Camilo

I'm looking at a hybrid frame (more or less free, decent frame), but plan to build it up as a commuter with STI shifters, drop handlebars, etc. It is a Cannondale H200 (or 400 or such), unknown year, but at least 10 years old. I'm pretty sure this is an aluminum frame.

I'm not sure (but will measure), but this frame might have 135mm rear spacing. One of my primary goals is to be able to use my existing backup road wheels on this thing, unmodified, so I can still grab them to use if my main wheels aren't in service.

It's been really hard for me to search out this topic, and haven't really found credible opinions about whether this is OK or not.

This won't be used for heavy touring, CX or such, just a 165 lb middle aged guy riding on gravel and pavement with maybe a rear rack with 10 lbs on it. Not super heavy duty.

What say you?

Ingleside

I personally would advise against using a 130mm hub in an aluminum 135mm spaced frame. The frame would be constantly stressed which is something to avoid with any frame, especially aluminum.

Chris_W

I would also advise against doing so. However, I was surprised to discover that a local bike store that builds up their own-branded bikes actually does this as the standard setup on their hybrid bike, see here. I bought one of these frames from them a few years ago to use as a commuter, and built it up using a set of wheels based around Deore LX hubs (135mm rear hub). I've now been working on a friend's bike that he bought complete from them, and it came with the stock Shimano RS10 road wheels, which obviously have a 130mm rear hub. When I took the rear wheel out, the dropouts popped back to their original 135mm spacing; getting the rear wheel in and out is not a straightforward job. They do other builds with this same frame that use MTB, 135mm hubs, see here. However, based on the two frames I've been able to look closely at, the original spacing is definitely 135mm and not the intermediate 132.5mm. The next time I go into that shop I plan to ask them why they are doing this and whether they have noticed any problems with the bikes due to it.

Fortunately, my friend decided that having a hybrid that wasn't particularly fast but also wasn't particularly good as a tourer/commuter was not a great compromise. So I've been building him a real road bike from the wheels and some of the drivetrain that came on his hybrid plus other extra parts I had laying around and some eBay purchases, and I've replaced the wheels and drivetrain on his hybrid with with touring-level equipment, so now he has a Deore rear hub.

HillRider

A 130 mm hub can be respaced to 135 mm with no additional parts except a 5 mm spacer. Add the 5 mm spacer under the non-drive-side locknut, recenter the axle and re-dish (actually un-dish) the rim. Normal axle protrusion is 5.5 mm past each locknut and doing this will reduce it to 3 mm but that is plenty to hold the wheel securely in the dropouts.

FBinNY 

This is a sound solution if you already own the wheels, and might be preferable to cold-setting the frame, but it would make absolutely no sense to buy a pair of wheels with this in mind. There's always ways to do workarounds for mis-matched stuff, but that can't be a reason to go out of your way to create the need to.

There are plenty nice wheels out there or if you can't find exactly what you need, have a decent wheelbuilder, build you a pair of hybrid/road wheels on 135mm mtn hubs.

ultraman6970

washers, 2.5 mms of washers at each side and done with it. There should enough axle to clamp the wheel anyways

cyccommute 

This or do nothing and use the wheel as is. We're only talking about 5 mm. Slightly more then 1/8". Aluminum isn't inflexible

davidad

Find a cheap rear wheel with the proper spacing. The stress on the rear axle tends to flex it and shorten the bearing life. It will also put unnecessary stress on the rear triangle.
Look at the WE512. https://sheldonbrown.com/harris/wheels/622.html

HillRider

No, that changes the chainline. You put all 5 mm on the nds. The axle extension isn't the issue but it has to be recentered

cyccommute 

Not significantly. The chainline is kind of a wobbly number anyway. 2.5mm (1/64") is insignificant. Remember that Camilo wants to
Redishing and recentering are major modifications.

Camilo

yea, about 3/32 on each side, pretty tiny flex required.

I appreciate the comments and discussion. Just FYI, although very practical, the solutions involving buying a wheel, re-axle-ing, re-dishing, etc. aren' going to work with me. I'm just going to either use this frame with the 130 rear wheel I have or let this frame go and look for one with 130mm rear spacing. The bottom line for this project is to use the wheels I have, and if this frame won't work, there will be one that comes across my path that will, so it's no big deal.

I think I'll just pick up the frame, and see how it actually works and looks. I'm kinda thinking that common sense will show me the way at that point? On another forum where I asked the same question, a guy replied that he's been doing exactly this (130 into 135) for 4 years with his aluminum Salsa frame without any issues. That's more or less what I was looking for - real world experience pro- or con.

ultraman6970

It the was steel i wouldnt care that much in putting the wheel as it is. With AL i would use washers and done with it. Maybe 1 washer per side should do the trick.

achoo

Ummm, 2.5mm is a lot closer to 1/8" than it is to 1/64", as an inch is defined as 25.4mm. Thus 2.5mm is a bit more than 3/32".

Not significant in terms of chainline, but it's probably starting to get significant for a constant stress on an aluminum frame.

Kimmo 

That he knows about yet.

Don't do it. The dropouts won't be parallel, and they'll force the spindle to bend. Bad. Ask the guy with the Salsa what his hub bearings look like...

Look, it's a piece of piss to re-dish a wheel. just add a 5mm spacer, re-centre the axle, and evenly wind up your NDS nipples till the rim doesn't move when you flip the wheel. You'd be mad not to.

Camilo

Like I said, I'd look for a different frame before I did that, because the most basic criterion is to leave the wheel as it is so it can be used on my other bike when needed.... even though it might indeed be simple and practical in some folks' mind.

But it turns out the spacing is 132.5 - measured with my vernier caliper. It's definitely not 135, and probably closer to 130 (my reading is actually ~132).

I put the wheel in there and it looks like it will work fine.

Thanks for the comments and advice everyone.

Kimmo 

Cool, a 2mm difference shouldn't really matter.

cyccommute 

You guys are acting like there is absolutely no spring rate in aluminum. The bottom bracket probably flexes more side to side, especially when pedaling out of the saddle, than 2mm. Aluminum's spring rate is lower than steel but it can still flex a little bit. You seem to imply that aluminum bicycles have to stay within extremely tight tolerances. If that were true, why would some aluminum bikes be designed, as Camilo's is, for either 130mm hubs or 135mm hubs by making the axle spacing 132.5? If you are going to get all worried about the "constant stress on an aluminum frame[s]", why not worry about 2.5 mm? If Camilo were trying to put 126mm hubs in a 135mm aluminum frame or 135mm hubs in a 126mm aluminum frame, I'd say not to do it.

thomamueller

Let's refer to the expert. https://www.sheldonbrown.com/frame-spacing.html Only steel can be re-sized cold. I have done some research on this as I have a 89 Trek with 126mm drop out. Get the right size wheel for the frame. And chain line is important too as I went thru that too on the Trek.

awesomejack

^but he's not cold setting the frame. He's just temporarily bending it.

Ok, which is worse, putting stress on the frame using a 130mm hub in 135mm dropouts, or putting the same or even greater stress on the frame repeatedly with every pedal stroke?

Kimmo 

I'm not; I'm acting like non-parallel dropouts will bend a spindle.

BTW, ever seen a spring made from ally?