Rear wheel over to one side

nbuuifx
nbuuifx Posts: 302
edited December 2018 in MTB workshop & tech
Sorry for the many questions but trying to get everything setup right.

Back to my Boardman MTB...

I've put wider tyres on. They are 2.3" which is the widest that the frame is supposed to take.

They fit but the rear wheel is a little bit close to the frame on the non drive side. I've double checked it is sitting in the drop outs correctly.

When spinning the wheel it doesn't contact, however I took it for a test ride, most of the time it doesn't contact but when I had to put a good amount of effort in on the peddles, I could feel the knobbles rub on the frame.

So my first question is, what is wrong to make it sit over to the left? Does the wheel just need dishing to make the drive side flatter?

Secondly is it normal for the wheel to twist ever so slightly when high torque is applied?

Other than that the tyres felt to grip a lot better in the mud.

Comments

  • cooldad
    cooldad Posts: 32,599
    If the rear wheel has cup and cone bearings you can just change the spacing on the a bit, generally.
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  • nbuuifx
    nbuuifx Posts: 302
    They have sealed bearings
  • swod1
    swod1 Posts: 1,639
    is the tyre centred on the wheel ?

    could be this and its over at one point on the rim so when you ride it the tyre touches the frame.
  • steve_sordy
    steve_sordy Posts: 2,446
    nbuuifx wrote:
    .....................

    When spinning the wheel it doesn't contact, however I took it for a test ride, most of the time it doesn't contact but when I had to put a good amount of effort in on the peddles, I could feel the knobbles rub on the frame.
    .........

    Secondly is it normal for the wheel to twist ever so slightly when high torque is applied?

    ..............

    The wheel is not perfectly rigid, nor is your frame, so therefore they will bend/deflect/twist. If the gaps are smaller because of the larger tyre then you will notice the twisting more. A tyre will rapidly wear through the frame, especially if it is muddy. Do not ride the bike hard until you have got this sorted.
  • billycool
    billycool Posts: 833
    Not all 2.3" tyres are the same. Some have wider/fatter profiles and bigger nobbles etc.

    You might find the tyre you have fitted just won't fit properly anyway as the tolerances are so close. Or you have loose spokes and the wheel is flexing? Or something else.

    Are your bearings healthy and not allowing any movement in the hub and the axle is done up tight?
    "Ride, crash, replace"
  • nbuuifx
    nbuuifx Posts: 302
    I've spent a bit of time measuring and swapping bits over.

    I've got two sets of wheels for this bike so that helps.

    The other set of wheels has hybrid type 2.0" wide tyres on Alex rims. The set that I was talking about were the original bikes Ritchie OCR wheels which I'd put the 2.3" wide tyres on.

    The following measurements were taken using vernier calipers at the widest point when inflated to 30psi:

    The 2.0" ones measure 53mm wide (which should be 50.8mm to be 2.0")
    The 2.3" ones measure 54mm wide (which should be 58.4mm to be 2.3")

    So they are fairly narrow for a 2.3" tyre and marginal in difference to the other set. The height of the tyre from the rim is 46mm for the hybrid and 50mm for the off road tyre, so that 4mm does move the widest point of the tyre further into the V shape of the frame.

    Measuring the Gaps as best as I could the hybrid tyre had a 7mm drive side, and 5mm gap on the Disc side.

    The off road tyre had approx 7mm gap on the drive side and about 2-3mm on the disc side.

    I swapped the tyres over between wheels. The off road ones now sit more centrally and I hope won't rub now. They have close to 5mm on each side with the drive side still being marginally wider.

    The hybrid tyres now sit close to the frame.

    Bearings in both rear hubs feel fine with no noticeable play. The bearings in the ritchie wheel were replaced a couple of years ago.

    So does it come down to aligning the wheel with the spokes? It seems to run fairly true, it isn't perfect but within my tolerance and about as true as I can make a wheel!

    Or could it be a spacer issue?
  • bobbydigital
    bobbydigital Posts: 254
    Did you dish your wheel?

    If you flip the wheel over 180 degrees so that the cassette is on the wrong side, see if the tyre is then too close to that side of the frame, if so then you will need to dish/re-dish the wheel by loosening all the spokes equally on one side and tightening all the spokes equally on the other side.
  • nbuuifx
    nbuuifx Posts: 302
    No I didn't dish it yet, I swapped to the other wheel. Just wanted to check that there wasn't a spacer etc that could be set wrong. With the tyres on the other wheels neither run but the hybrid tyre is closer to the frame on the one side

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