Greetings:

I have a Miyata splined triple-butted steel fork that needs repair. Shipper packed the bike poorly and now it appears one fork blade is slightly bent. My crude measurements show drive side blade is bent about 10mm forward and 6mm outward. This assumes the other blade is good. I want to have it repaired by a seasoned veteran.

My questions are:
(1) Is it a reasonable idea to salvage this fork? The fork/bike is virtually new from 30yrs ago.
(2) How much would something like this cost when done by a professional?
(3) Can anyone recommend a shop in central Texas? (Not interested in big box bike chains)

Thanks in advance!

It's really hard for me to visualize what is wrong with that fork without a picture.

Unless it's a really weird bend, it can probably be bent back.

Sorry, pics not yet available. I’ll try to explain “drive side blade is bent about 10mm forward and 6mm outward”. The drive side fork blade (right side from the perspective of the rider) is the one that seems to be affected. I’ve tried to measure the extent of the deflection at the dropouts.

The right-side dropout seems to be out of alignment with the left-side dropout by:
(a) 10mm forward— meaning the dropout is pushed forward away from the rider.
(b) 6mm outward— meaning the dropout is pushed to the right, away from the bike centerline, leading to a 106mm dropout spacing.

In order to fix it, and assuming the left-side blade is undamaged itself, then one would need to:
(a) bend the right fork blade toward the back of the bike by about 10mm (measured at dropout), and
(b) bend the right fork blade toward the centerline by about 6mm to make the dropout spacing 100mm again.

I can’t actually tell where along the fork-blade is bent. It might be gradual. The fork crown (visually) looks fine and straight with no cracks anywhere.

Does that paint a clearer picture?

Also, this is a vintage steel touring fork with a bit of rake, so there is already a large bend in both blades

okay, that sounds fixable. You need to find an old-school shop with the Park fork alignment gauge (FT-4) and they might even be able to do this for you while you wait. We used to do it all the time when I was a mechanic back in the '70s.

Sorry I have no recommendations for shops. I can move this thread to C&V where you might get an answer to that question.

"Texas Hill Country"... wonder if you're anywhere close to a shop that [MENTION=335281]Bandera[/MENTION] would recommend.

Don't know if Hank is retired or not at Helotes Bicycle, haven't been over that way in awhile, but he's the Old School real deal.

Helotes Bike Shop, Texas

Cost might run from $25 to $50 for typical (as in minor) fork alignment. No reason to not consider an alignment unless a hands on inspection suggests other. Don't assume that either drop out is correctly located, the datum is the steering axis. Andy

Just spoke with Hank on the phone and he’s still working. Although a little bit of a drive, I’ll be heading down there in a few days. Thanks for the reference!

You are welcome.
You are also in for a unique no bull-**** experience: Enjoy.

BTW: Hank is not the only Texas Culture Heritage site in Helotes.
Step right next door to John T. Floores Country store and have a beer or stay for the music, dancing, food and ambiance.

https://www.liveatfloores.com/about/

Good to know, thanks! 👍