt like the car was lifting and I was being pushed into the next lane. I'm on an 06 FHLXI street glide and 06 TLE. Just wondering if the "light" feeling should be normal.
I haven't yet run into such a cross wind but I could inagine that happening. I have anticipated that and I have a 45 pound weight bolted onto the right spring pad. Harley used to sell them out of cast iron but they are no longer sold. I made mine out of 1/4" plate and lead. Don't tell Claude. LOL.
I thnk some extra weight coud help. A nice standard-shift car flywheel in the trunk would do. It doesn't matter how you do it.
"As to lawyers, Harley-Davidson is not the only company that should be concerned about liability. Any company that makes a product that is sold in the chain of commerce could be subject to a product liability suit when something bad happens."
Ummm........Thanks for that counsler
Originally written by Kirk on 4/28/2007 4:22 PM
"As to lawyers, Harley-Davidson is not the only company that should be concerned about liability. Any company that makes a product that is sold in the chain of commerce could be subject to a product liability suit when something bad happens."
Ummm........Thanks for that counsler
You're quite welcome. LOL
