Motorcycle Repair: Kawasaki KZ 750 rear tire alignment, kawasaki kz 750, cotter pin


Question
Okay, I'm dumb on bikes. On the rear wheel of my '82 KZ 750 LTD there are two forward facing bolts that push against the frame (I think) that seem to align the rear tire. One of them (the right side) has been pushed down off of the part it pushed against. This happened while moving the bike, not while riding. How do I realign it and make sure that the tire will continue to spin as good as it did before.

Answer
Joey,
  The axle bolt must be loosened slightly and the "drawbolts" that you referred to loosened a bit and put in there correct positions (you're right, that one did fall out of position). The bike should be up on it's center stand so the rear wheel can spin freely.  Next, tighten the drawbolts that push against the swingarm ends.  You will notice there are marks or notches on the side of the swingarm that show you how far back the drawbolts are pulling the axle back on each side.  They are ther to give you a ROUGH indication that the wheel is straight.  You need to pull the axle back evenly yet not overdo it.  The chain should not be loose nor to tight, a comfortable amount of flex should be left in the chain.
  To make sure the rear and front wheel are truely in alignment you must place a long straightedge along the side walls of the rear tire and check that the front tire runs paralell.  Notice you will have to measure the distance between the straightedge and both front and rear ends of the front tire's sidewall.  This is so because the rear tire is wider then the front.  If both measurments are not equall you will have to fine tune one rear drawbolt to bring it into alignment.  Once done, make sure once more that your chain is not to tight and retighten the axle bolt and install a new cotter pin.

Hope this helps,
Mike