I have an old chrome-moly steel frame with high-ten chainstays-

Can I dent the chainstays on the inside to get more tire clearance? What's a good way to go about doing this? Would a vice and a block with a channel gouged in it and a short piece of hardwood dowel work OK?

Thanks for your assistance-

That could work, or that could fail miserably, depending on your technique.

Note that it may cause the dropouts to pull, so you may have to realign the back end.

It can be done. Check the pics in that blog post.

Must be a more technical term for it. Good question tho...

It's easier before the frame is built (courtesy Richard Sachs Bicycles): https://www.flickr.com/photos/9866331...7600706475164/

I have done it before plenty and it reeks much havoc. I have a device I made that is part of a motor press (mechanics press) that allows me to "reach around" the opposite chain stay. and apply pressure from the intended direction. It's rarely with the effort on anything but fat/round/straight stays. trying to crimp for chain ring will shorten the side the work was done and ruin the frame.

Well, I did it... I used basically the method that Tuz suggested- a vise with a short little torpedo of steel. It worked a charm- it didn't even mar the paint, and added about a quarter inch of clearance to each side of the tires. It did make the chainstays pull together as Frank said it would, but I was planning on cold-setting the frame from 126 to 130 anyway- I just had to cold set it a little more.

I don't think I'd try it if the chainstays were chrome-moly.

Frames with TIG welded bridges survive that treatment pretty well. Brazed joints, unless lugged don't like that type of load. Congrats!