Is asymmetric dishing essential?

[Wobbly John]

@Wobbly John of this parish has built a bike with a hinged frame.
It's perfectly rideable with the wheels about a foot offset to each other!
View attachment 477738

This picture shows the wheel offset a bit better:

 

[winjim]

Surley Pugsley frame is offset, if you look at the wheels they're laced only using the eyelets on one side of the rim. It also has an offset fork, the idea being that you can ride with a spare singlespeed rear wheel on the front and swap them over in the case of catastrophic freehub failure.

To be fair though, it's far from a normal bike...

 

[TheDoctor]

This picture shows the wheel offset a bit better:

I've ridden one of your Wobblebikes like that - the one you gave to Roger the Hilldogger.

 

[steveindenmark]

Asymetric dishing

Is that a bit like spooning

 

[Spoked Wheels]

Not just asymetrical, one of my rear wheels has tangential spoking on the cassette side and radial spoking on the other. Presume to make it a bit stiffer.

Just cosmetic

 

[Oapil]

My front wheel on the defy advance pro 2 is out of dish. Pointed out to me by 3 bike mechanics recently. I hadn't noticed. The wheel is marginally closer to the non drive side front fork. Unfortunately wasn't picked up at the first service, and since the bike is 18 months both rutland cycle and giant (still waiting for a response) aren't interested. Reading between the lines. The wheel was fine leaving the factory and pdi check at rutlands. Looks like I will be out pocket to fix it.

 

[rogerzilla]

If the bike still rides ok "no hands" then you can live with it. It would eat away at my soul, though

FWIW, "double fixed" rear hubs are always dishless. Most other hubs designed for a single sprocket (fixed, singlespeed, IGH) have very little dish.

 

[the_mikey]

A few months ago I replaced the rear hub on my tourer using new spokes. 2000 miles later the wheel is still true.

It was recently pointed out to me that I have given it similar dishing on each side. The tyre clears the chainstays and I have been able to adjust the brakes and mudguards to suit, but the rim is clearly off the centre line of the frame.

The person pointing out my "mistake" couldn't tell me why he thought it an issue. What do you think?

It depends on a number of factors I guess, how much clearance is there between the tyre and the seat stays/chain stays, are you likely to swap the tyre for something bigger/wider/different, if you have another bike are you likely to swap wheels between bikes, as it's not guaranteed that the next bike will be as generous with chainstay/seatstay clearance or the brake calipers might not be as tolerant, but if it's working for you then it's not necessarily an issue, but it's not ideal either.

 

[Oapil]

If the bike still rides ok "no hands" then you can live with it. It would eat away at my soul, though

FWIW, "double fixed" rear hubs are always dishless. Most other hubs designed for a single sprocket (fixed, singlespeed, IGH) have very little dish.

You are right. It is gnawing away at me. I have booked it into my local bike store. Costs about £40.

 

[Yellow Saddle]

My front wheel on the defy advance pro 2 is out of dish. Pointed out to me by 3 bike mechanics recently. I hadn't noticed. The wheel is marginally closer to the non drive side front fork. Unfortunately wasn't picked up at the first service, and since the bike is 18 months both rutland cycle and giant (still waiting for a response) aren't interested. Reading between the lines. The wheel was fine leaving the factory and pdi check at rutlands. Looks like I will be out pocket to fix it.

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non drive side front fork

Left hand side

The wheel was fine leaving the factory and pdi check at rutlands. Looks like I will be out pocket to fix it.

Something doesn't add up. A wheel doesn't suddenly un-dish itself. That would require every other spoke to tighten itself to a single given tension and every other other spoke to slacken itself to a given tension.

That doesn't happen in this universe.

 

[the_mikey]

Something doesn't add up. A wheel doesn't suddenly un-dish itself. That would require every other spoke to tighten itself to a single given tension and every other other spoke to slacken itself to a given tension.

That doesn't happen in this universe.

It implies that it was built incorrectly in the first instance or rebuilt by someone who didn't appreciate the need for dishing.

 

[Oapil]

Yes, my local bike mechanics have said the same, but rutland cycles and giant aren’t interested. I bought the bike brand new, so the wheel hasn’t been rebuilt.