Rosso Corsa

I have a Norco CCX1 frame and am building up a cyclocross wheelset for it, with an XTR rear hub. It's O.L.D. is 135mm and the frame dropouts are 130mm. I am faced with the choice of respacing the hub or spreading the frame. I would like to leave the hub as it is so there isn't too much dish on the wheel and it is stronger. However, this means that I will need to pull the aluminum frame apart by 5 mm to install the wheel. Will this weaken the frame?

Would it be a better option to respace the hub and live with the almost-vertical spokes on the driveside? It is 32 spoke 3x, and I am 145 pounds, so I suppose this would be the best route.
What do you think?

Bikewer

Well, the common wisdom is that with aluminum...You shouldn't. Steel frames tend to bend rather easily, aluminum may well be over stressed.
But 5mm...Can you possibly just force the wheel in? Sometimes the actual distance of the dropouts is only a few mm smaller.... I had one that was nominally an old 126, but it actually measured nearer to 130.

joejack951

I've stretched several aluminum frames from 126 to 130mm. It can't hurt to try (with reasonable force of course). You won't weaken the frame by adding a tiny bit of preloaded stress to the rear stays. Your weight on the bike does far worse. You can always try replacing a spacer on either side of the hub to narrow it down a bit. Even a single millimeter overall (0.5mm each side) would help.

illwafer

you would need to be quite a stud to spread it 5mm by hand to get your wheel on.

fuzz2050

if you can spread it by hand, go for it, but don't cold set.

maybe swap out the hub for something with the right spacing?

joejack951

You'd be surprised how easily the stays flex out. It's not hard at all to flex them 4mm in my experience so I doubt 5mm takes much more effort.

HillRider

The difficulty in spreading a 130 mm frame to 135 to insert the wheel will depend on the dimensions of the stays. Small diameter stays should be quite easy. Some of the really beefy stays may be a struggle. Try it and see if it's practical.

Sixty Fiver

Common wisdom says no and cold setting an aluminum frame is something you should never do as you can create stress risers which will lead to frame failure.

If there is enough inherent flex in the stays and you can re-space the hub a little to minimize the overall change I don't see this as being a problem.

When you re-space a frame you also end up maligning the dropouts by a small degree which you cannot correct on an aluminum frame to any degree whereas steel frames are much more malleable and tend to undergo this process during their build process.

Mr IGH

You're 145lbs, it's a 32H wheel, I'd re-space and re-dish the wheel. You're not going to have any trouble with the dish, why dork up a good frame for nothing?

cbchess

you need a new hub or a steel frame.

tellyho

Respace. But you can probably squeeze it in there with no long-term issues.

smiller

you cant cold set the aluminum frame, but you can just force it in, it just wont be as easy as if it was spaced properly. Ive done it for years on a cannondale tandem without problem. believe me, there can't be many rear stays stiffer than a cannondale tandem.

Panthers007

+2 Best solution so as not to eat pavement with your wheel falling back to Earth on top of you.

AEO

I've done this with an XT FH-M760.
The flange spacing, if it's not a disc or center lock version, is the same as the road hubs when it is respaced to 130mm.
Requires a 6mm spacer since the spacers on the hub are 8mm+3mm and the axle needs to be cut down since it is 146mm for 135mm OLD hubs and 141mm for 130mm OLD hubs.


the easiest, and best temporary method, IMO, would be to remove the 3mm spacer so you end up with a 132mm hub, which should not require a frame spread, but will need to be respaced slightly and redished slightly.
if your frame is aluminum, it shouldn't require axle cutting since the dropouts for aluminum frames tend to be super thick.

surly sells a steel cyclocross frame that comes with a 132.5mm dropout so you can use both 130mm and 135mm hubs in it. aluminum frames tend to have 131~132mm spacing in the rear when there is no hub clamping the dropouts together.