[I Are Baboon]

I noticed last night that my rear wheel is not really aligned properly. What I mean is, when you stand behind the bike and look at the rear wheel, it is closer to the right side of the rear triangle, instead of being perfectly centered. The tire is not rubbing on anything, but it is coming very close on the right side. The left side has plenty of room.

Is this any cause for concern, and how do I adjust this? The rim seems to be trued, or it's be rubbing on the frame or rotor. I checked the obvious and made sure the wheel was firmly in the dropout, which it was. Any ideas?

 

[Deyv]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
I noticed last night that my rear wheel is not really aligned properly. What I mean is, when you stand behind the bike and look at the rear wheel, it is closer to the right side of the rear triangle, instead of being perfectly centered. The tire is not rubbing on anything, but it is coming very close on the right side. The left side has plenty of room.

Is this any cause for concern, and how do I adjust this? The rim seems to be trued, or it's be rubbing on the frame or rotor. I checked the obvious and made sure the wheel was firmly in the dropout, which it was. Any ideas?

aside from what you have pointed out ( I checked the obvious and made sure the wheel was firmly in the dropout) no.

are you sure that it all the way in the dropout and that your chain in not a wrong gear forcing the hub to be not centered.

 

[indieboy]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
I noticed last night that my rear wheel is not really aligned properly. What I mean is, when you stand behind the bike and look at the rear wheel, it is closer to the right side of the rear triangle, instead of being perfectly centered. The tire is not rubbing on anything, but it is coming very close on the right side. The left side has plenty of room.

Is this any cause for concern, and how do I adjust this? The rim seems to be trued, or it's be rubbing on the frame or rotor. I checked the obvious and made sure the wheel was firmly in the dropout, which it was. Any ideas?

hrm, well if you say you checked the drop out and made sure that the wheel was properly in there then i'll take your word for it. your frame could possibly be bent or was not produced in a manner where the rear end was never straight. if your shop is a good one they should have some alignment tools. i'd have them take a look at it and check things out.

 

[I Are Baboon]

Originally posted by Deyv
are you sure that it all the way in the dropout and that your chain in not a wrong gear forcing the hub to be not centered.

I thought about that, so I changed gears, took the tire off, and put it back on. No luck.

Originally posted by indieboy
hrm, well if you say you checked the drop out and made sure that the wheel was properly in there then i'll take your word for it. your frame could possibly be bent or was not produced in a manner where the rear end was never straight. if your shop is a good one they should have some alignment tools. i'd have them take a look at it and check things out.

Yeah, I also had MtnBikerChk check to see if the wheel was all the way in the dropout, just to be sure. I was planning on taking the bike to the LBS after the weekend and have them check it out.

I never noticed if the alignment was off with the 2.1" tires. I guess it's just real easy to notice with the 2.35" tires.

 

[indieboy]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
I thought about that, so I changed gears, took the tire off, and put it back on. No luck.


Yeah, I also had MtnBikerChk check to see if the wheel was all the way in the dropout, just to be sure. I was planning on taking the bike to the LBS after the weekend and have them check it out.

I never noticed if the alignment was off with the 2.1" tires. I guess it's just real easy to notice with the 2.35" tires. [/QUOT

if the rear end was asymmetricaly that might explain it but i honestly don't think titus does that w/ any of their bikes so that X's that possible explaination out.

 

[BikeGeek]

Is the rim closer to the stays on one side or is it just that the tire seems closer? You recently put a new tire on, right? Maybe the tire isn't seating properly.

 

[I Are Baboon]

Originally posted by BikeGeek
Is the rim closer to the stays on one side or is it just that the tire seems closer? You recently put a new tire on, right? Maybe the tire isn't seating properly.

Hard to say if the rim is out of alignment. I only looked when the tire was on it. I checked the tire though to make sure it was the rim evenly, and it did look ok. I would think that if it was off, the tire would wobble from side to side when I spun it.

 

[spincrazy]

Maybe the wheel is out of dish?

