Originally Posted by
scuzzo
well, all is not lost, but im kinda trying an alternate route before dumping huge coin on the repair,, I decided to see if we had any qualified Ti welders in HSV that knew all about the material and had a skill set to do the work.. my first idea was to contact the welding supply company that specialized in Ti rods and stuff,, and they reffered me to a fellow who taught as an welding instructor in college and was also doing contract work for Marshall Space Flight Center and NASA.. and i talked with him a good long time on the phone.. learning all about how you need to Purge the frame (back shiled with Argon?) inorder to remove oxygen from the weld area.. and how color is a prime indicator of the weld joint.. and how you need to keep it at a certain temp but not under or over that temp.. and he just seemed like a smart, decent guy who was well qualified to do the job,, as qualified as litespeed? i guess not.. but i did not get a good vibe with the litespeed conversation through email... it was just PAY US THIS MUCH and WAIT! down tube ECTOMY! we will see if things just dont go well with this repair... i will go with litespeed, but its well worth the 40 buck lotto ticket mho.. and i get my bike back in days vs months.. either way. the bike will be back on the road.... in for a penny in for a pound on this bike... its too good to just make a lamp.,
I do wonder how long you've had the bike. Were you the original owner? I bought my litespeed second hand so it's well over a decade old now. How much did Litespeed want to do the job? I read that they charge $200 to refinish the whole frame and add new stickers. Something that I will probably consider doing down the line before I upgrade to a new groupset. This is from the litespeed web site:
A fee of $195.00 will return your frame to it's original brushed appearance including new decals. Chain suck damage, dents and deep scratches cannot be completely eliminated by refurbishing. Your frame will also be inspected for additional damage and will be aligned to ensure the best possible future performance.