Classic & Vintage - 1983 Stumpjumper: one chainstay too long?

I just received report that the 1983 Stumpjumper I sold recently apparently has one seatstay that is too long. The buyer says the non-drive side seatstay is about 5mm longer than the drive side. I did not notice this when I sold the bike.

Has anyone heard of this problem before? I am trying to decide what I can do to help the customer. I haven't seen this problem, as the buyer is out of state

Thanks in advance

I don't see how that's even possible unless they weren't properly mitered from the factory. How is the buyer measuring them? Make sure he's measuring each one from the center of the BB to the center of the dropout.

that was exactly my response. I didn't get a detailed description of how he measured them yet. And woops, it's actually a seatstay. I changed it in the original post to reflect.

Weird. Pics or it didn't happen.

also my response lol. He said he will send pics, but I haven't gotten them yet

I'm trying to figure out why 3/16" is such a problem for the guy when the bike survived its first 28 years without anyone noticing. Maybe he's looking for an excuse to return it.

Could it be that the wheel is dished wrong?

Seatstay or chainstay? The thread title says one thing, and the OP's first message says another. I'm confused (while wondering how either could be mis-matched in length).

Neal

He's saying it's making it so the wheel isn't centered between the seatstays, and the brakes aren't lining up right. I'm interested to see his pictures

Sorry, I messed up originally. It is the seat stay. I guess it's possible the wheel was dished wrong, but I sure didn't notice it. He says he took it to a frame builder who confirmed his measurements.

Getting interesting.

Sorry, I messed up originally. It is the seat stay. I guess it's possible the wheel was dished wrong, but I sure didn't notice it. He says he took it to a frame builder who confirmed his measurements.

Because everyone knows the local town framebuilder. Lol. How long has it been in his possession?

It was sent to him around May 1. Don't know how it took him almost 2 months to realize.

It was sent to him around May 1. Don't know how it took him almost 2 months to realize.

This is on him, then. That's a long time to wait to bring an issue forward.

This is on him, then. That's a long time to wait to bring an issue forward.

+1

You will find if you put them on a frame table that virtually every steel frame has some kind of issue right out of the box. My Somec was set up on a Neca frame table and is perfect now, the mech who set it up for me used to true all the brand new frames before building, including all the big names.
2 months is definitely too long tell them too bad.

Tell the buyer it adds numismatic value.

Have him put the wheel in the other way around and see if it's still off-center in the same direction. If it's off-center but in the opposite direction, the wheel is improperly dished. If it is off-center but in the same direction, the rear triangle might be bent to one side. That would cause a properly dished wheel to no longer center. Vertical or horizontal dropouts?

Also, I once received a frameset that I let hang for a couple of months before starting to build up, and it was only then that I realized it had some alignment problems (including a skewed rear triangle, which was easily remedied). So I wouldn't just dismiss this guy since he's waited this long to voice the issue. If he's reasonable and takes the diagnostic steps that you request, I would continue to help him out. Most likely it's a dishing problem or a slightly shifted rear triangle. Both can usually be easily fixed.

This bike you sold me last year has no head tube! I DEMAND A REFUND!!!!

I had a similar problem on my wife's old Giant CrMo MTB.

Then I figured out what I did wrong-- when I reassembled the rear hub and bearings after a thorough cleaning and re-greasing, I had put the wrong washers and bits in the wrong places. The wheel went right into the chain and seat stays.

Probably not what's going on here, but I thought it was worth adding just in case.

He's saying it's making it so the wheel isn't centered between the seatstays, and the brakes aren't lining up right.

I bet there's shipping damage - something bent the rear triangle off to one side.

Thanks for the advice guys. Southpaw, I will definitely suggest these diagnostic ideas and see what comes of it. He does sound reasonable, so I agree it's worth looking into.

He does sound reasonable

No he does not. You are already entertaining too much. If he's got buyers remorse, damaged it himself etc he wants to see what he can get out of you. 2 months? Geeze.

As is, no refunds, caveat emptor.

I agree with the nomad. If you didn't notice it when you owned it, it's not your problem. That's buying (and selling) used for you: as-is.

I actually have a Falcon frame with this problem. No, really, one of the seat stays is about 5mm longer than the other. I posted a thread on it lat year.
it was free so I,m not really upset but it,s sort of a nice frame otherwise. How can you fix this problem?

Of all the problems you may have building a frame, joining the pieces with one seat stay short is one that can't be fixed by a thrashing on the the table unless you bend the tube that is too long.

Put a rod through the axle slot and compare the bottom surface to the bottom surface of the BB shell for an idea. Flipping the wheel as mentioned works also.

We ever get any pics?