k2krafty1

Hello, I am a newer owner of an Izalco Pro 4.0. I've been riding it happily for the past few months. I took time to detail it this past weekend. The first time I really went over everything. It seems that the rear tire and wheel heavily favor the left side of the stays / drops. Worried, I thought my rear wheel needed to be re-dished. I took it to my local bike store. The mechanic just called me up saying everything checked out and the rear wheel was fine. He said he was unfamiliar with my frame so he couldn't answer my question as to why the wheel appears off center. He thought maybe this was in design to accommodate for different wheels/hubs. I've never heard of this before. Is this something on all Focus Izalco Pros? Or should I be worried! (too late!) If you have one- would you mind looking for me? Thanks, Ken

abstractform20

pics? who is "he"?

are you sure the wheel is inserted straight? is it out of true?

video?

LowCel 

Have you released the quick release to make sure that the wheel is properly seated?

k2krafty1

Thanks abstract, fixed the posting. He is the LBS mechanic. I'll post pics as soon as I pick up the bike. LowCel- yes, the mechanic re-seated the wheel in the frame and still has the "left favor"

LowCel 

I can't imagine a wheel being off center on purpose. Something is going on.

vwchad

I'm not sure what you mean by it heavily favors the left side. If the wheel was not centered, then you would have serious issues with your brakes, along with other things. How is your rear brake? Is it tilted to one side, is it aligned correctly? Does it work properly? I have an Izalco and I don't see how you could have the wheel off to one side without obvious issues with brake problems or frame interference at the front of the stays. Actually, I'd venture to say that these issues would be apparent on most any road bike. Pictures would be most helpful to see what it is that you are concerned with.

k2krafty1

Thanks vw, visibly while I'm looking from the rear of the bike- straight on, the rear wheel/tire seems to hug the left side of the frame. There is more clearance on the right seat stay to the tire then from the left seat stay to tire. Same thing goes with the rear chain stays. Its still sitting at the LBS.. Hoping to pick it up in a bit where I can take some pictures. I have no issues with braking, very strange. VW- there is no visible difference on the rear of your Izalco?

jdott

Swap another wheel in while at the shop to make absolutely sure it's not a wheel issue.

The rear end may be asymmetric - the left side is beefier since there's room - is the wheel lined up with the seat tube?

k2krafty1

The wheel seems to be slightly skewed to the left comparing to the seat tube. The bike mechanic thought either this was: a) the design, doesn't deal with this company b) when fabricating the frame they took a bit too much material away from the left side chain stay causing the wheel to sit uneven when putting on the wheel tire. We adjusted the rear wheel to sit center by slightly cocking the wheel in the stay but after a short ride standing up on the pedals and cranking on it a bit it seemed to pop right back to the old position. I'm also assuming this is why my rear tire wore away 3x as fast as the front tire. Notice the flat spot. The mechanic was surprised when I told him I had never used a trainer with this bike. Shouldn't the wheel tire sit true when I pop on the rear wheel and put weight on it then tighten the skewer? I'm coming off a trek where I never had to meticulously fine tune how the wheel sat in the stays before I tightened the skewer. The last photo is the front tire for wear comparison. What do you guys think???

LowCel 

Looking at those pictures it appears that you have a problem. Are you the original owner? If so it looks like a warranty issue unless it is a problem with that wheel. Do you have another wheel you can try to see if it is the same?

k2krafty1

Dang.. Well I am the original owner.. No, I dont have any other wheels to test Any other opinions?

LowCel 

Consider e-mailing Focus and attaching those pics to see what they have to say.

k2krafty1

Do you guys have to really fine tune the wheel when you put it in the stays?

JoelS

Have the shop put in another wheel and see if it has the same problem. If so, then there's an issue with the frame. If not, then the dish on the wheel is likely off and that can be adjusted.

LowCel 

Not at all.

dtrain

Did you ask the mechanic if he tried another wheel in there? I'd think a decent mechanic would to rule out the wheel dish.

The rear tire will wear more quickly than the front anyway. That isn't strong evidence of a problem.

k2krafty1

He didn't say that he in fact tried another wheel but I originally brought the bike in asking him to re-dish the wheel, thinking that was the problem. He said it needed a small true but the dish was fine. I'll hunt down another wheel.

bianchi10

I had an issue like this with my Ridley. No matter what I did, it would aim to the right and sometimes even hit the rear stays.

Turned out that my hanger was bent. Maybe take a look at your and check it out??

k2krafty1

Found this on a FOCUS issue. Is this what you mean Bianchi10? Would this cause a problem to the wheel?
https://weightweenies.starbike.com/fo...hp?f=3&t=98758

bianchi10

yup thats similar to what was happening with mine. caused the wheel to tilt like you are describing and what I see in your pictures. Not saying that is the cause here, but It sure could be.

I would not straighten it like that guy did as mentioned in that thread. I had to order a new hanger. If your bike is new, I would take it back for them to warranty that part out and install a new hanger.

MikeWMass

I guess I'm missing something, but whether or not your derailleur hanger was (is) bent, I don't see how that would affect how the wheel sits in the frame. If bending the hanger fixed it, I would think you also bent the dropout.

bianchi10

you are missing something then. If the hanger which holds the wheel isn't straight, how would it allow the wheel to be straight?

MikeWMass

The hanger holds the derailleur. It attaches to the dropout. The dropout holds the wheel.

bianchi10

sorry, I used wrong word which is why it confused you. I did mean the dropout, not the hanger. thank you

MikeWMass

No problem. Hope you get your bike fixed. I was not sniping, but sometimes people get sent down the wrong path, didn't want to see that happen.
Mike