I have a couple frames I’d like to dimple the chain-stays on a wee bit for more tire clearance.* I don’t currently have access to welding or metal-working tools, etc, but I do have access to wood-working stuff. My thinking is to rig something up with a c-clamp with a long bit of wood drilled/formed to cradle the outer side of the CS and a piece of formed hard-wood, maybe a section of a halved large-ish oak dowel to do the dimpling. Question I’m wondering about is, should a piece of hardwood be sufficiently ‘hard’ to do the job? Most of the jigs I’ve seen in online photos/videos for this are using a piece of metal to do the dimpling.. It does seem to me that a hardwood should do the job.



*it would be nice if this doesn’t turn into a debate about how dimpling the stays is a crime against humanity, the frame is going to catastrophically fail, I should just buy a different bike, etc, etc, etc. These frames are not special, I understand the ‘risks’..