Framebuilders - need an oppinion of a steel builder(bent frame inside)

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misha misha
04-05-09, 12:56 PM
I posted this in a fixed gear forums but i am still not sure how i feel about this dent.

I just want to make sure that it is still safe and there isnt a major weak spot created.

Im just kinda paranoid


http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8550.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8551.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8567.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8565.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8561.jpg

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee118/hivcans2/DSC_8546.jpg

Live Wire
04-05-09, 08:59 PM
Hmmm, hard to give an exact estimate not knowing what kind of tubing it is, but if this is a low-mid range track frame chance are high it's a thicker tube and the dent will be nothing but an eyesore for you.
On the other hand, last week I started work on a repair of a high-end custom (very thin heat treated steel) that had a dent like that (small, but with a sharp crease to it), the owner had ridden it for awhile after getting the dent and now has a nice 1" crack traveling across the top tube.
Six jours
04-05-09, 09:46 PM
Over the years I have seen dozens of track bikes with handlebar dents in the top tube. None of them ever failed, as far as I am aware. granted, none were superlight heat treated steel, but as Live Wire points out, it doesn't look like yours is, either.

In your shoes I'd ride it and keep an eye out for progressive damage. At the very least, the odds of catastrophic failure are something like zero.

unterhausen
04-05-09, 10:30 PM
In your shoes I'd ride it and keep an eye out for progressive damage. At the very least, the odds of catastrophic failure are something like zero.this is good advice. Cyclists tend to ignore the possibility that bikes can fail. All the failed parts I've seen have many months of dirt accumulated in the cracks. I try to remember to check for cracks in my cranks occasionally
misha misha
04-05-09, 11:55 PM
Its a Reynolds 520 Cro moly steel butted tubing, and thank god there is no crisp line in the middle of the dent.
Six jours
04-06-09, 10:53 AM
That's pretty thick walled stuff. It'll probably last forever.