Rear Wheel rubs chainstay

[Kalukis]

I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used last fall (Jans Schneider steel
frame road bike). It tends to end up crooked to the left and rubbing the tire against the left
chainstay. I've tightened the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too tight and
may bind the wheel bearings.

After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight. Would crooked dropouts cause this
type of problem?

Thanks, Kalukis

 

[Paul Southworth]

In article <9qy%[email protected]>, Kalukis <[email protected]> wrote:
>I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used last fall (Jans Schneider steel
>frame road bike). It tends to end up crooked to the left and rubbing the tire against the left
>chainstay. I've tightened the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too tight and
>may bind the wheel bearings.
>
>After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight. Would crooked dropouts cause
>this type of problem?

Perhaps, but a more likely cause is the axle protruding too far past the lock nut on one side or
the other.

--Paul

 

[Phil Holman]

"Paul Southworth" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:n1z%a.37167$A%[email protected]...
> In article <9qy%[email protected]>, Kalukis <[email protected]> wrote:
> >I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used
last
> >fall (Jans Schneider steel frame road bike). It tends to end up
crooked to
> >the left and rubbing the tire against the left chainstay. I've
tightened
> >the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too tight
and
> >may bind the wheel bearings.
> >
> >After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight.
Would
> >crooked dropouts cause this type of problem?
>
> Perhaps, but a more likely cause is the axle protruding too far past
the
> lock nut on one side or the other.

Yes that's one cause. Another is a broken axle.

Phil Holman

 

[Kalukis]

What I forgot to mention is that this has been happening on several wheels (with different axles)
on the bike.

The latest wheel was professionally built and is brand new, so I think we can rule out the broken
axle theory. I'll look and see about the axle protrusion, but seems unlikely, given that this has
happened with several wheels.

"Phil Holman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:V%z%[email protected]...
>
> "Paul Southworth" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:n1z%a.37167$A%[email protected]...
> > In article <9qy%[email protected]>, Kalukis <[email protected]> wrote:
> > >I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used
> last
> > >fall (Jans Schneider steel frame road bike). It tends to end up
> crooked to
> > >the left and rubbing the tire against the left chainstay. I've
> tightened
> > >the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too tight
> and
> > >may bind the wheel bearings.
> > >
> > >After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight.
> Would
> > >crooked dropouts cause this type of problem?
> >
> > Perhaps, but a more likely cause is the axle protruding too far past
> the
> > lock nut on one side or the other.
>
> Yes that's one cause. Another is a broken axle.
>
> Phil Holman

 

[Werehatrack]

On Sat, 16 Aug 2003 22:41:09 GMT, "Kalukis" <[email protected]> may have said:

>I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used last fall (Jans Schneider steel
>frame road bike). It tends to end up crooked to the left and rubbing the tire against the left
>chainstay. I've tightened the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too tight and
>may bind the wheel bearings.
>
>After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight. Would crooked dropouts cause
>this type of problem?

Possibly, but if you aligned and properly locked the wheel in position, and it actually shifted,
there should be scarred paint to show where it moved whether the dropout is bent or not. On the
other hand, if the axle's badly off center, the QR may not clamp both sides equally, and the wheel
can shift, possibly without scraping the paint off. (This is unlikely to be the cause of your
problem if there's been no rear hub work done recently.) Or the axle may be broken. Or there may be
a bad bearing in there that is getting progressively worse and allowing the wheel to appear to
shift. (Another poster here recently found this to be his problem in a superficially similar
instance.)

Check everything before buying anything. And wait to see what other suggestions come up before
deciding what to do.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

 

[Werehatrack]

On Sun, 17 Aug 2003 03:22:29 GMT, "Kalukis" <[email protected]> may have said:

>What I forgot to mention is that this has been happening on several wheels (with different axles)
>on the bike.
>
>The latest wheel was professionally built and is brand new, so I think we can rule out the broken
>axle theory. I'll look and see about the axle protrusion, but seems unlikely, given that this has
>happened with several wheels.

