My Yamaha V-Star/Velorex 562 rig eats tires. It has gone through two new tires in less than 5,000 miles. Have discussed this elsewhere on the forum.
She is in the shop right now and tomorrow we start the surgery. Got ahold of one of Lonnie Cook's conversion units and will begin the swap out. Hope to takes some pictures and post notes about progress here. Don't know how detailed I can get since organizing that rally set for April 2nd is burning up a lot of my time. Wish me luck.
Mike in MS :O
Does your Velorex have the small diameter axle?
Please keep us updated as this or similar conversion is in our future plans.
If you are using up tires in only 5000 miles the problem is not the wheel or tire, normally the trailer wheel is done as the axle size is only 15mm on some of these sidecars and really is not up to the task should you ever have to do hard evasive maneuvers or hit a curb. The real problem if you are eating up tires that quickly is your alignment is off. If you mounted the sidecar using Velorexes so called "universal" hardware chances are good that the mounts have either slipped or that the triangulation of the mounts is not good enough for the alignment to be the same statically as it is dynamically, meaning once going down the road the alignment is not the same as when you check while at the shop. I have attached instructions as to how to set alignment which you will need to do once you change the wheel.
Jay G
DMC sidecars
www.dmcsidecars.com
866-638-1793
Sal
The Velorex 562 I have is "old". It does not have a data plate but the previous owner and I both believe it was made in the early 1970s. It does have the small diameter axle. That contributed to my decision to do the conversion. I will try to keep you posted with notes and hopefully pictures. The shop I deal with is very user friendly (?) and they are going to let me assist with the work. (!) Mostly just watching I suspect. Do to my wife having other priorities, I was not able to start on it today. Should get on it tomorrow morning.
More later.
Mike
Jay
Have discussed the tire wear use on another thread on this forum. It shows excessive wear right in the center of the tread. The rig tracks true, and does not even have a steering damper. The first tire on it was a Haidenau which lasted a little less than 2,400 miles. I swore I'd get at least 2,500 out of the Avon that replaced it but gave up at a little over 2,400 as threads were showing in the center of the tire and I was reluctant to push it any more. I'm sure we will have to remount everything after the conversion and will study the material you have sent. Thanks much for the input.
Mike
An "out of toe" sidecar tire can wear evenly across the tread.
Check the tread pattern to see if there are signs of the wear coming from one side or the other. On some tires there is a center groove that will show some rounding of the edges on one side and a sharp edge (or signs of feathering) on the other side from dragging the tire sideways.
An indication of too much or not enough toe in.
Lonnie
Walked into a shop once and saw a sign that read "10% charge will be added for watchers/lookers"... ; )
I did my own 12" wheel and tire conversion , turned out pretty good. I bet Lonnie's kit is probably a bit truer in the alignment catagory.
It's done. Went in yesterday and had lunch with the crew at the shop, then they jumped on the conversion. They being the owner/manager and his one mechanic, Chris. The boss had to keep going up front as customers came in so the job was basically done by Chris. I had a fear it would be a real fight, but not so. The hardest part was compressing the shock to get it back in place. The whole job was done in less than 45 minutes. By then, it was pouring rain so I did not go for a test ride. Went back today and rode it home, about 20 miles. She's running pretty good. There is a slight pull to the right so we'll likely have to realign the car. Wanted to do that anyway as Lonnie suggested, it might have been "out of toe" all along.
The conversion kit is nice. A lot more solid than the parts we took off and easy to fit. Looks a little odd with the small diameter rim. A lot if space between the top of the tire and the fender. Don't see any way to lower the fender (?). Any suggestions here?
Mike in MS
Can a bigger wheel/tire with same lug pattern be fitted?
There are some aftermarket alloy wheels that look good. Wheel offset is important to clear the frame and fender.
I have one of Lonnie's conversion wheels also and at 8000 miles the tire still looks almost new. It may look a little off because of the size, but I'm really not concerned about that at all.
Tom
Tom
I agree. For what I'm saving in time and expense, that wheel is looking better all the time. It does handle nicely also.
Mike
I have two of the conversions in stock.
Lonnie
Lonnie, what all does this conversion entail? I'm assuming a beefier axle stub, so a larger hole must be bored in the swingarm and the axle is pressed in?
