I just bought a 2009 T100 Bonneville and decided to tighten the chain. All went ok, but manual said to tighten spindle nut to 85 Nm (63 lb ft). When I did that the wheel was hard to turn. I rode it a bit anyway, and when I checked it later the nut had gotten looser, and wheel turned more freely. Is that normal? Why no cotter pin to hold it in place.
Welcome to the forum! There are plenty of members of the forum that ride Bonnevilles, and they will probably know the answer to your question. I believe you should have a locking nut on the axle that will stay in place when torqued correctly. You can always use a small dot of paint, or a sharpie to mark the axle nut alignment against the swingarm (two dots). That way, you will be able to tell if there is any movement. If you loosened-up the axle nut too much for a simple chain adjustment, something (cush drive, spacer, etc.) may have been at a slight angle when you torqued the nut. That could have caused the wheel to turn harder than normal. Once you rode it, everything settled in, and the axle nut became 'loose.'
Based on what you said, I would 1) check to make sure someone didn't put a non-locking nut on the spindle in the past (it wouldn't hurt to buy a new one and install it), 2) re-torque the nut, and 3) mark the nut against the swingarm. If that nut is backing off, and you start a trip or get into some twisty roads, you could get an unpleasant surprise. Also, if the wheel is 'hard to turn' after torquing the nut this time, I would look for the cause. The first things to check are the calibration of your torque wrench, and the condition of your wheel bearings/axle. If I'm giving you bad advice, I'm sure the other forum members will throw in their two cents.
A couple of thoughts...... you speak of tightening the chain. I take it you mean adjust. It should not be ‘tight’ - merely ‘tight enough’ with a little slack or you are stressing chain, suspension etc., and something will break. Secondly the hard to turn wheel. It should spin freely apart from having to turn over chain and output transmission. If it is stiff then either your rear brake is binding or there is an issue with the spacers and bearing assembly. Torqued up everything is just pinched into alignment but nothing should inhibit the wheel from turning unimpeded on its hub bearings. If it has freed off my suspicion would be the brake calliper needs maintenance. The locknut should not come loose but nor should it doing so make the wheel spin more freely.
Thanks for the advice gents. All makes sense. I’ll investigate source of the binding. This is a very low mileage (2800) bike that was apparently garaged for years. I was hoping that meant I wouldn’t have to work on it right away, but guess that age can cause things to deteriorate, too.
Welcome from sunny California. Tightening the spindle nut to the correct torque should have nothing to do with the wheel being hard to turn. But a chain that is too tight might have the affect. Also, the bike must be upright and the wheel on the ground, with no additional weight on the bike when adjusting the chain. Not on the side stand. The owners manual is very clear on the correct way to adjust the chain. I use a front wheel paddock stand when doing my maintenance. See example below. And the correct torque for my Street Twin is 81 ft-lbs. Not 63 ft-lbs. Verify what your owners manual says. 63 is way too low. One other thing concerning the spindle nut coming loose. There should be no lubricant on the spindle threads or nut. It should be dry. If there is any type of lube the torque will not be accurate. 81 ft-lbs dry and 81 ft-lbs lubed are two totally different things. And lube might allow the nut to loosen. It looks like the torque you used is simply too low and incorrect.
One other thing, I recommend using the tool below to ensure the chain is properly aligned. Using this is way more accurate compared to using the simple markers on the swing arm. I bought mine for $12 on line. A good investment.
FWIW, it looks like it was just the brake sticking and rubbing a bit. I guest that loosening and tightening the axle nut caused the wheel to move enough to make it rub. However, I also marked the nut and axle to see if it is also unscrewing. Newbie confusion... Thanks much for the quick and useful advice!
I may have made a mistake on the proper torque value for the older T100. I have a 2018 Street twin and the spindle torque is 81 ft-lbs. I checked and the 63 looks correct for your T100. Looks like Triumph changed the design on the latest bike models.
Thanks much for great advice. The 2009 T100 owners handbook seems to give a slightly different procedure than for street twin (supported with side stand and 63 lb ft). However, I agree with you that having the bike vertical would seem to make more sense.
Are you familiar with brake servicing routines? The underslung rear calliper catches a fair bit of crud and the locking pins on which the pads ride are prone to light corrosion. This in turn binds the pads against the actuating piston and inhibits the small expansion and contraction of the hydraulic seal which lifts the pads pressure on the disc. You just need a screwdriver to pop the caps and an Allen key to unscrew the pins. You can then clean them up and re-grease them sparingly with brake grease. While they are out you can lever the pads back and actuate the brake a couple of times just to ensure free piston travel.
Thanks, mate! Attached is a picture of the bike. I just installed the seat bag, and trying to decide if I like it.