Tonight I am crying into my tea!!

[Andy R]

This from Sheldon Brown might be useful, especially the bit about checking alignment.
You can use a long straught-edge instead of string, obviously. It just needs to be able to contact the face of the dropouts, so you might need to make up a small spacer so it can do this while clearing the chainstay....

 

[fatandforty]

It's not just too much powdercoat on the dropouts?

This is pretty common post powdercoat IMHO, and will cause the wheels to not fit in the dropouts, or sit out of alignment..................


Andy

Not unless they managed to get 6mm of powder on!

 

[FluffyChicken]

It's not just too much powdercoat on the dropouts?

This is pretty common post powdercoat IMHO, and will cause the wheels to not fit in the dropouts, or sit out of alignment..................


Andy

Not unless they managed to get 6mm of powder on!

6mm, have you had teh wheel your using in it before without any problems ?
If not, you sure it's not just the wrong axle length you are using, say 130 not 135 or the other way around.


cough up, what frame is it and pictures I know the rest'll be curious like me.

 

[fatandforty]

Thats what I thought too but I compared the axle size of the old wheel to the new one and the both appear to be 135mm.

Its just that old Donahue I keep harping on about .

I'm going to take everything to the LBS and get a second opionion next week.

 

[Andy R]

Did the wheel fit ok before you sent the frame off for powdercoating?

It's possible that the rear triangle might have "moved" a bit, as, of course, the powdercoating process involves heating to around 200 Celsius.

 

[hamster]

At 200C it shouldn't move anything! It's not enough even to affect the heat treating.

I have seen a frame dropped onto the mech hanger which closed up the dropout.

 

[Andy R]

At 200C it shouldn't move anything! It's not enough even to affect the heat treating.

I (very politely) beg to differ - it is possible for a welded steel structure to be affected by a rise in temperature of as "little" as 200 Celsius.

There will, as you say, be no heat treatment issues at that sort of temperature - not with a steel frame which will have received no heat treatment anyway.

 

[any123]

i know this sounds daft but i could not do with all the faffing of getting it straightened, because you will never be quite happy even after the job is done. unless the whole rear triangle was removed and new pipes put on.

I would just buy a new steel frame off the bay, that way you know its in line and you have a new frame to boot. unless of course you have spent a lot of time with this frame and money. other option is take it to local frame builder and get them to get it in line.

the only time i have seen a bike out of line is when its a single speed and they tried to put 7 speed wheel in and had to open the stays for it to fit.

thanks andy

 

[fatandforty]

To be honest Andy I'm can't remember, It's been stored on a filing store at work for about the last 8 years with the wheels off. I got it down and stripped it to send for powder coating and never checked. I'm hoping it'll just need a tweak from being dropped or something. I can't say wether it was done on the way to the PC or at the PC.

So I suppose as long as things straighten out OK I'll just have to write it down as another resoration cost. I'll just be pi55ed if it ruins the PC.

 

[any123]

they will have to heat it to a temp where your powder coat is gone for them to straighten correctly. sounds like someone has by accident trod on rear stays at some point while at work. saying that some bikes are just welded by crap welders who set the jig up wrong when building frame.

i had a giant cadex carbon with ali lugs and that was so out of line giant reimbursed me and gave me a new frame that was inline.

thanks andy