need help with my spreading rearend

[ThrillBilly]

NO, its not about my butt!

i have a tange prestige (steel) tube frame with a narrow (7-sp) rear.

due to the limited availability of narrow rear components,
i am comtemplating having the rear spead to accept modern parts.

i have talked to several pros that say: its steel, go right ahead,
and luckily have a LBS nearby that has an alignment table,
and says that they have absolute confidence it doing the spread.

its a good frame (schwinn prologue) that i plan to keep,
but, i am concerned about the possibility of disaster.

what say you metallurgical alchemists?

end result of gold or a lump of worthless pot metal?

 

[mjw_byrne]

Spreading a steel frame is fairly routine and should pose no problem. FWIW, if the discrepancy is less than about 5mm, you'll probably get away with just forcing the hub in there without actually having the frame permanently spread (the "spring" in the rear triangle is enough).

 

[boudreaux]

Originally posted by mjw_byrne
Spreading a steel frame is fairly routine and should pose no problem. FWIW, if the discrepancy is less than about 5mm, you'll probably get away with just forcing the hub in there without actually having the frame permanently spread (the "spring" in the rear triangle is enough).

Yeah.No theory,done it myself. 7 speed was most likely 126mm,and some were even 128. Current road is 130.

 

[ThrillBilly]

yep, i tried to force a wide wheel on, without success.
it would have required MORE force than i was comfortable with.

the LBS with the pro-alignment table quoted me approx $50
the $ is not an issue to me to get the job done correctly.

there would of course be some satisifaction in doing a DIY spread,
but i think the prospect of getting a perfectly centered wheel is iffy, at best.

any more suggestions of experiences? thanks in advance.

 

[Calvin Jones]

It is likely the bike is 126mm wide, and you will be going only up to 130mm, which is 2mm per side. It is very likely this can be done well by a competent mechanic. See the process at http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/FAG2.shtml