Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Lil' help please

I’m converting a Schwinn Traveler into a SS (possibly fixed at a later time). Everything is going great but, the rear wheel is not directly in line with the seat tube. It leans a little to the right if you’re looking from the rear. Ha. That last sentence could have a whole other meaning if read by itself. If I move wheel to the center the tension on the chain is lost. Is this normal or is there something I can do to correct it.

I’m converting a Schwinn Traveler into a SS (possibly fixed at a later time). Everything is going great but, the rear wheel is not directly in line with the seat tube. It leans a little to the right if you’re looking from the rear. Ha. That last sentence could have a whole other meaning if read by itself. If I move wheel to the center the tension on the chain is lost. Is this normal or is there something I can do to correct it.

is one of the dropouts bent?

it didn't look like it but i will check.

is the wheel angled away from the seattube? If so the drops/stays/axle could be bent (?). If the entire wheel is displayed from the seattube, you may simply need to changes your axle spacers.

It leans a little to the right if you’re looking from the rear.

is the rear wheel one that you removed a freewheel gear cluster from? it may be that your chainline isn't perfect, so when your rear wheel is leaning to the right, you sicko, the chainline is optimal. when you put your wheel straight, it could be throwing off the chainline. as stevo suggested, you may need to adjust your axle spacers or perhaps redish the wheel so the rim is more centered over the hub. or both. or a dumptruck. or mary jane rotten crotch.

I’ve experimented with the spacers in different positions. As far as I can tell the chain line is as straight as I can get it. The wheel is angled away. Perhaps it is bent a little. I’ll run it by my LBS and get another set of eyes on it.

Thanks.

Oh, and yes, it is the rear wheel that I removed a freewheel gear cluster from.

re-dish the wheel and play around with axle spacing.

post pics - i have an 85 (chicago) traveler. nice frame.

so, i took the bike to the LBS and a guy there told me that the quick release won't hold it. i need to bolt it. i'll give that a try.
any easily understood directions out there on how to re-dish a wheel if that is what i need to do?
i'll post a pic later; the connection really sucks on this work computer.

No! QRs should work just fine...

As OneTinSloth mentioned: Redish (move the rim compared to the hub) to get the tire in the right spot if your chainline is where you want it.


so, i took the bike to the LBS and a guy there told me that the quick release won't hold it. i need to bolt it. i'll give that a try.
any easily understood directions out there on how to re-dish a wheel if that is what i need to do?
i'll post a pic later; the connection really sucks on this work computer.

"No! QRs should work just fine..."

ditto; despite all the people who are about to respond claiming a QR didnt work for them because of their massive leg strength.

"No! QRs should work just fine..."

ditto; despite all the people who are about to respond claiming a QR didnt work for them because of their massive leg strength.

Yeah, but with my massive leg strength, the QR just didn't hold!! :)

i used a QR for a long time without problems. i also had monster serrated washers in there too.

re-dishing a wheel: if it doesn't have far to go, i usually just loosen the spokes on one side, and tighten the spokes on the other side. i usually just go around the wheel, loosening the drive-side spokes and tightening the non-drive side spokes as they come on the wheel, so like, drive side: loosen, non-drive: tighten, drive: loosen, and so on...

if it's 1cm or farther out of dish, i'd de-tension all the spokes and re-tension them again and dish the wheel that way. get a spoke wrench that fits your nipples (should be the park/pedro's red or green wrench, i recommend the pedro's wrenches if you can find them). start out by turning the nipples 1/4 turn each at first. if the wheel is older, and has been through a lot of crappy weather, pick up some tri-flow and put a drop on each spoke at the nipple (so it gets inside), and then i definitely recommend getting the pedro's wrenches, because they have a 4-sided ..uh, side for added leverage (and it lowers the chances of you rounding the nipples off) and a regular park type side. if you have a wheel that you "don't care about," lying around, experiment on that first. wheel truing and dishing can get complicated, and you can screw something up really bad if you're not paying attention, but most of the time, it's fixable. just remember which spoke you started with (i usually start with the drive-side one right next to the valve stem). make sure you maintain the wheel's roundness as well as it's lateral true-ness, and stress-relieve the wheel before you ride it. to do this, rest the axle (without the QR in) on a piece of cardboard on the floor, hold the rim with both hands opposite each other and apply LIGHT pressure to each side, then rotate the wheel in your hands like, 1/8th of a turn and do it again until you've gone halfway around the wheel, then flip it over and do it again. you'll have to probably true it again after you do this. the other way is to just squeeze the spoke pairs all the way around the wheel on each side. but the first way will definitely get the job done. sometimes, just squeezing the spokes won't get all the pops and pings out of the wheel and it'll pop when you take your first ride...

if these don't make sense, it's because i'm in a rush...there are a lot of other folks on the forums who know how to do this, post this question on the mechanic's forum.

if you have any doubts about your ability to do this, take it to a shop.

yeah, that's my problem...um...er...massive legs. re-dishing sounds like something i can handle. thanks.