I built up a new bike with a carbon fork/alloy steerer tube and rode it for a week without incident to make sure the fit was where I wanted it. Yesterday I took it to my LBS to have the steerer tube cut as I don’t have the proper tools for the job. Now when I ride the bike at slow speeds and take my hands off the bars, the front wheel immediately pulls hard right. I should note that they did a crap job - my headset was too tight when I got it back and the bars were binding, one of my stem bolts were stripped, nothing was torqued to spec, and my front brake lever wasn’t readjusted. I took the headset apart and reinstalled it, I removed the front wheel and inspected everything. Nothing is rubbing, and it all looks straight. There are scratches at the bottom of the fork which makes me feel they placed it on the concrete floor when they repositioned the star nut.
Before I call the owner today, I thought I’d check here to see if you had any thoughts about what might have happened. Could they have bent the forks somehow? Or maybe the headset was messed up? It’s hard to adjust now - even with it boarderline too lose, I still feel it bindings slightly when I turn the bars right. Thanks!
Maybe check that it’s cut to the correct length for the spacers/stem (couple mm below the stem or spacer above the stem with more tube)
Loosen everything (stem bolts and headset bolt) make sure the bearings are installed correctly, make sure you’ve got a few mm of something above the top of the steerer tube, check then tighten headset bolt, lift the front, holding the fork in one hand and the downtube in the other, and push/pull the fork feeling for play. Likewise look for binding turning the bars (also check rear brake cable length as it sometimes fools people into thinking the headset it too tight if the cable is too short) then line up and re-tighten the stem bolts.
I also assume that it’s not a carbon steerer tube, right? (No star nuts in carbon steerers)
A hacksaw and a steerer tube cutting guide cost about $25.
Another vote for checking the rear brake cable housing, it may be pulling/pushing your bars if not cut to the correct length.
Another vote for checking the rear brake cable housing, it may be pulling/pushing your bars if not cut to the correct length.
This. It would explain pulling to the right.
It may or may not explain the binding though. Take it all apart and check the bearings cups crown and compression ring… BTW the cap bolt should be torqued into the star nut about 2nm just enough to compress everything. And replace that stripped bolt. You don’t want to have to drill it out in the future.
May seem silly, but have you tried a different front wheel?
A hacksaw and a steerer tube cutting guide cost about $25.
Tubing cutter costs about half as much.
Thanks for the replies everyone. The bike is back at the shop and the owner is looking into it today. I have a feeling one of his part timers thought he could fix it and didn’t know what he was doing.
Things I did that didn’t remedy the situation:
-try a new front wheel
-flip original front wheel to check the dish
-disassemble and reassemble headset
-disconnect rear brake and loosened housing
-disconnect front brake and loosened housing (on separate test ride than the rear)
-check rear wheel alignment
-check alignment of stem to wheel
-check seat alignment
Nothing worked, so I’d imagine they did something to either the front fork or the headset, and it’s just too slight for me to see.
As for why I don’t have the tools, I build up a new bike at most once every few years, and instead of paying $25+ on new tools that will likely just sit there for a few years, I pay my LBS $5 and support them in the process. Yeah $5 isn’t much, but it’s something and they usually do a great job. I’m not too worried about them making it right. I was just stumped and thought this may have happened to someone else.
All you need is a hacksaw, you have to be a numpty to not be able to cut straight for an inch.
Bike shops where I live would charge around $40 to cut a steerer tube.
-disconnect rear brake and loosened housing
-disconnect front brake and loosened housing (on separate test ride than the rear)
Smart! 
Stem is probably crooked.
Triathletes are notoriously poor bike handlers. Are you sure it’s the bike?
My guess is the guy bent the steerer tube when he was stepping on it to cut it.
The guy works in a bike shop, so I think it is simply an amusing post he has made up…
Not made up - I just haven’t updated my profile in a long while. I work for the State of Wisconsin as a case coordinator for the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation. I left the bike shop about a year and a half ago.
Thanks for the chuckle. I’m a BMX racer turned mountain bike racer turned triathlete, so I’m one of the rare ones that can handle a bike.
As for an update, the LBS put a shim washer between the top cap and the compression ring. The good news is the headset doesn’t bind anymore. The bad news is the bike still pulls to the right. The shop won’t do anything further as the owner feels there is no way they could have bent anything. I’m taking it to another shop to have things measured and checked for bends later this week.
Thanks for the chuckle. I’m a BMX racer turned mountain bike racer turned triathlete, so I’m one of the rare ones that can handle a bike.
As for an update, the LBS put a shim washer between the top cap and the compression ring. The good news is the headset doesn’t bind anymore. The bad news is the bike still pulls to the right. The shop won’t do anything further as the owner feels there is no way they could have bent anything. I’m taking it to another shop to have things measured and checked for bends later this week.
So, you’re a former diver, too…
What do you want measured?
Measured as in checked for anything that’s bent. The mechanic at my old shop is back from vacation later this week and he has a method to check if frames and forks are straight.