After an accident, my front wheel is now not facing straight. Can I assume the way to fix this is to remove the headset and then re-align the fork?
flyboirho on
Dang sorry about the incident. I hope you’re OK. I don’t think disassembly is required simply loosening the headset (iirc 36mm wrenches x2), as well as the stem bolt which is located near the hinge when it is folded, it should be visible.
brilliantbikes on
You can just loosen the headset – no need to remove it
Then — put the bike upright , hold the front wheel between your legs and turn the bars
_tw3lve on
better have it serviced to check for any further damage.
ImpressiveFroyo4 on
Thank you both! To clarify, I need to loosen the headset by using two wrenches. Does the direction in which I turn matter?
Also, does it matter if it’s a pre-2018 bike? The reason why I asked was those bikes had an older style headset.
Medomai_Grey on
This is fixable; same thing happened to me. Fold the stem to expose the bolt. Loosen the bolt, then unfold & lock the stem. Re-align the stem/handle bar with the wheel. From here, you need to be careful to not mis-align the stem/handle bar from the wheel. Unlock and fold the stem. Re-tighten the bolt. Make sure you use the right torque for the bolt; or you may have a much bigger problem.
6 Comments
After an accident, my front wheel is now not facing straight. Can I assume the way to fix this is to remove the headset and then re-align the fork?
Dang sorry about the incident. I hope you’re OK. I don’t think disassembly is required simply loosening the headset (iirc 36mm wrenches x2), as well as the stem bolt which is located near the hinge when it is folded, it should be visible.
You can just loosen the headset – no need to remove it
Then — put the bike upright , hold the front wheel between your legs and turn the bars
better have it serviced to check for any further damage.
Thank you both! To clarify, I need to loosen the headset by using two wrenches. Does the direction in which I turn matter?
Also, does it matter if it’s a pre-2018 bike? The reason why I asked was those bikes had an older style headset.
This is fixable; same thing happened to me. Fold the stem to expose the bolt. Loosen the bolt, then unfold & lock the stem. Re-align the stem/handle bar with the wheel. From here, you need to be careful to not mis-align the stem/handle bar from the wheel. Unlock and fold the stem. Re-tighten the bolt. Make sure you use the right torque for the bolt; or you may have a much bigger problem.