Need my spokes adjusted?
 

Hello,

So I bought a 1985 Trek 300 off of a guy that prides himself on being an amateur bike mechanic about a month ago. The bike had been hanging in a basement since new, and needed a few new things like bartape and tubes/tires. No big deal for me and my minimal skill.

The problem that I'm having now is that the front tire rubs on the fork ever so slightly at one point in its rotation. The tires that I got don't offer a ton of clearance, but there is enough that this shouldn't happen. So my question is, can this be fixed by a professional and skilled mechanic adjusting the spokes/truing the wheel? Or is it a symptom of a larger problem?

Thanks in advance.

Could be either. If the spokes are just loose then any reasonably competent wheel builder could tension and true the wheel with no problems. However, if the rim is actually bent or the spoke nipple beds are cracked, then the wheel is probably not salvagable. A trip to a bike shop with a decent wheel builder is in order.

It could also be the tire is not seated correctly. Try taking off the tire and spinning the rim to determine which is off.

If you determine it is the tire and not the wheel, try moving the tire to the back. I recently installed 28mm tires which seem to be the max for my frame and one of them rubbed on the fork but worked fine on the rear.

If the wheel is out of true and needs to be "adjusted", the wheel will look wobbly eyeing it against the inside of the brake pad. If the wheel is not wobbly and the tire is rubbing the fork, then the tire is either bad or not seated correctly. Every tire has a line around it near the edge of the wheel. The line should be the same distance away from the wheel the entire around. Look at these and then post again.