hey everyone. I haven't posted in a while, but does anyone run captive wheel spacers? I have found that Driven, Graves and Fast Frank makes them? I can't decide which ones to go with. I was wondering if anyone has put them on there bikes and how they hold up and if they have any pictures of them before they were put on and after being used? I am tired of the spacers falling out when I take my tire off. Thanks in advance for the input :thumbup
my only complaint is you have to take them out to balance tires. But they come out easy enough without going back in loose so it's really a mute point. For a street guy that isn't swapping tires often They are a great deal and the headache saved is totally worth it.
Why them out? They should have no effect on tire balance. Another advantage to captive spacers. Have never seen them removed on tire changes at the track...
We at Graves use 7075 T6 billet aluminum and then finish in black anodize.This compared to 6061 costs 3x more if you use a Chinese grade 7075 and 4x more if you use a USA made 7075 (which is way better and we do use). General reading will get you at an average of 7075 being about 80% stronger then most 6061 choices.
What happens when you use a softer metal is the spacer will crush on to the bearing. Over time the wheels lock up. I've seen common fixes to this by continuing to use softer metals and making the holes bigger which leads to failure in other places. Your wheels axles do not align correctly becoming a side loading time bomb and a setup nightmare.
These products in 7075 have been a staple in our race programs for years. They are tested on our race bikes, moved into consumer production and also sold through Graves Racing Services on turn key customer race bikes. I personally wouldn't trust my $25K plus bikes let alone see our company rubber stamp a sub par product just because it's cheaper but not something we'd use.. Just my .02 cents on the matter that I have a pretty good handle on...
Fast Frank spacers rock. Their chamfered sides eliminate the possibility of the edges catching on the fork or swingarm and make wheel installation so easy, it's almost like cheating. A simple detail that other manufacturers might be wise to take a look at, and possibly incorporate into their own spacer designs.
Fast Frank spacers rock. Their chamfered sides eliminate the possibility of the edges catching on the fork or swingarm and make wheel installation so easy, it's almost like cheating. A simple detail that other manufacturers might be wise to take a look at, and possibly incorporate into their own spacer designs.
thanks for mentioning, they do manufacture 'em for my model R1.. i need these fvckers, by far my biggest pet peeve as i pile 'em miles on and tire changes are a PITA.
The Balancer has no way to hold them perfectly centered since they are only supported by the rubber wheel seal. Because of this they can float off center not giving a proper balance.
I questioned it as well but when my tire guy explained it made total sense. Same reason you don't balance with stock spacers.
Take your wheels off. Now put them back on. Now you get it. LOL
In all seriousness, the stock spacers are stuck in place with only grease and "sticktion". As soon as you try and put your wheel back on they simply pop out of place, making it a suuuuuuper pain in ass to re-install your wheel.
These spacers snap into place and are firmly held in place. This makes it much, much easier to re-install the wheels.
I just ordered the graves captive wheel spacers. Chose them because they're made of 7075 aluminum instead of 6061 aluminum. I'm a machinist and 7075 is much stronger aluminum. They're also tapered so should be super easy on and off.
Well I had my first experience dealing with captive wheel spacers last night. I pulled the tires off and took them to my local race shop to have new tires put on and we tried to balance the rear tire (on a coats digital tire balancer) and couldnt get the tire to run true because of the spacer. So we tried to remove the Graves spacer and finally got it out taking the dust seal with it. Got the tire balanced then had to wrestle with the spacer to get the seal off (total finger workout btw). Then I struggled getting the spacer back into the seal without pushing the seal all the way against the bearing. Plus the ABS ring kept me from being able to manually push the seal down with the spacer in place. Finally after cleaning all the grease off I was able to finesse the spacer back into the seal with a slight twist and off angle approach.
It sucks knowing that I will have to do this everytime to balance the rear at the shop. Hopefully I will be able to twist the spacer out of the seal next time. I guess I'll be sure to order some extra seals to have on hand.
I'm actually considering getting the stuff to swap tires myself. I have enough bikes and friends with bikes to make it worth it. What do you guys have for suggestions so don't have to pull spacers out?
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