 

[bomberz1qr20]

1) Check to see if the wheel is true, AND properly dished. Remove the tire, put the wheel in the frame, and measure a point from the
rim to one of the stays. Now flip the wheel (without threading the chain over the brake rotor!) and take the same measurement, at the same point on the stay. If it's equal, the wheel is properly dished. If not, take it to the shop and have them re-dish it (if you don't know how)

A "properly" dished wheel simply means the rim is perfectly centered between the hub locknuts.

2) Check the rear alignment. Put the properly dished wheel in the frame. The wheel should be centered between the chain stays AND the seat stays. If it's centered between one and not the other, have the frame carefully checked for A) dropout alignment and B) front to back alignment.

And yes, special tools are needed to make this accurate, go to the LBS, if they're good, they'll have them.

Edited for spelling...

 

[SwisSlesS]

Originally posted by spincrazy
Maybe the wheel is out of dish?

That was my first thought. If your hub is all the way up and back in the dropounts, your wheel is probably not dished properly. Bring it to your local bike shop (or a friend with a dishing tool) and have them check it.

 

[BikeGeek]

Originally posted by spincrazy
Maybe the wheel is out of dish?

That's what I was getting at. If the rim is uniformly closer to one side it should be easy enough to loosen all the spokes on that side a bit, and tighten all the spokes on the other side they same amount.

 

[I Are Baboon]

OK, so if the wheel is out of dish, I should probably check into that before I take it to Nam Saturday for some drops, eh?

 

[SwisSlesS]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
OK, so if the wheel is out of dish, I should probably check into that before I take it to Nam Saturday for some drops, eh?

Well the tension's probably fine since the wheel has most likely been out of dish for a while. It's not like doing drops is going to break it or anything. However, I would still get it checked out because **** like that just bothers me .

 

[I Are Baboon]

Originally posted by SwisSlesS
Well the tension's probably fine since the wheel has most likely been out of dish for a while. It's not like doing drops is going to break it or anything. However, I would still get it checked out because **** like that just bothers me .

So being out of dish does not weaken the rim?

 

[SwisSlesS]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
So being out of dish does not weaken the rim?

Not really. I mean, any dished wheel is weaker than a wheel that is not dished. This is because the spokes on one side are tighter than the spokes on the other, which makes it easier for the wheel to get out of true. So an improperly dished wheel is probably about the same strength as a properly dished one.

 

[bomberz1qr20]

Originally posted by SwisSlesS
Not really. I mean, any dished wheel is weaker than a wheel that is not dished. This is because the spokes on one side are tighter than the spokes on the other, which makes it easier for the wheel to get out of true. So an improperly dished wheel is probably about the same strength as a properly dished one.

Sorta...

Look at the drive side of most wheels with a multi speed hub. The spokes are shorter, and the tension is higher, making the angle from hub flange to rim much shallower than the non-drive side.
This makes the drive side weaker then the non-drive side in terms of lateral forces (turning, leaning, mad skills on the flatlands, etc)

The radial strength is about equal.

Therefore, a "dishless" wheel (which is a misnomer, all wheels are dished) has equal lateral strength on both sides of the wheel.
Single speed baby!

Now if you have a multi speed wheel, and the dish is way off toward the drive side, this wheel will have even less lateral strength (especially from lateral forces applied to the non-drive side), than a properly dished wheel.

K?

 

[I Are Baboon]

bomberz1qr20, thanks for the input. I actually do have a Park Took dishing tool which I got when I got my truing stand. I just need to figure out how to use the thing. Seems to me like it'd be easier to use that tool instead of taking measurements.

 

[mrbigisbudgood]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
bomberz1qr20, thanks for the input. I actually do have a Park Took dishing tool which I got when I got my truing stand. I just need to figure out how to use the thing. Seems to me like it'd be easier to use that tool instead of taking measurements.

One word of advice when using a dishing tool. Don't measure dish to the axle, measure it to the nuts that rest against the inside of the frame. Axles are very often off center and can throw off your dish.

Happy Truing!

 

[peter6061]

yeah, what all those guys above said about dish.

