Rear wheel/fender alignment question

[RetNYPD]

Greetings all!
I just put the front and rear fender rails on my '09 Heritage.
Question for those who also have them, whether you installed them yourself or not. After I installed the rear rail, I notice the rear fender doesn't center on the rear wheel. There is more room between the tire and fender on the left side of the bike than on the right side. Is this normal? I followed the rear fender torque instructions from the service manual, including torquing, loosening and retorquing the front fender strut bolts. But there is definitely a misalignment of the fender and rear wheel. The wheel wasn't touched at all during the install.
Sorry I don't have pix yet. I'll try and upload ASAP.
Thanks for any wisdom you can share.
Semper Fidelis!
Tom

 

[shovelrider]

The misalignment is common on a Heritage.Just a thought ,did you check the gap from one side to the other before the install.

 

[NEWHD74FAN]

RetNYPD - welcome to the HDTimeline forum, and while others will weigh-in...NO it is not normal...and YES on a new bike you should not receive anything from the dealer other than customer satisfaction to get it right. What likely will have to be done is a lot of the hardware nuts and bolts have to be loosened and all side by side tension removed. Then the alignment of the wheel/tire assy, fender etc. have to be adjusted square and sequence tightened in proper alignment to the frame / swing arm centerlines, (probably a good time to check the front as welll). Your installing trim rails should not have affected this fundamental thing.

 

[RetNYPD]

Shovelrider,
Thanks for the quick reply. I did not check the alignment prior to installing the fender rail. But going back thru some pix I took the day I brought my baby home, I found that even then the fender and wheel were not centered on each other.
NEWHDFAN, Does the pic indicate that the bike was sent off from the dealer (where I got her) improperly prepped?
As the pic shows, even the day I brought her home, the fender has more clearance on the left side of the tire than on the right.
Thanks again for any and all opinions, thoughts and ideas.
Semper Fidelis!
Tom

 

[RetNYPD]

Thanks for the reply and links Hobbit. Looks like this is a fairly common situation. I'm gonna have to take a ride to the dealer, see how the Classics in the showroom look and get their opinion.
Thanks again.
Semper Fidelis!
Tom