So which way round should the rear spindle go?

[SteveD CB500K0]

Mine has the castle nut on the left (looking at the bike from behind) which my tyre fitter says is the wrong side. He says that they were fitted the other way so that right-handed mechanics could undo them more easily 

[Bryanj]

Man talk from fundamental orifice parts book and fig 256 in manual shows nut on Sprcket side

[dave400]

Sprocket side on the 400 also.

[SteveD CB500K0]

I thought so.

I have a great deal of respect for the guy as what he doesn't know about tyres "ain't worth knowing" AND he has owned CB750s in the past.

He's wrong here though...

I guess it's the fact that most (all?) modern bikes are that way round (at least the single sided swingarm ones are)

[mick]

Woops both my 750's have the nut on the right hand side (looking from behind ) & my GT has the nut on the left  , & my VTX being single sided is on the right  , cheers Mick.

[Dave M]

On my 550F the nut is on the right hand side as shown in the parts book.

Something to do with the 4 into 1 exhaust system perhaps? The silencer would have to be removed to get the spindle out.

[SteveD CB500K0]

The silencer would have to be removed to get the spindle out.

I don't take the spindle out. Undo the adjusters, remove the chain and the brakearm and slide the wheel out backwards.

[Bryanj]

That works on the 500 but the 550 has closed off swing arm ends so you have to pull the spindle,

Incidentaly that where the changeover is for brakeplates, hubs and spacers

[SteveD CB500K0]

So on the K3, was there a clever cut-out in the exhausts? I had 4 of these over the years and can't remember it being a problem.

[Dave M]

The K3 had an open swing arm so you just had to slacken the spindle nut, remove all the brake linkages and then the wheel is pulled backwards out of the swing arm. No need to remove the spindle until the wheel is out.

[florence]

Thanks to my loathsome Motad silencer I have to undo the bottom of the shock absorbers to allow enough room to extract the spindle.  I think I will look for a different exhaust system when this one rusts away.  Having said that it they do seem to last well, it's only the second silencer I've bought in 14 years! and it still seems very solid.  When I bought the bike it still had the remains of the original exhaust, albeit many times brazed and full of holes.  My cb350k used to eat exhausts, I don't know what the difference is.  Unleaded petrol?