I've done it with steel easily enough.

Can it be done with Ti? Looking at purchasing one of those BD Ti CX frames, and re-spacing the rear triangle to 135 so it will actually work with disc compatible hubs that are on the market.

Cold-setting is just a fancy word for "bending something until it doesn't spring back", which can be done for any metal - although they will react differently to it. Ti is a lot flexier than steel, so the amount of bending you'd had to do before it decides to stay bent will be much more than for steel.
I don't think I'd bother. Either I'd tinker around with spacers to reduce the OLD some, or I'd just force the wheel in there.

Good luck with cold-setting ti. That stuff is really, really tough. You may be able to pull it to where you want it, but it will just spring right back to where it was. I wouldn't even try, myself.

Another vote to just jam the wheel in there with a slight narrowing of the hub if possible. If you can get it to even 132.5mm you'll be no worse off than frame designed with 132.5mm spacing using a 130 or 135mm hub.

Torchy, of course if you don't actually exceed the yield strength of the material it will snap right back where it started. This is true of any material, be it steel, aluminum, titanium, or plastic (at least short term). Depending on the design of the frame, you may need to bend the stays quite far to get them to not spring back fully. I've never cold set a frame myself but based on the accounts I've read, those who have are quite surprised how far a steel frame needs to flex before it actually yields. If the titanium frame was built with minimal seat/chain stays, expect to be bending it far further than you're comfortable with.

I suppose, in theory, it can be done but I don't think I'd ever try it with Ti. I've successfully cold set a couple of older steel frames from 126 to 130 mm dropout spacing and the amount of flex needed to make it remain at the new setting was truly amazing. I wouldn't even consider doing it with Ti.

Either force a 135 mm hub in there or respace it a bit as joejack recommended to 132 mm or so to make it fit with less of a struggle.

Yes, you can cold set a Ti frame, but it's a bit more difficult than with steel. The problem is that Ti has more of an elastic range and "spring back" will be greater so it's harder to gauge how far to bend. The other issue is that the Ti dropouts are usually stiffer than their steel counterparts so it'll take more strength to square them back up.


BTW- whether you spread the triangle permanently or simply flex it when you mount the wheel, the issue of squaring the dropouts remains the same. When they aren't parallel at the hubs true width, they'll flex the wheels axle effectively tightening the cones, and increasing bearing wear.

I resurrected a steel 531 PX10 frame and a few years later a Teledyne CP Ti frame, both
from the early/mid '70s about 10yrs ago. Getting a modern 8-9spd hub was a possible
on both frames, but a real struggle with the steel frame (both hands and a foot, sitting
down) and relatively easy with the Teledyne. Teledyne is springy by nature, with slender
stay tubing, not comparable to post 2000 frames, but it sounds like the OP frame is a
pre'96 frame.

Even well before '96, Litespeed and other Ti frame builders had gone to 3/2.5 Ti and much larger tube diameters to avoid the chronic breakage problems Teledyne had with the Titan. I have a '96 Litespeed Catalyst and the stays are anything but "springy".

I've toyed with that idea. I have anxiety about whether or not that will move the rotor too close to the chainstay. Of course, since I don't own the frame, it's hard to tell...

Hmmm, a google search turned up this: https://www.ultrarob.com/shop/product...Hub-130mm.html

I also looked at Velocity's web site and they list "road disc" as catagory for wheels but the link to the picture and description doesn't work. Try contacting them directly. https://www.velocityusa.com/default.asp?contentID=681

What alloy Ti? I've done a cold-set on a 6/4 frame and had to bend out the rear-triangle by more than 6" on each side before the adjustment would stick. Takes A LOT of force to move it that much; I couldn't do it by hand. I had built a special table to clamp the frame down and used a hydraulic auto-jack to bend one side at a time. I was sweating bricks that I might snap the rear-end (it was a customer's bike too). Personally, I would just bend out the dropouts with my thumbs each time I wanted to insert a 135mm rear wheel.

I really doubt it would. 132.5mm spacing would move the rotor 1.25mm closer to the chainstay if split evenly. It would take some very tight initial clearance for that to be an issue.

Well, 6/4 is the strongest Ti alloy used (and then rarely) in bike construction, but 3/2.5, which is far more common, isn't far behind so cold setting a 3/2.5 frame would be a similar struggle.

For that matter, the few 6/4 frames that were made took advantage of the material's strength by making the tubes even thinner walled than an equivalent 3/2.5 frame. So a 3/2.5 frame is likely to have thicker tubing walls so bending it will very difficult too.

I don't see how you could apply enough force accurately without a frame table.

For more force, use a longer lever. I use Sheldon Brown's method and an 8 foot 2X4.

I believe it was Archimedes who said that with a long enough lever and a place to stand he could move the earth. Similarly with a long enough lever you could cold set anything.

See https://www.velocityusa.com/default.asp?contentID=570 instead.

I have a wheel built around that Road Disc 130mm hub. Very nice hub for $140. I used the Velocity VXC disc-specific rim and DT Competition spokes. Excellent wheel..