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[rayivers]

While my '14 wheels were off for bearing replacement & tires, I put my spare '16 FX wheels on (w/brake rotors & sprocket mounted) for measurements, alignment/clearance checks, & spacer dimensions. This process wasn't too bad; I needed to make up F&R rim-centering guides, then four spacers.  If your front forks are @ 135mm between the inner axle clamps and your swingarm is @ 210mm between the inner axle-slot faces, all the specs in this post should work fine.



FRONT:  Two spacers needed (diagram below), resulting in a left rim offset of .010" / .25mm for RH fork-foot clearance.  The '14 Nissin front caliper may need a small amount of material (.010" / .25mm) removed from the LH top rotor-exit area above the outer brake pad for OEM rotor clearance (I had my rotor machined instead).



REAR:  Only one RH spacer is really needed (diagram below, w/additional info for 30mm-caliper right spacer for use on '14 DS/S/SR) as the '16 OEM 23-07489  LH spacer will work, but info is provided for both (IMO the 1.025" dimension of my spacers fit the '16 seals better than the 1.063" OEM one).  Sprocket & rotor alignment were spot-on.  Wheel centered to < .005" / .13mm. 



I haven't mounted tires on them yet, but I'm very happy to have the bigger bearings and rims, and also better quality in general.  I had two precision hub sanders made up to true the brake-rotor & sprocket flanges, and used them on two '14 and four '16 FX wheels.  The '16 wheels needed very little material removal from any of the flanges, while the '14 wheels took a lot longer to level out (one of my '14 rear brake-rotor flanges was .012" / .30mm below the others).

If Zero was more forthcoming with parts info, I could give a much better idea of which '14 Zero models this info applies to.  As it is, all I can guarantee is that it will work for the '14 FX.

Ray

[Kocho]

Ray,

Can you share the details? Are these sanders just a flat slab with sandpaper or a bit more involved?

I had two precision hub sanders made up to true the brake-rotor & sprocket flanges, and used them on two '14 and four '16 FX wheels.  The '16 wheels needed very little material removal from any of the flanges, while the '14 wheels took a lot longer to level out (one of my '14 rear brake-rotor flanges was .012" / .30mm below the others).

Ray

[rayivers]

The hub sander's a bit involved, but not overly complex; basically two machined aluminum 'cups' w/adhesive sandpaper, alternately sharing an M20 center shaft. In the pic below both are stacked for storage, only one cup is used at a time:



The top one's for the brake-rotor flanges, and the bottom (with offset sanding ring) is for the sprocket flanges.  The shaft fits through the bearing centers & into a counterbore on the cup section w/M10 screw, then the cup is rotated back & forth to sand the flange faces.  The idea was to "bring the lathe to the hubs" rather than the other way round.  The innermost flange-side rotor edges should also be relieved slightly to ensure they sit flat on the flanges, which is a good idea even if the flanges aren't sanded.  If you need diagrams I have them, I'll just need to combine them.

If  '14 Zero wheels have flat/true flanges and properly seated high-quality bearings, they should give good service until the bearings need replacement.  If one's '14 wheels aren't machined well and $600+ for newer wheels isn't an option, 'blueprinting' the hubs would surely be much better than doing nothing.  The '14 FX / DS hubs can be unlaced and brought or sent to a machine shop, but the cast wheels would need something like this hub sander or a wheel lathe.

Ray

[Kocho]

Thanks!

[BrianTRice@gmail.com]

This is really interesting. An option for extending the life of these bikes is good to have. My 13DS included.

[rayivers]

I agree, Brian.  And another thing... not all '14 wheels are bad; the ones on my street FX seem just fine.  I have a feeling the very first '14's - like my dirt bike, made in October 2013 - have more problems than the later ones.

I think the most important thing for a '14 owner to do is to at least try to spin by hand all 5 wheel bearings with the wheels off. My notchy/worn-out ones felt great spinning the wheel on the bike, and my rusted-to-death swingarm bearings moved butter-smooth with the swingarm on.  Once the new bearings (preferably Ortechs) are in hand, IMO it would be a good idea to dealer-shop for bearing replacement.  Any MC dealer or machine shop can do it, but a race-oriented shop - even an auto one - will probably listen when you tell them it may not be a straightforward replacement, and will likely have the tools, experience, and most importantly, mindset to do the job right the first time.

Ray