Sidecar tire

[JSB55]

Hi, Guys

Been a while since I posted. Anyway, I'm working on a 65 FL sidecar bike. Odd question, perhaps, but does the sidecar use a rear or front rated tire? I'm leaning towards a rear, even though it's a "passive" (i.e., not powered) wheel, but want to do this right. Not finding anything in my various manuals which specifies the tire type for the sidecar wheel. Anybody?

Thanks in advance!

Wish I had contributed even half as much as I've learned here...

[Rubone]

Tires at that time period were not directional and not position specific. One tire did all. A front will work fine as the sidecar has little load and isn't driven. Reproduction early type tires won't matter anyway.

[JSB55]

Thanks, Rubone! Had to ditch the repop tires on my 65 FLH. We have too much grooved pavement around here that caused severe head shake at any speed above about 25 mph. Put on a set of modern Shinkos and it's a whole new bike. Probably will have to do the same with the sidecar rig to be able to enjoy it.

[JSB55]

May sound like a silly question, but I can't find instructions for removing the sidecar wheel. The lug bolts in the star hub/brake drum connection are obvious, but not the rest. Removed the outer (outside the fender supports) nut, which reveals a threaded axle shaft which has a nut on the innermost side, and a hexagon shaped piece on the end just inside the fender supports. I'm working in a dark trailer, so can't tell if that's a nut, or fixed to the axle, and didn't have correct wrenches with me today, so have to go back out to my storage unit better prepared next time (and knowing what to do *LOL*).

Can anybody point me to instructions for this thing? Need to get that wheel off to replace the tire and have a look at the brakes.

Thanks!

John

[Rubone]

The fender pivots in the front at the step. Remove the outer axle/fender nut. Remove the nut on the inner side of the fender on the extension mount. Pivot fender up and away, remove the inner axle nut (the one with the stud where the fender mounts). The wheel will slide off with the brake drum intact, no need to remove the lugs. Make sure there are no extra wire ties holding the fender light, if so remove them first so the fender can pivot.

(if you have a later sidecar with the fender like a Hydra-Glide front it doesn't pivot, just raise it off and lay it in the seat, wheel comes off the same way.)

[JSB55]

As usual, you're a lifesaver, Robbie! The parts book shows various exploded views that "kind of" pointed me in the right direction, but I doubt I would have seen that the fender pivots. This is a 66 sidecar, BTW. Closest I could come to matching the 65 FL bike, and took me well over 5 years to find it.

Between your instructions and the drawings in the parts book, I should be golden.

Thanks!

John

[JSB55]

Stubborn little b***h, but once I knew how it came apart, I got 'er done. Thanks for the help!