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How do I align the tires on my trike?

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How do I align the tires on my trike?

Old 05-04-18, 07:22 PM
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PastorJim
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How do I align the tires on my trike?

My tires on the front of my old Trike (new to me) wore out in under 100 miles. I'm being told I need to do a front alignment of my two tires. I did watch some Youtube videos. Have any you done it yourself. Was it easy to do? Did it make a difference.
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Old 05-04-18, 08:06 PM
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Maybe some pictures of the trike.

My guess is you need to set the wheels straight forward and adjust the toe-in/toe-out to be parallel.

Make sure your hubs are tight and the wheels are true. No extraordinary flex in the system.

Do you have an adjustable tie rod? Often you can loosen it, then twist the rod, with a Right thread on one end, and left thread on the other end.

I tried it on my old Fiat with moderate success, but would probably try to build a caliper that I could use to measure rim to rim (caliper + pole). Perhaps unmounting the tires would help improve accuracy.

Harbor Freight used to sell a large vernier caliper, but I don't see the listing anymore. Still, the small ones could probably be adapted to your needs.
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Old 05-05-18, 08:29 AM
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Alignment can make a lot of difference in tire wear, handling, and amount of effort required to propel the trike. I changed the cartridge bearings on my Greenspeed GTO some years ago and didn't bother to check the toe-in after I was done. It took only 300 miles to scrub the tread off a $60 pair of Tioga Comp Pool tires. They weren't new but I had been getting several thousand miles out of them before the change. After I readjusted the toe-in, the tire mileage returned to normal.

I made my own measuring tool for each of the three trikes I have owned. It's simple. Buy a 3/8" wooden dowel at a home center. Cut it to be a little shorter than the distance between the frame and the point where you make the measurement on the wheel. Drill a small hole in one end and insert a wood screw or other fine threaded screw into the hole. This allows you to adjust the length of the measuring tool with the screw. All of my trikes specify 1/16" toe in and that is easy to visualize between the end of the tool and the wheel. If the front part of the wheel is exactly the length of the tool away from the frame, there should be 1/16" space when you make the same measurement at the back part of the wheel. Some manufacturers specify you have weight in the seat equal to what you weigh when you do the measurements.

Most major trike makers have instructions on how to set the toe-in on their website. That's how I got the instructions for my GS and Catrike trikes. It's not all that difficult. Two of my three trikes came unassembled so I had to set the toe-in when I assembled them. I haven't had to reset the toe-in for many thousand miles once properly set.
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Old 05-05-18, 04:38 PM
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Replys are appreciated.

Thanks for helpful information.
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Old 05-06-18, 09:34 AM
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Old 05-06-18, 09:37 AM
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One additional tip I would offer to the above video is to make sure the front wheels are true before you start.

Yes I did it myself. Yes, it was fairly easy, although a bit tedious the first time I did it. Yes, it is absolutely worth it. If your alignment is out significantly, fixing it will produce a noticeable increase in speed. And of course your tires will last much longer.

Last edited by Steamer; 05-06-18 at 09:42 AM.
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Old 05-06-18, 05:25 PM
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Another thing to remember is that if you align the front end perfectly with no load, frame flex when you're on the trike can totally negate all your hard work. The alignment needs to be checked with you ON the trike.
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Old 05-06-18, 07:48 PM
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Originally Posted by BlazingPedals
Another thing to remember is that if you align the front end perfectly with no load, frame flex when you're on the trike can totally negate all your hard work. The alignment needs to be checked with you ON the trike.
That's extremely hard to do, even for those of us with decent flexibility and no aerobelly. I know, cuz I tried.

Better to recruit an assistant to sit there for you.

Or don't worry about it. Don't make perfect the enemy of good.
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Old 05-08-18, 02:23 PM
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If you wore out a set of front tires in under 100 miles, adjusting your toe in will almost surely make a big difference. Even if you don't get it perfect, it will probably be better than what you've got now.
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Old 07-25-18, 07:58 PM
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Simply put. Align one wheel with the frame. And at the same time make sure your handle bars are pointed straight forward.Then put a couple of bricks on each side of that wheel to keep it aligned with the centerline of the frame. Then align the other wheel to the first wheel with an ever so slight toe in.

I use two pieces of ready bolt with a turnbuckle and lock nuts. One from the frame to the first wheel and the second from wheel to wheel. I get fantastic tire mileage.

I am only on my second set of front tires, and there is about 12,000 miles on the trike. The set on now has many miles left on them.

Last edited by rydabent; 09-07-18 at 06:40 PM.
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