Framebuilders - new build

i just finished my long john and have taken it for a test ride. The bike tracks to the right enough to make it a slight pain. The fork is off an old 20 inch bike and not bent. The bike is welded from many parts and something must be out of wack. Does anyone know where i should start to cold set / bend the frame to solve the problem. I would be happy if i could get rid of just half of the pull to the right at least its away from traffic.:crash:

is this a utility bicycle? Is the rear triangle also a donor part?

How did you try to get it aligned in the first place? Sighting along the top tube to make sure it's in line with the seat tube is very effective.

dupe

good question the rear triangle is a donor part the head tube is made. and every thing to the front frankienstined together alinement with a jig i made that holds the bottom bracket and the front fork through the axil the jig is 3/8 x 4" angle. it looks straight.

dunno why I said sighting along the top tube, I meant sighting along the head tube to see if it's aligned with the seat tube. The longer a bike is, the more alignment has to be out to cause tracking problems. It's my guess that you have head tube alignment issues. But you have to find that sort of thing before you can start bending. Does it pull even under no-load conditions?

If you can't see any misalignment, then you may need to find a large enough flat surface to check the alignment. Also, there are recumbent forums out there where people may have addressed these issues.

Couple of things you can try LJ.

1. Pinch a string under the LH rear dropout nut, then run it forward to the headtube, looping it, and then back to the RH rear dropout - Taunt, but not so tight you'll break it. Then just measure from the string to various locations along the frame comparing L side to R side.

2. Position the front wheel of the bike parallel to a curb and have a helper prop a foot against the wheel to prevent it from moving. Then raise and swing the rear of the bike over to the curb so it just touches it. Now check to see if rear wheel is perfectly parallel with the curb.

3. To check for frame twist, buy a couple of 24" long x 3/8" diameter wooden dowel (or Thread-All steel rod) - make sure they are straight. Flip the bike on its back, aim the front wheel straight ahead and remove both wheels. Place one stick of dowel (or Thread-All) in front dropout, and the other in the rear. Now stand at one end of the bike and sight down its length - checking to see if both dowels are parallel.

Check that the headset is properly set... if it is a little tight this can throw things off.

If that's not it make sure that your wheels are properly installed and not askew and you can string the frame to get a quick check on alignment.

One quick check is to sight the head tube to the seat tube (or other vertical) check for parallelism. Another check is to turn the bike upside down and square it away without the wheels. Put rulers or bars in the drops to indicate level and sight front to back to see where something is kicked out.

sound good i am going to work now and during lunch i will address the issues. The bike has not been under load yet going to fix it first. Thanks for the help i didn't know where to start. I will get back to you guys to let you know how it comes out thanks again.