My wife had a back injury but has recovered greatly to a point where she has started riding again. We went to set up her beloved litspeed catalyst and found the downtube has cracked. Can this be repaired? we attempted to make a warranty claim but it was denied of course. I did a quick internet search and this appears to be a common failure area for them. Hard to believe a 5'2" 120lb cyclist can break an aerospace material frame!

Did your wife have a collision or crash with this bike? I can't imagine the force of the impact that could cause that damage. As for titanium frame repair, I have no experience or even an informed opinion, but I am curious as to what year this Catalyst frame was built. If you don't know the year, can you provide photos of the frame showing decals? Regardless, I'm glad your wife is recovering and I wish safe rides for you both.

If you're the original owner, warranty that bad boy, otherwise, buy something else. It's your wife and it already broke once. No repair would ever be suitable in my mind when it came to a loved one. IE where's it gonna break NEXT?

"Titanium is incompatible with fluorides, strong reducing acids, very strong caustic solutions, and anhydrous chlorine." So any cleaner with chlorine should not be used. That being said it looks like that crack propagated from the weld at the headtube, see the black spot in the last photo.

: Mike

Weld impurity. Warranty it.

Did you make the claim with Litespeed and they denied it? Take a picture of the black spot and try again.

Send a note off to Steve and see what he thinks.
https://www.stevepottsbicycles.com/

It may just be more expedient to contact Jack Trumbull of Franklin Custom Cycles near Newark, OH. I'm pretty sure he repairs titanium frames and he does build them. His phone is 740-763-3838.

Bilenky cycle works in Philadelphia does titanium repair, though it might cost more than the frame is worth. Send him the pics and see what he says.

A fair question.
Is it even possible to weld up that sort of crack? Or would you weld a plate over the top? I have no idea, but did witness some patches to aircraft skin when I was working as an avionics tech in the Marines.

My impression is that it started at the weld, which does suggest that it could be related to workmanship and therefore covered by warranty. I'm hoping that someone here has been through this sort of issue and can provide guidance or insight.

Looking at the silver lining of this gray titanium cloud, at least it's a gradual failure and no one ended up suddenly face down on the pavement!

Steve in Peoria

Also noticed the crud under and rear of the fork crown. What's it consist of?
Some states in the Winter use calcium chloride. Chloride comes from chlorine. Riding in that environment and into early Spring, putting the bike away without cleaning can cause long term issues. Titanium isn't 'all cracked up to be'.

I have a Litespeed Tuscany. I hope all models aren't prone to this type failure. Hopefully they will determine what caused this.

Litespeed has a bit of a reputation for denying what appear to be valid warranty claims. Me, I'd make one more attempt at a warranty claim (assuming you or she bought the bike new). No idea whether it would likely help or hurt to mention this thread.

If they still refuse the claim, if it were my bike and the components were in good shape, I'd consider finding a replacement frame in steel, aluminum, or carbon (or titanium; lightning is unlikely to strike twice).

Or keep an eye on Craigslist for the next few months for a high-quality, little-used replacement. Prices on older bikes have mostly taken a nose-dive since their COVID highs.

Can't tell what size it is from the photo, but here's a (currently outrageously overpriced) Ritchey in steel, for example.

Ritchey Road Logic - Size 51 - Ultegra Build - $1,500 (Ann Arbor)

Somewhat less overpriced, here's what looks like an immaculate Cannondale cyclocross bike in 48 cm.

Cannondale EN14781 Road Bike - $750 (Ann Arbor)

Most builders won't work on this sort of failure because that tube is welded to 4 others.

No, you can't fix the tube.

No, chemicals didn't cause this.

​

We are guessing mid to late 90's . In The mean time we have modified her Gary Fisher Hoo koo e koo with road tires and a very upright stem witch is working....

Used bike, so no frame warranty.. It was worth a shot, though.

it is 48 cm c-c. we modified her gary fisher mountain bike with road tires and very upright stem in the mean time......

worms and other mungus I should have been more diligent in removing.....

no crashes, aluminum fork should have taken all that damage if it happened in my opinion. she was a very strong rider but not enough to break titanium! 48 cm c-c frame.

I don't think this has anything to do with rider strength/weight, as this is more likely related to fatigue cycles. "Every Litespeed frameset has a useful life cycle. This useful life cycle is not the same as the warranty period. This warranty is not meant to suggest or imply that the frame cannot be broken or will last forever. Bicycles and/or frames will not last forever. " Nothing lasts forever, and getting 25+ years of use out of this frame seems like quite a respectable service life to me anyways.

pah, what's the raspberry at the top side of the downtube in the photo? Looks like a rub/irritation from something hard enough to mar titanium. The crack is gnarly, but my eyes keep going back to that scab. Was that on there when you bought the frame?

frame was purchased brand new from Alan's bicycles in Willmingon Delaware in mid to late 90's. He does not have receipt and neighter do we of course. going to go look at frame again to see what you are looking at. yeah, the frame is old but I have a 84 Colnago that hasn't cracked and I know it was crashed hard more than once!

Yeah. titanium shouldn't just randomly crack like that. Either it was a factory weld defect, or something vibrated/impacted/deteriorated the structure since it was last ridden.

Was the bike racked or transported on a frame-held car rack in its life? I can't figure what would cause this hickey...

Beautiful frame. If your wife loves it, just buy another one. Its a buyers market.

There is a LOT of corrosion on the adjacent aluminum parts. I believe that if this frame was cut open, we would also see corrosion inside the tube from not being able to drain gunky water, while being hung up by the rear wheel. Titanium hates that.

(educated guess)

I had a denied Trek titanium warranty claim. I knew it was a lost cause so I moved on. In your case, maybe a Habenero. They have some of their older Team Issue Novo frames on sale for about a grand. As that's an older design, you could probably walk some parts over.