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Can I bend back an out of shape steel Spaceliner fork?

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skamatt23

Look Ma, No Hands!
Hello everyone!
Proud owner of a mostly restored 64 Spaceliner!
20220116_121344.jpg

As you can see the front fork has a pretty decent tweak in the front end. After removal it appears the crown and steerer are not on the same page and the rest is fine. I may be able to find a local bike shop that has a Park Tool for it but if I am careful do these have a bit of give? I planned on carefully putting the steerer in a vice or heck my trailer hitch and then using a PVC pipe over one leg carefully to gain some leverage. Might be a bad idea if I go too far but it won't budge otherwise and it was custom powdercoated to the tank color so just buying a replacement is not my first option. It's a nice bike I don't want to ruin but if folks have had luck simply pushing a little bit with a PVC tube or similar I'm up to try it out. One leg is straight but off center, the other has a barely noticeable deflection that is otherwise keeping the hub spacing fine. Fork looks very good with no corrosion. Is heat on these an option if used sparingly?
Thanks in advance
 
It looks like you and Nate are almost neighbors so maybe he can take a look at it to see if he can help you out. I really doubt you'll find a bike shop that will deal with that type of bend.

 
My buddy owns the shop and said most likely they have a frame straight jig but not the fork. The previous owner was upset he didn't notice it and felt really bad about the sale but I want to see this through and fix it properly no matter how far I have to drive lol.
 
Hello everyone!
Proud owner of a mostly restored 64 Spaceliner!
View attachment 1550453
As you can see the front fork has a pretty decent tweak in the front end. After removal it appears the crown and steerer are not on the same page and the rest is fine. I may be able to find a local bike shop that has a Park Tool for it but if I am careful do these have a bit of give? I planned on carefully putting the steerer in a vice or heck my trailer hitch and then using a PVC pipe over one leg carefully to gain some leverage. Might be a bad idea if I go too far but it won't budge otherwise and it was custom powdercoated to the tank color so just buying a replacement is not my first option. It's a nice bike I don't want to ruin but if folks have had luck simply pushing a little bit with a PVC tube or similar I'm up to try it out. One leg is straight but off center, the other has a barely noticeable deflection that is otherwise keeping the hub spacing fine. Fork looks very good with no corrosion. Is heat on these an option if used sparingly?
Thanks in advance
Really beautiful Spaceliner.. I have a couple of these bikes, but have no idea how to fix your fork.. Good luck and RideOn.. Razin..
 
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