Check the joints on the dropouts as well. You might have a loose one. This would most likely be
something that will require a trip to the lbs to get fixed. (The probability of this being the
problem is, in my estimation, extremely low, however...but it's still something to check.)

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail. Yes, I have a killfile. If I
don't respond to something, it's also possible that I'm busy.

 

[Jobst Brandt]

Kalukis Mottley writes:

> I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used last fall (Jans Schneider
> steel frame road bike). It tends to end up crooked to the left and rubbing the tire against the
> left chainstay. I've tightened the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too
> tight and may bind the wheel bearings.

I don't know how tight you make your QR or how you close it. A QR skewer should be screwed in to a
point that the lever can be closed into the clamped position with a perceptible "over-center"
response. That is, the lever, when rotated from the loose position to the tight one (180 degrees),
passes over ha high point and falls into a position that requires force to open it again. Excessive
force will crack the QR head.

Whether the axle protrusion is too great or the closure force is inadequate, the result is the same,
the right side of the axle moves forward from the pull of the chain. This can arise from dropouts
that are too thin, which makes the axle extension too large on a wheel that otherwise works in other
frames. It can be that the QR is aluminum and cannot clamp tightly enough. If the jam nuts on the
axle are not knurled (serrated) they may have insufficient bite on a hard chromed dropout. In any
case, the QR is not clamping the axle sufficiently.

> After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight. Would crooked dropouts cause
> this type of problem?

That makes no difference. If the wheel is installed in the correct position it should stay there
regardless of slight misalignment of the dropouts. Such misalignment may lead to axle failure
because it puts a constant stress on the axle on which riding loads are overlayed, and it can cause
dropout cracking. But these are not related to your current problem.

Jobst Brandt [email protected] Palo Alto CA

 

[Matabala]

Have had a similar problem, turns out the rear stays aren't exactly the same length. Seems to have
been a manufacturing error. Something to be on the lookout for, even in "respected" frame builders.

<[email protected]> wrote in message news:9vO%[email protected]...
> Kalukis Mottley writes:
>
> > I'm had a recurring problem with my rear wheel on a bike I got used last fall (Jans Schneider
> > steel frame road bike). It tends to end up crooked to the left and rubbing the tire against the
> > left chainstay. I've tightened the rear quick release--some people have suggest that it is too
> > tight and may bind the wheel bearings.
>
> I don't know how tight you make your QR or how you close it. A QR skewer should be screwed in to a
> point that the lever can be closed into the clamped position with a perceptible "over-center"
> response. That is, the lever, when rotated from the loose position to the tight one (180 degrees),
> passes over ha high point and falls into a position that requires force to open it again.
> Excessive force will crack the QR head.
>
> Whether the axle protrusion is too great or the closure force is inadequate, the result is the
> same, the right side of the axle moves forward from the pull of the chain. This can arise from
> dropouts that are too thin, which makes the axle extension too large on a wheel that otherwise
> works in other frames. It can be that the QR is aluminum and cannot clamp tightly enough. If the
> jam nuts on the axle are not knurled (serrated) they may have insufficient bite on a hard chromed
> dropout. In any case, the QR is not clamping the axle sufficiently.
>
> > After looking at rear dropouts, I wonder if they are not straight. Would crooked dropouts cause
> > this type of problem?
>
> That makes no difference. If the wheel is installed in the correct position it should stay there
> regardless of slight misalignment of the dropouts. Such misalignment may lead to axle failure
> because it puts a constant stress on the axle on which riding loads are overlayed, and it can
> cause dropout cracking. But these are not related to your current problem.
>
> Jobst Brandt [email protected] Palo Alto CA

 

[Bikefixr]

Crooked dropouts can certainly cause a problem like this, but it isn't a common cause. I'd look to
see if the axle isn't too long. If it protrudes even a small amount beyond the outer face of the
dropout, the cam-nut on the QR skewer will bottom on the axle and not the face of the dropout. I see
this a lot on older hubs with replacement axles and on bikes with thin dropouts.