The other reason you would want your wheel to be properly dished is that if it were not, the tire would most likely rub on your frame. This is not the case for you as you (as I do) have enough clearance on the back of that frame for 3.0 inch tires.

Happy riding!

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Check the dish first by removing the wheel, if it is dished properly, put the wheel back on and dish to the swingarm. Remember to remove your tire when you do this.

 

[SwisSlesS]

Originally posted by bomberz1qr20
Now if you have a multi speed wheel, and the dish is way off toward the drive side, this wheel will have even less lateral strength (especially from lateral forces applied to the non-drive side), than a properly dished wheel.

Yeah, I purposely left that part out. However, at this point in time, I don't quite remember why.

 

[I Are Baboon]

For all you homies who suspected the wheel was out of dish (spincrazy, bomberz, swissless, BikeGeek, peter6061), you are correct! I took the wheel to the shop today and their chief mechanic said it's off by 3/8 of an inch. I don't know all that much about tire maintenance, but that seems like a lot to be off.

Well, the bike is still within the first year that I bought it, so the shop will not charge me for the repair.

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
For all you homies who suspected the wheel was out of dish (spincrazy, bomberz, swissless, BikeGeek, peter6061), you are correct! I took the wheel to the shop today and their chief mechanic said it's off by 3/8 of an inch. I don't know all that much about tire maintenance, but that seems like a lot to be off.

Well, the bike is still within the first year that I bought it, so the shop will not charge me for the repair.

3/8 thats a sizeable amount, glad they are covering it.

 

[spincrazy]

Originally posted by Brian HCM#1
3/8 thats a sizeable amount, glad they are covering it.

Yeah, cool. Oh, and I'm so smart.

 

[bomberz1qr20]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon


Well, the bike is still within the first year that I bought it, so the shop will not charge me for the repair.

Wait, this was a wheel on a new bike they sold you? They let it roll out of the shop with a rea wheel 3/8" out of dish?

W

T

F?

I don't know about other shops, but we shoot for +/- 1mm difference (or less) in dish on our wheels on new bikes. And that's on the cheapo bikes.

Did you have them check the front too? How about the wheel bearing adjustments? Have them do a once over on the bike - twice.

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Originally posted by bomberz1qr20
Wait, this was a wheel on a new bike they sold you? They let it roll out of the shop with a rea wheel 3/8" out of dish?

W

T

F?

It was probably drug related

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Originally posted by spincrazy
Yeah, cool. Oh, and I'm so smart.

Even with a bum knee, you're on top of it

 

[SwisSlesS]

Originally posted by Brian HCM#1
It was probably drug related

Your LBS is full of a bunch of weed smoking hippies, huh?

 

[I Are Baboon]

Originally posted by bomberz1qr20
Wait, this was a wheel on a new bike they sold you? They let it roll out of the shop with a rea wheel 3/8" out of dish?

Did you have them check the front too? How about the wheel bearing adjustments? Have them do a once over on the bike - twice.

I don't know if it rolled out of the shop like that. I bought the bike last August and have been riding hard on it since then. Can wheels start out ok, but work themselves out of dish?

I did not have them check the front. The front looks ok to me...no noticeable problem like I had on the back.

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Originally posted by I Are Baboon
I don't know if it rolled out of the shop like that. I bought the bike last August and have been riding hard on it since then. Can wheels start out ok, but work themselves out of dish?

I did not have them check the front. The front looks ok to me...no noticeable problem like I had on the back.

Nope, it was out of dish from the start..........Damn hippies:angry:

 

[spincrazy]

Originally posted by Brian HCM#1
Even with a bum knee, you're on top of it

Only because I've not gotten those pain meds yet.

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Originally posted by spincrazy
Only because I've not gotten those pain meds yet.

I got sick from the Vicodine

 

[spincrazy]

Originally posted by Brian HCM#1
I got sick from the Vicodine

vicodine is one of those drugs that does ZERO for me. Too bad about your tum tum. I hope I get something with a real kick. It shoulnd't be hard, because I never take the stuff if I can at all help it. That's what sucked about the vicodine....real pain and no relief, even with beers. Ibuprofen does zero for me as well.