Mk.lll front wheel offset

Hi Allan,

The text below is taken from :-http://www.nortonownersclub.org/support/technical-support-commando/wheel-offsets

And it may answer your question.

Regards

Tony

Do not confuse Commando hub offset with rim offset

I think there is some confusion between front wheel offset as measured in relation to the hub, with offset as measured in relation to the forks.The front wheel is supposed to be centred in between the forks of a Commando no matter what year or type of brake (i.e. no offset). On disc braked Nortons the wheel is not supposed to be centred on the hub since the hub flanges are not equidistant from the forks. If the wheel is laced up so it's centred on the hub it will be offset to one side of the forks.On a disc brake equipped Norton, in order to have the wheel centred between the forks, the wheel must be laced with some offset in relation to the hub centre. The easiest way to do this is to have the wheel builder measure the offset before disassembling the wheel. Experienced wheel builders usually do this as a matter of course but unfortunately some assume the wheel must be centred on the hub.As far as I know the rear wheel on a Commando should be centred in the swinging arm. I have never measured a Mk.lll wheel but I would guess it is conceivable the rear must be offset on the hub like the front.

Raul Biascoechea(raul-sandy@juno.com)on NOC-L 14th. Oct 1997

On some of the US website forums there is mention of off-set front and rear rims on Commandos in a move to achieve a better balance. As usual with these forums there are arguments for and against. Converting the primary drive to belt being one of the reasons quoted for shifting the rims slightly.

Back in the early 1990s I purchased an Atlas that had 18" rims plus front and rear off-set. It also had fairly chunky tyres. It seemed to handle fairly well but when the tyres needed replacing I had the rims re-trued to central. This change seemed to make no difference.