not_jason

Can you ride it no handed? In my experience, that's usually a fairly good indication of whether or not there's something wrong. In addition to that, it would effectively take your mismatched arms out of the equation. My thinking is that if you feel like your bike is pulling hard in one direction, it's probably doing exactly that. I've got several old bikes. Some of them track perfectly straight, and some of them try their damndest to flop to one side unless I fight against them. Sometimes it's obvious frame damage, and sometimes it's hard to get to the bottom of. In any case, I suggest you take it to a good shop and ask them for their opinion. It might even be an easy fix.

oldfixguy

XT/XTR on a SS or fixed? Cranks? Anyway, do you feel this way on all bikes? If yes then you probably have something with the physical anomaly thing. But, I think it's an outside chance. I mean you are correct that absolutely no one is truly symmetrical but to suffer seriously the condition would have to be serious. You would be aware of such an anomaly for example the first time you had a suit tailored, or purchased off the rack pants or long sleeve shirts. There are probably a thousand life circumstances that would have told you something was up long before now.

On the other hand, a frame or fork that is out of whack sounds much more probable. Stop by a quality LBS and lay your money down.

RigHty

the ground is slanted

jpdesjar

Put your left shoe back on or put the u lock in your right pocket.

ianjk

Have you crashed lately?

Sounds like a bent fork or headtube not inline with rest of frame. If you can't ride no-handed, I'm willing to bet this is it...

Also, did you track nuts slip while tightening the front wheel (causing it to be a little cock-eyed?)...

whitekimchee

I can ride with no hands without any problem. This is currently my only bike so I have no way of comparing differences in steering movement. I'm gonna ask my girl to try it out tonight and see how she feels on it. I'm gonna be livid if it's a problem with my frame.

JohnDThompson 

Use a chalk string to make a straight line 10m or so long. Put your bike at one end of the line, with both wheels on the line. Holding only the handlebars, walk the bike the length of the line, keeping the front wheel on the line. If the back wheel is no longer tracking on the line, it suggests that your frame is out of alignment.

oldfixguy

I hate to beat a drum here but your girlfriend is not a calibration gauge. The simple fact is the only way you will know - and therefore know what to fix is to have your frame and fork checked for alignment. I mean, if your girlfriend tell you it feels fine then what is your next move? Going to special hospitals to figure out how to deal with your newly found, aggressive, physical deformities? Off to the LBS now - hurry. Don't forget money. I'm suggesting you hurry in case your burgeoning case of "Elephant Man" moves so quickly you find it impossible to be seen in public before you find out the bike is perfectly aligned. Because, once you know that you can in good conscience sell the bike to help pay for all the experimental drugs and operations you will need. Your girlfriend must be a very special person given full circumstances - I'm sure you feel lucky.

B:H Pusher

if your rocking some bullhorns and you drop your bike a lot, it might be that one side of your handlebar is bent inward a bit; making you feel that your bike looks to be turning in an unintended direction. i had this problem for a while.

roastbeef

plus one.

teedoff087

Carry a boombox on one shoulder. That should level you out and provide everyone within a 50m radius with some (hopefully) nice tunes. Win/Win/Win. Everybody wins.

whitekimchee

thanks for the sarcasm oldfixedguy. I'm gonna just let her ride it so I can get some feedback from another source. I work all week so It's hard for me to get to the LBS, but imma try to go this wknd.

crashed as in crash into something? if so then no I haven't crashed. However, I did fall off my bike a month or two ago but I didn't sense anything off about my bike directly after that.

oldfixguy

whitekimchee,

The real upside to taking your bike in to have the frame/fork checked is the LBS will look until they find the problem. Say the frame/fork come out clean - the mechanic will begin looking at the very areas mentioned in this thread. If the bike is offset anywhere for any reason the mechanic will find it. If something is found - say the bar and they have a replacement you want then buy it there to keep food on their tables. Everyone wins. Your bike gets fixed, you either start or further a relationship and the LBS gets to pay the electric bill.

While I was of course being an ass I was also helping to drive your issue to an appropriate end. Without your bike being professionally checked you will always and forever feel like something is off. Once you have it checked and correct whatever might be wrong your mind will let the topic go. As it stands, no matter what you do your mind will hold onto that shred of doubt and your steed will never become the object of love and friendship it should be.

whitekimchee

word. don't worry man i enjoyed the sarcasm and the advice. Thanks.

scheissmacht

Do you have a Costanza wallet?

whitekimchee

hahaha nice

stryper

Are your wheels both trued? Maybe one is dished to the side a little. But I bet it's the fork. My little brothers fork is bent a little and it's a beast to hold up straight when riding no handed.

beeftech

I bet it's your mismatched arm length. Try turning you stem every so slightly to the shorter arm.

Yo!

It's all in your head!

2mtr

i thought this same thing when i got a new bike. i was pissed, thinking the shop had sold me a bent frame. so i took it back and they looked at it and nothing was the matter. i thought about everything it could be, even an irregular tire tread. everything was fine. so i just forgot about it until i was visiting my mother one day and her friend, a message therapist, took a look at me and said: "You crooked." one shoulder was about half an inch higher than the other from carrying a book bag my whole life. i had some work done on my back and after that it was cool.
so, long story short, maybe it's your alignment.

wheeldeal

I don't know, I think something's up with the bike (or the way it was put together). I don't think it's KimChi's body.

Kimchi, is this your first bike? Maybe you can hop on another bike or two and see if it does the same. If it does, I guess it is your body.

But even if it's your body (say one arm is longer than the other), your brain should be smart enough to compensate for that!

LoRoK

I suffered from bent bullhorn that made me feel crooked.

Noobert

mmmmmm new sweeeeat shirts....Mmmmmmmmmm

kennykaos

your saddle might be very slightly pointed off to one side so check that.

Meepers

V8?