Checking the alignment

If your bike was involved in a collision, there’s a chance that something has been bent or broken and caused your bike to be out of alignment. Unless you visually inspect your bike, you may not notice that there is a concern. This is especially important with the frame, which helps keep you balanced, influences the bike’s handling, and provides stability. A crash can impact the integrity of the frame and make riding your bike a risky proposition.

An important factor in how well a frame can hold up to a collision is the mate­rial it’s made of. Different frame materials offer varying levels of strength.

Frames made of steel and steel alloys are amazingly strong, as are titanium frames. Aluminum frames, on the other hand, while having the benefit of being lighter than steel, are also weaker and fatigue over time. Carbon, which is a pop­ular choice these days for frames, is made of up fibers that are arranged into a pattern, which gives significant strength to the material; however, carbon can be prone to breakage where the different tubes of the frame are connected.

To perform an alignment check from the front of the bike, perform the following steps:

1. Stand in front of your bike with the wheel between your legs and the handlebars in your hands, as shown in Figure 4-7.

2. Eyeball the various angles of the frame.

You should confirm that the head tube is parallel with the seat tube and that the top tube is in the same plane as the down tube.

3. Look down at the forks to confirm that they’re evenly spaced around the wheel.

To perform an alignment check from the back of the bike, follow these steps:

1. Have someone support your bike while you stand behind it.

2. Visually confirm that the seat tube and the head tube are in alignment.

3. Check to see that the seat stays are straight.

4. While you’re visually examining the frame, look at other parts of the bike, including the cranks and pedals and the front and rear derailleurs.

The rear derailleur should be hanging straight down and be positioned under one of the cogs.