Commuting - The King is Dead... God Save the King!

Henry (The Eighth Dammit), my noble steed met his end today. Cracks in the Bottom Bracket/Seat Tube were the fatal injuries. Fortunately, GT Bicycles have a lifetime warranty on their frames. So, I will be getting a replacement frame soon, and portions of Henry will incorporated into Ludvig Van Dammit (Dammit's Ninth). Colour is yet to be determined... Reflectivity is Guaranteed.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3179/2743691772_202308ce6e.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ufobike/2743691772/)
Henry, before the application of Retro-Reflective films

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4060/4227161711_a3583fe58f.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ufobike/4227161711/)
Retro-Reflective Henry in the snow

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4142/4822734584_dc83d651df.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ufobike/4822734584/)
Found two cracks (one between the arrows, one on lower right side)

hmm, I like that idea for the spokes. Is it just reflective tape, or what's going on there?

hmm, I like that idea for the spokes. Is it just reflective tape, or what's going on there?

Those are Lightweights for wheels (http://www.lightweights.org/store/product.php?productid=1)...

Bummer; hope you have a backup steed for the commute. Let us know how the replacement goes.
Long live the King!

Well at least you found it the easy way :D Looks like some corrosion at work there too. Wonder what kind of frame you'll get.

Gene

I had a 1981 Trek 720 that had a lifetime warranty. In '96 the left seat stay failed at the seat-tube. My local dealer sent it back to Trek and they rebrazed it and painted it and I was back on my favorite ride. A decade later I had moved to Eugene, OR and the other seat stay suffered the same failure. (Luckily, I found it just as I was heading out on a ride through the coast hills where no one lives.) I took it to the local Trek dealer and they said they would deal with it. Every few months I would check back in with them and they would have some excuse for why nothing had happened, and said they needed my contact info again since they had misplaced it. I am very patient with local bike shops and allowed this to drag on for two years. Finally, my wife had had enough of it (we had matching bikes instead of wedding bands). She called the lbs and said she would deal with Trek herself. At this point the lbs said that the frame had been cut up and discarded. Hell, the only reason I was sending it back rather than having a local framebuilder repair it was to not void the warranty. They offered me $100 off a new frame. The 720 cost me more than $100 extra in '81 for the lifetime warranty relative to comparable frames. I wonder if they have noticed all the bikes they don't sell because I tell everyone I meet to steer clear of Paul's "Bicycle Way of Life" bike shops? Actually, prior to that experience I had already found that everything I purchased there seemed to be defective, from the expensive lighting set-up to the tires that last 500 miles. I should have known.

Well, I certainly hope your lifetime warranty experience is better than mine. Smooth roads and low traffic to you.

At this point the lbs said that the frame had been cut up and discarded.

I'm pretty sure I would have gotten myself arrested if my lbs told me this.

Summ*****!

I'm pretty sure I would have gotten myself arrested if my lbs told me this.


+1 I'd get the shop owner for Theft, extortion, and conspiracy too. The shop knew the bike had a lifetime warranty and all they had to do was process and ship it which at the least they would have gotten the cost of shipping for the store overhead; however, by stalling and delaying the succeeded in stealing it and eventually destroying it compelling the OP to buy one of their bikes albeit at a $100 discount.:notamused:

Bummer; hope you have a backup steed for the commute. Let us know how the replacement goes.
Long live the King!

Unemployed, so no commute. I do have a mountain bike (Dammit Mk VII aka Mark), and my studded tyre equipped Crazy Dammit.


Wonder what kind of frame you'll get.

Henry was a 2008 GT Transeo 1.0, and GT still makes them. So, I suspect that I'll get a 2010 Transeo 1.0 frame.

Nice thing about the 2010 Transeo, it's got a simpler paint scheme (Silver w/black details vs Silver-fade-to-grey w/black details), so I'll be able to reduce the effort involved in making it reflect (probably blue).

http://www.gtbicycles.com/GTFiles/ProductImages//2000_1300_G10TRA1D_211.jpg (http://www.gtbicycles.com/usa/eng/Bikes/Road/Details/6005-G10TRA1D-Transeo-1.0-Disc)
The 2010 Transeo 1.0 Disc

+1 I'd get the shop owner for Theft, extortion, and conspiracy too. The shop knew the bike had a lifetime warranty and all they had to do was process and ship it which at the least they would have gotten the cost of shipping for the store overhead; however, by stalling and delaying the succeeded in stealing it and eventually destroying it compelling the OP to buy one of their bikes albeit at a $100 discount.:notamused:

I guess I should tell the rest of the story. I did not sue them, in part because I really don't want to ever sue anyone. When they did not respond to being shamed for their behavior, I just figured in the long run they will lose more than I will as the story of what they did becomes more widely known. I did eventually locate a 1982 720 that a man had purchased new in MI but never built up, so I got a brand new frame to replace one that had 350,000 ,miles on it. I found a different lbs and had it built up with modern components (I had moved the old parts to an old 520 frame).

As luck would have it, the new lbs ran into some financial difficulty just before they got the last parts for my "new" 720 in. When I went by to pick it up, there was a landlord lien notice in the window explaining that everything would be sold for back rent. This time I would have sued if I lost my bike. I called the landlord's lawyer and explained that depriving me of the use of my bike constituted theft under OR law and it would be best for all of us if they gave me my bike. The landlord called me right back and was more than happy to let me have my bike. He was a nice guy who had not received his rent check for 2 or 3 months. I have been riding the heck out of this bike since March, including several tours, and, other than losing out on the sentimental value of my original frame and the cost of its replacement, everything has worked out fine. I even found a local bike shop in Eugene that I like, Wheelworks. They got the last parts for me just in time for a tour that had been planned months before.

Classic photo of Henry, with my friend Mr. Statue astride him.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3529/3283391457_a2a884132d.jpg
Wells on my bike

Mr. Statue is a Wells recognized icon in the PDX street performing scene... (I'm one of the others).

Rubberside Down!
K'Tesh

I have been riding the heck out of this bike since March, including several tours, and, other than losing out on the sentimental value of my original frame and the cost of its replacement, everything has worked out fine. I even found a local bike shop in Eugene that I like, Wheelworks. They got the last parts for me just in time for a tour that had been planned months before.

This cautionary tale reminds me that I should do as much work on my bike as possible... at home. Glad you were able to finally get that 720 put together.