Ah....these homemade drop-out tools are still very popular with race mechanics. The mechanics at the USCF Race Mechanic certification program all showed off their own versions of these "gapping tools" and encouraged everyone to make their own. One student even won an instructors personal set as a coveted prize.
Jill DiMauro
Maryland
smooth hubs
> In a message dated 10/30/00 8:17:36 PM Eastern Standard Time,
sachs@erols.com
> writes:
>
>
> > 1) Be sure, if using QR hubs, to set them up a bit loose. To convince
> > yourself, try what I call the Papadopoulos Test: Set up a bare hub
> > "properly" w/o side play. Now, using a couple of wrenches to mimic the
> > fork ends, or just clamp the naked hub in a fork. Spin it . Or try
> > to. The QR skewer compresses the axle pretty strongly. If hubs are not
> > just a bit loose, can bind in use.
> >
>
> In the old days, one of the tools a mechanic had was a set of Campagnolo
> dropouts, sometimes they were welded to a rod to achive the right spacing,
> for setting up hubs correctly before building them into wheels. Also one
> could use them (if loose) for setting up a hub after an overhaul by
clamping
> them in the QR and checking the adjustment. They also had the dual use for
a
> race mechanic when setting up the QR's of spare wheels so that they did
not
> need any adjustment when a fast wheel change was needed during a race.
> Unfortunately during the 80's this went out of the window with first Vitus
> frames, and then Look frames gaining popularity, thus destroying the
> "standard" QR setting.
>
> Mark Hoskin.
> US Representative, F.i.R srl
> Ph: 1 401 521 6916
> Fax: 1 401 521 6917
> Email: FiRUSA@aol.com
> http://www.FiR-USA.com
>
> FiR - As used by Kelme, individual and team winners of 2000 La Vuelta,
> mutiple Tour de France stage winners and the current World Cyclo Cross
> Champion Richard Groenendaal.
>
> "Ask about the 2001 FiR wheel range, now available, featuring lower priced
> Antara's, new lighter weight and stronger Scalatore', our new range of
wheels
> specifically built for Cyclo-Cross, wheel bags, and our new range of
seperate
> hubs, made in Italy by TEC with weights from 355gm/pr!"