This thread simply HURTS...OUCH...YEOWWIE...AGGGHHH...STOP IT!!! I cannot take any more pain!

You could list this on our local Craig's List saying "it should buff right out"!

You should've seen the kink in the top tube

This is an old pic. Frame is long gone; I decided I wouldn't be fiscally responsible to have it repaired/repainted.

DD

Yeah, either that or tell prospective buyers that the damage "doesn't noticeably affect the handling"

DD

Chose not to But, a frame-builder to replace the down and top tubes + a repaint and decals .. could be done

took a damaged lugged Cal made Masi,
did this via a Bike shop i worked in , broke even + about $10, buyer sold his AlAn frame/fork for cheap in exchange,
We swapped over his components except the seat post [A 25.0 vs a 27.2]

and I built up & rode the screwed and glued one for a number of years..

Or use all caps and enough exclamation marks that the buyer doesn't notice - that seems to be the thinking of too many sellers.

Well, sure - but you have to ask if it's worth it each and every time. I've had my share of frames repaired/refinished. This was a Freschi, and not particularly awesome as far as fit/finish. I believe I was quoted something north of $1000 for the repair/repaint. Um...no thanks!

DD

This was the mid 80's and inflation does make everyone charge more over time.

verktyg

Chas.

Apparently not many of us take pictures of our own bent forks. I have two bikes with top/down tubes like yours, DD. One is now a shop stool, the other isn't so bad... Oddly neither one had a bent fork

The one bike I had with a bent fork got straightened. I don't think it would have shown on a photo. I didn't notice it until I tried to assemble it and it wouldn't turn.

I think there are lots of pics of bent forks over in the "Wacky World of eBay/CL"...

I think that's what I'm noticing here, too. Just the odd one here and there, for posterity, after the owner's crash , seems like. Yeah, I guess I'll have to get my jones satisfied over on the Ebay/Cl wackiness thread instead

DD

This happened 3 days after finishing the build, and I still haven't figured out how it actually happened. As far as I can tell, I didn't actually hit anything and the fork just randomly decided that it no longer wanted to be part of a bike.

Does fork "bent forward" count? This is what happens when you give friend a ride on the handle bars.

Or put it on Ebay with a $1000 BIN as the uber rare protoype of the never produced Hetchins curly fork.

How badly was that fork bent? The fork on my 1958 Raleigh 3-speed has been bent since before I got it. Very slightly though, and bent at the blades and not at the braze. It makes the ride just ever so slightly more harsh. I need to find someone who can do this for me ... er, I suppose I have to start looking first

(old photo)

Only a little bent. Rides fine.

1953 Bianchi Selvino 033 by iabisdb, on Flickr

Whoa! Is it possible the front wheel wasn't locked in completely and it popped out of the NDS dropout? The torque applied as a result perhaps did the rest?

I hope you came out of that okay. Looks like that could have nasty consequences!

DD

Sure - direction be damned; bent is bent

Funny, I thought those electro-forged Schwinns were pretty much indestructible. How much did your friend weigh?!

DD

If I look really, really hard I can just about make out....nope. Looks fine to me

What a beaut.

DD

If you run your finger under the top anddown tubes you can feel the kink. I assume it must have been in a front-ender.

No clue! It happened about 2 years ago...I went over the bars suddenly after rounding a corner on a bike path, and got up to see the bike looking like that. I was on my way to a morning meeting at work, and ended up having a housemate come pick me up and take me the rest of the work. Between the meeting and my actual shift, I took public transportation home, grabbed my other bike, and rode back in!

The forks I straightened looked much like yours, maybe bent back a bit more than that. I was pretty pleased at the outcome. Truthfully I really don't know how it came out as the bike was a boys model and too small for me to test ride. I learned about fork straightening and learned about SA 3 spd hubs. Good education. If i were in your place, I'd look for an old school LBS or a local frame builder and talk to them. Be sure to ask if they have ACTUALLY done the job vs just knowing how to. I know two guys that own the right tool but have never actually used it. Caution.

It was his bike when he was a kid,The handle bars were bent downwards too. I would like to think it wasn't his girlfriend. I was able to straighten the fork back .

@Prowler, Thanks for the advice. I shall look into it. There is a shop in town that I go to look for classic SA parts. They might have the ability.



I should have used this photo which is far more recent. it looks worse in the other photo because the steering is turned. OR maybe it's because of all the curbs I've been hopping. Maybe it'll straighten itself if I give it long enough (i'm kidding, I swear!)