Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 02, 2021 02:11PM

My rear brake plate needed better spacing for it to not rub on the hub. Giving it the additional space on the inside meant that things shifted over a little more, so now my chain is out of alignment more than I am comfortable with.

I like the spacing for my brake so i want to leave that, i was hoping that i could just add some spacing to my rear sprocket and have it shift over the little i need to make the chain aligned.

My question is, will this cause my rear socket to be stressed in a way that might bend or warp it? Or should it be ok since the forces are distributed around the 6 bolts?

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Re: Chain alignment

baird co /
bairdco
Feb 03, 2021 03:06AM

If you're talking about adding washers or something between the sprocket and the hub, yeah, that's fine. Won't hurt a thing.

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Re: Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 03, 2021 10:59AM

> baird co Wrote:

> -------------------------------------------------------

> If you're talking about adding washers or something between the sprocket

> and the hub, yeah, that's fine. Won't hurt a thing.

Thanks baird. I might have to buy some longer bolts, but I think this is going to be my best option.

I took it out for a spin yesterday and the brake is not binding any more which is good. Just a lot of stress on the chain. And it will wear down my sprockets too fast.

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Re: Chain alignment

baird co /
bairdco
Feb 03, 2021 11:28AM

Sometimes you can adjust the spacing just by using different spacers or washers on the axle, too, depending on what's on there already.

Dunno what bike you have, but factory V1 front gears have a step on one side, so you can flip it around and change it an 1/8" or so.

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Re: Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 03, 2021 06:26PM

It is a puch e50.

The brake plate side has a large spacer built into itself which sets the spacing on the drive chain side. The spacing I messed with was between the brake plate and bearing which then caused the wheel to shift to the right too much. I am going to try to space out the sprocket and i think that will get me more aligned. I will post some pics once i get on it.

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Re: Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 06, 2021 01:03PM
20210206_092240.jpg
20210206_094640.jpg

Much straighter. Not perfect but if I move the sprocket over any more it is really floating off of the hub. This still has it over the lip just a smooch. It is within my acceptable tolerance so I'm gonna run with it.

The bigger issue right now is really that my bearing keep walking out of the hub, it pulls the other side in at the same time, as I have all the spacers in place inside the hub. I think there might be something off with the hubs allowing things to shift a little under load. Might need some new wheels.

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Re: Chain alignment

baird co /
bairdco
Feb 06, 2021 07:02PM

Sealed bearings? Is there a ridge that the bearing sits on inside the hub? If there is, it's loose somehow. If there isn't, it needs one.

If. The bearings are just pressed in and there's nothing to stop them from going in deeper, the wheel will walk to one side or the other, which is not good.

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Re: Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 07, 2021 10:17AM

The leleu hubs have a ridged area for the bearings to sit into. It is about 3mm deeper than the actual bearings, and the internal spacers place the bearings right at the ends of the hub.

The bearings are walking out the brake plate side bit the other side only goes in the 3mm then hits the ridge. I press them in so each side is even and the internal spacers are compressed enough to not jiggle around.

Since the bearings dont go allt he way to the back lip they have that room to shift a little.

Is this happening because I dont have my wheel perfectly straight? It looks straight to me, but maybe my eyes are crooked. Is it from forces when applying the brake causing the wheel to get pulled on the brake plate side and wiggle the bearings out?

The leleu sealed bearing conversion from treats uses a shim to get the bearings to fit snug in the bearing spot. Is this where the failure is happening?

Can I put a spot of jbweld on the bearing outer race and shim to help hold them in place?

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Re: Chain alignment

baird co /
bairdco
Feb 07, 2021 01:14PM

If the internal spacer is longer than where the bearings seat, it'll push the bearings side to side, from braking, turning, side loads, etc.

You could probably just cut the spacer down, and make up the 3mm gap with bigger outer spacers.

I have a few lelue hubs and don't have that problem.

Do the bearings fit tight in the hub? Maybe the hub shell is a little worn, causing the bearings to rock a bit?

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Re: Chain alignment

Jay Rivett /
bjaockx
Feb 07, 2021 11:14PM

I like the idea of trimming the spacers down to have the bearings more flush with the hub ridge. I am going to open it up again tomorrow and see how it looks after a 40mi ride I did on it yesterday. By the end of the ride I had a hard time moving the bike from a stop, which has been an affect of the bearings coming out.

I too am thinking that the hub is warped in some way, whether it be from age, use, or abuse. I'm going to end up sourcing some new wheels soon i think.

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