Rear wheel alignment

A shy person said:

Rockhopper rear wheel appears out of alignment relative to the chainsta=

ys. If

Quoted message said:

I align the wheel between the chainstays then the wheel is not centered=

between

Quoted message said:

the seatstays. Is my assumption correct that the frame is twisted/bent.=

Any

Quoted message said:

means of correcting? For the record I didn't have any major crashes, h=

ave been

Quoted message said:

replacing spokes as they have been break one at a time.

You can check the frame alignment with the "string test" described at:

sheldonbrown.comframe spacing.htmlOpen ↗

However, my guess is that there's nothing wrong with your frame, and=20 that the problem is that the
wheel is no longer centered ("dished"😉=20 properly so that the rim is halfway between the two ends
of the axle.

The quick and dirty test for this is to install the wheel backwards and=20 see if it's off to the
same side or the opposite side.

If it's the same, it's the frame.

If it isn't, it's the wheel.

Sheldon "Symmetry" Brown +---------------------------------------------------------------+
| The poet Henry O'Meara (1848-1904) was my great-grandfather | I=92ve put his book "Ballads of
| America and Other Poems" | on the Web at: sheldonbrown.comomearaOpen ↗ |
+---------------------------------------------------------------+ Harris Cyclery, West Newton,
Massachusetts Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041 harriscyclery.comharriscyclery.comOpen ↗ Hard-to-find parts
shipped Worldwide captainbike.comcaptainbike.comOpen ↗ sheldonbrown.comsheldonbrown.comOpen ↗

"TWRud" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Rockhopper rear wheel appears out of alignment relative to the chainstays.

If

Quoted message said:

I align the wheel between the chainstays then the wheel is not centered

between

Quoted message said:

the seatstays. Is my assumption correct that the frame is twisted/bent.

Any

Quoted message said:

means of correcting? For the record I didn't have any major crashes, have

been

Quoted message said:

replacing spokes as they have been break one at a time.

Flip your bike upside down. Drop the wheel into the frame as far as it will fall, note where the rim
is in relation to the left and right seatstays and chainstays. Now flip the wheel over ( cogs on the
left) and drop it in again. If the wheel ends up in the same offcenter place, your frame "has
issues". If it is now off the other way, your wheel is not symmetric - the rim's not centered over
the locknuts.

--
Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Well I turned the wheel around and the offset between the chainstays didn't move so I must of bent
the frame. Can I bend Alum frame back?

Quoted message said:

Can I bend Alum frame back?

Not recommended. However, to see how bad the frame is bent, tie a string at the bottom of one
seatstay, or the dropout, run it around the headtube and tie it to the opposite seatstay or
dropout. Try to tie the string at the same spot on both ends and keep it tight. measure the
distance from the string to the seatube on both sides and it will give you a clue of how badly out
of alignment your bike is.

However, when you turn your rear wheel around, the offset between the chainstays should remain the
same, provided that the wheel is properly aligned.

Andres

Andres

visit my art website at: www.geocities.com/andresmuro/art.html