# front wheel pulling to left when braking



## Minimaltread (Aug 25, 2013)

i noticed my front wheel pulling left during hard front breaking. maybe a centimeter but no rubbing on fork

there is no movement when i try to move the wheel from side to side. took the wheel off and nothing seems loose or worn. quick release tightened and closed appropriately


while looking at the fork while riding i did notice the fork compresses significantly when breaking. could it be that what i am seeing the fork compress a little more left than right?


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

Sure. Think about where the force for the brake to resist the motion of your wheel has to come from. A fork with poor torsional stiffness would totally twist. And uneven compression is plausible too. A lot of forks, maybe most by now only put the spring in one leg. They rely on a precise fit between the bushings in the lower and the stanchions to keep everything lined up.

What do you have?

What hub?


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## EABiker (Jun 24, 2004)

Or it could be that you pull back on the bars a bit on the left side when you squeeze that lever hard!


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## Minimaltread (Aug 25, 2013)

What do you have?

What hub?[/QUOTE]

Reacon Gold TK

Hiflange Sealed Bearing 32H

i am going to have the spoke tension checked first. the Recon was not quite right from beginning. The rebound adjustment just spun for first two weeks of riding. eventually i got it ti catch but see no real change frim rabbit to turtle


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

New bike?

Get it warrantied. The Recon is actually a reasonably well-regarded fork. You should get the tunability you paid for.

What happens if you squeeze the front brake and rock the bike forward and back?

"Hiflange" - is that the Specialized house-brand hub?

Squeeze a few pairs of spokes with your hand. If anything's loose, try to warranty that too. If the Big S won't go for it, you can pay your shop to re-tension and true your wheel, do it yourself, or buy another wheel. They all have their pros and cons.


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## Minimaltread (Aug 25, 2013)

thanks for reply. very helpful

i was in denial about getting the fork warrantied because i have been enjoying the bike in spite of lack of fork adjustment. but i know i deserve what i paid for

maybe some slight variation in spoke tension. i am going to have them trued on me to rule this out.

nothing moves in the slightest when i hold down on front break and rock

it is new. airborn seeker


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## Slash5 (Nov 27, 2011)

If you rock the bike with the front brake on, like you are checking the headset, can you make the front wheel move?
I had the same problem and found it was the quick release. No matter how tight I made the quick release it would still move in the drop out. Changed the quick release to an enclosed cam Shimano QR and solved the problem.


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

A little slight variation in spoke tension could stand to be corrected, but I'd expect something to have to be grossly loose to cause the problem you're describing.

Since it's a catalog bike, go to your LBS and ask them what they think. A suspension rebuild should cost on the order of $75. You can decide if you'd rather do that or ship the fork back and forth. Call Airborne first, and see how they want to handle it.


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## Mr Pig (Jun 25, 2008)

I reckon there is an issue with the rebound adjustment on the XC32/Recon, I keep seeing people with the same complaint about lack of movement or function. 

No way it should flex to the side that much though. I can't see that happening.


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## Minimaltread (Aug 25, 2013)

went back and looked at everything. no movement with any parts of the wheel. even turned it over, stood on the grips, and tried twisting the wheel in all directions. again no movement. also measured the space between wheel and fork to speculate accurately how much it appeared to move. less than a centimeter between wheel and fork and since no rubbing, it had to be moving less than that amount

put the wheel back on and remembered how under torking i had been tightening things like stem so decided to increase significantly how tight i closed the quick release. took the fork up to suggested pressure and went for a ride this evening. the left pull is gone. 

looks like i simply did not tighten the quick release adequately. i owe the components a sorry


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## Max24 (Jan 31, 2013)

Mr Pig said:


> I reckon there is an issue with the rebound adjustment on the XC32/Recon, I keep seeing people with the same complaint about lack of movement or function.
> 
> No way it should flex to the side that much though. I can't see that happening.


Yeah, a buddy of mine had that issue with the rebound adjustment. It was nothing like OP's flex to the side though.


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## AndrwSwitch (Nov 8, 2007)

It's always the silly things, isn't it.

If you have a non-Shimano quick release, you pretty much want it as tight as you're physically able to close.


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## mack_turtle (Jan 6, 2009)

mine does this when my QR is not tight enough. I also once made the mistake of putting a sub-par QR on my bike and it was a constant struggle.

you also now understand why people like thru-axle hubs and fork. now you have upgrade-itis.


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## Slash5 (Nov 27, 2011)

Supposedly a drop of oil on the cam surface will help the open style of quick release.
I checked my hub end caps and bearings before I finally realized it was the quick release. I always used to change my rear hubs over to Shimano quick releases as soon as I bought them and now do the same for both hubs.
The local bike co-op is a great place to get Shimano MTB quick releases. They are quite expensive to buy and $2 at the bike co-op.


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