Matchstix Posted March 4, 2009 Posted March 4, 2009 Scary thing about some carbon frames is that it only has one year warranty. I vote for a nice Titanium hardtail, Seven. Moots, Merlin Or Van Nicholas or something like that
Azonic Posted May 8, 2009 Author Posted May 8, 2009 Ok, it took me two months to get my ass in gear, but I did something about it and the Scalpel lives again. I took it to a highly recommended welding shop in PE who have fixed lots of bikes in the past. This place was recommended by Jan Ellis. Some of you, and most people in PE, know Oom Jan. I'll say no more.What was done, a 30.5 (yes, odd size) seatpost was turned on a lathe down to 28.5. The inner diameter of the seat tube is about 29. The frame was pulled open a bit, and a 5cm piece of the old seatpost was put inside. This was tacked, and "melted" into the frame at a few places. The upper part of the seat tube was lowered down, and got the same treatment. With the two halves back together, the welging oke ran around the break and made it solid. The bulk of the weld is behind the tube, which these pics don't show. I'm considering not drilling a new bottle cage boss hole, I will probably mount the cage with one bolt, and then one or two VERY tight zip-ties near the break. That should be more than enough. I guess the frame is maybe 50g heavier, if that much. Here are the results so far... The paint is still wet here. I'm going to wait till it dries, flat it down a tiny bit, then touch it up again. I'm not a spraypainter at all so I stuffed it up when I started, spraying too much. Will post another pic or two after the final layers of paint.Azonic2009-05-08 11:16:09
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted May 8, 2009 Posted May 8, 2009 kudos to you man... looks a bit untidy, but a HELLUVA lot better than having to fork out another 10k or so for a frame! Plus, it'll probably last longer than a new one anyway - and be stronger!
Azonic Posted May 8, 2009 Author Posted May 8, 2009 Yeah, I could have spent more time sanding it a little smoother, but it sits between a wheel and a bottlecage. If you didn't know it was there you probably wouldn't notice it. With dry paint it should look 100% The guy at the welding place says he also rates it stronger now that before. He charged me R250, can of matt black was R49. R300 vs R15k+ Guess which option won.
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted May 8, 2009 Posted May 8, 2009 Hmmmm.... let me wonder... Year's supply of beer, plus fixed scalpel, versus a new scalpel that's gonna crack in a year's time... Yeah. I'd go with that as well. I was thinking that it's just by the cage - with the cable ties you're gonna use, you won't see it at all. I mean, if you put the 2 ties either side of the weld (which is, i assume, where they'll be going?) End of the day - you get to ride her again. And you can afford to buy a case on the way home...
Serendipity Posted May 8, 2009 Posted May 8, 2009 They say you can tell the year of manufacture of your Crackendale from where it cracks... Very nice job on the frame fix though. That is not an easy weld to do from what I have read. Izuzu (Delta) lost in the Appeals court after that ruling and were ordered to pay costs. Their own legal costs were probably 10 times more than a replacement Isuzu would have been. The real damage is in the reputation of the product.
Azonic Posted May 8, 2009 Author Posted May 8, 2009 You should see the bike after the paint dries, merges with the anodized blank perfectly. Except for the ridge from the weld, no other traces. Will take a few more pics tomorrow.
Azonic Posted May 10, 2009 Author Posted May 10, 2009 The matt black spray worked perfectly, it merged with the original black anodizing extremely well. I decided to mount the bottle cage with one bolt at the bottom, and a very tight zip-tie at the top. Its not going anywhere. If I find that the bottlecage moves then I'll have a new boss put in, but till that time this should be fine. I calculated that the piece of alu that was put inside the seattube weighs around 18 grams. The welding can't be more than another 10g. Going without a new boss in the frame and without a bottlecage bolt, I'll be pretty much back to almost no difference. Bargain. I noticed a crack in the "frog" link this morning, so I'll have the same shop fix that up before it breaks before I put this bike through its paces again. Azonic2009-05-10 08:38:10
gummibear Posted May 10, 2009 Posted May 10, 2009 Very good repair.Glad you weren't on a carbon frame now.
Edition 507 Posted May 11, 2009 Posted May 11, 2009 Looking good I must say. Now that you have fixed the cracked part of the frame are going going to fix that bent top tube of yours
Azonic Posted May 11, 2009 Author Posted May 11, 2009 Looking good I must say. Now that you have fixed the cracked part of the frame are going going to fix that bent top tube of yours I'll ask the oke if he can straighten that out for me as well
Sacrosanct Posted May 13, 2009 Posted May 13, 2009 Awesome to see you found a good solution. How long do you think the spray will last though? Will it not scratch easily. Wouldn't it be better to have it sandblasted and resprayed by panelbeaters or something? Just asking? Hope to see u in the bush soon J. Great fix!
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