[bahueh]

hey all, just curious what methods some of you use to align and tighten a rear wheel after you've taken it off (tire replacement, cleaning, etc). I personally use a rag to shove between the seat tube and wheel but figure there has to be other techniques besides using the old fingers to get the chain tight.
hopefully that makes sense...
just curious.

 

[michaeln]

I pull the wheel back with my hand and tighten the non-drive side axle nut somewhat. Then I push the tire over to the right near the BB to get the tension I want. Then I tighten the drive side nut.

Then I spin the crank very slowly to make sure I have the play I want at the tightest point, and readjust if necessary.

There was a thread on FGG about using a tennis ball stuffed in between the tire and downtube, but that seems totally unnecessary to me.