I had a fairly heavy cross bike fall off the back of my van at highway speed, tacoed a wheel. You can't tell it fell off by checking the wheels--they both were replaced.

Point is wheels are cheap to replace if you are try to ditch a frame. What is the worst that can happen with a head tube crack? Isn't that the part that involves STEERING?!

Get your mony back. Al is great a crack propogation-it spreads crack wonderfully at low stress. This bike is doomed, I would necessarily trust TiG welding. Get it replaced or returned.

That defect did not show up on a test ride**********? Should have sounded bad at best.

It didnt sound bad or feel loose at all, and on my first go over i missed it. It's about 5/8th of an inch long...i just missed it

Im hoping this guy does the right thing and takes it back...what kind of recourse do i have if he refuses?

Either get your money back, or get some of it back. Replacement value is a concern, since you won't be able to get an identical bike w/out the crack for the same money. There is some value in the low price...

The frame is probably worth $150 used? So look at what that bike should be worth and drop off $150 or $200 (for the build-up labor). Then drill your hole and use the clamp -- should last.

The head tube is also the part that keeps you face from dragging on the road.

Depending on the alloy, welding on it then means that it needs to be heat treated.

if he doesn't give you your money back get on Judge Judy, she'll set things right.

i would go get my money back, IMHO he was trying to screw someone

Haha!

I wonder if i do have legal recourse though. Cash purchase and all sales final etc etc. Is he obligated by law to give me my money back? Or am i counting on him just doing the right thing?

If he sold you something under false pretenses then yes, you can get your money back. What were the conditions of the sale? Do you have anything in writing? If it was stated that the bike is being sold AS IS and that it is your responsibility to inspect it prior to the sale, you may be SOL.

caveat emptor

Buying a bike "as is" to me would be a condition which included obvious wear and tear on the drivetrain, wheels, paint scratches, and overall general and normal useage. Something as major as a cracked frame is an entirely different deal. Get your money back. This seller sold for a reason other then general wear. To sell someone a bike with a huge defect is fraud. Good luck and keep us posted.

Quite possibly yes.

If he does not give you a refund just go to your local courthouse and file the paperwork to take the seller to small claims court. Common sence is in your favor. No one would pay $300.00 for a useless bike frame. Thats what small claims court is there for.

The above MIGHT stop it provided you get the very end of the crack. But you don't know where it is, only what you can see. The crack may be microscopically propagated all the way to the top of the head tube, just not visible to the naked eye.

While the clamp sounds like a good idea, the truth is you don't know how far the crack goes and the only way to find it is to magnflux /die and black light the head tube. It could just break over the clamp.

Maybe try three clamps and some duct tape.

If it was a strut on the wing of a plane would you fly in it? You're shooting craps with the devil on this deal.

Hose clamp and crack stop hole will be fine - the steel is much stronger than the aluminum. Paint the clamp and nobody will notice.

Well after many emails and voicemails, its clear the guy is blowing me off. Ill file a small claims case and see what happens, can't hurt. Worst case scenario is im stuck with a broken frame and ill replace it with a nashbar. $120 lesson learned which is a PITA, but life goes on.

Question about the fork though. I don't know the bike was crashed, but the crack indicates it could have been....how do i tell if the fork is safe to ride on? It feels stiff and has no play what so ever, nor does it have any cracks or blemishes. It has an alloy crown with a chromo steerer, im assuming the dropouts are alloy too (they're not carbon). From what i can tell, the tiny smooth ridge parrallel with the brake pads indicates where the carbon stops and the alloy crown begins, does that sound about right?

I guess im wondering if theres a definitive way to know if the fork is safe to ride or not. As usual, i defer to the mob. Thanks for any advice, and i appreciate the input so far.

If the frame exhibits sign of an impact, I'd work under the assumption that the fork is not safe either. Try to pick something up with your Nashbar. Better safe than toothless.

+1

Remember Hincapie's bike in Roubaix? He crashed but the steerer did not break until later. So if it was a crash significant enough to crack the headtube, it is likely the fork sustained damage somewhere and you do not want to find out when it does fail during a ride.

Whatever you do, don't drill a hole in it until you get a definitive answer from Specialized. What do you think Specialized will say when they see the hole? Answer, you're SOL. Just get your money back from the guy.


Tim

The guy is blowing him off he said..

Wow, I wish I lived in a world where I could give people advice like "drill a hole in your head tube" with absolutely no accountability... It would lighten up my schedule a bit.

"Oh, sure, you can cut that out yourself. There's a blood vessel here and a nerve here, so watch out for those. Otherwise it's a chip shot."

Either the guy will stop blowing you off and give a refund, or you'll do the small claims thing. Don't ride it, don't drill holes in it. You mentioned earlier in the thread that it wasn't worth the risk, and you're absolutely right.

+1 for Dr Pete.

The downside risk is high with no limit (i.e. you could die when the bike breaks up while a truck overtakes you), the probability of the thing breaking in my view is something like 80%. Multiply those together and you get a lot more downside than the $150 you save.

If you can't get your money back, chalk it up to experience and hacksaw the frame apart so than nobody tries recycling it.

Don't ride that bike under any circumstances. Request refund and offer to pay him the $350 if he gets a new frame under the warranty from Specialized. You have small claims court to resort to if he won't work with you. Hope if works out for you to your satisfaction.

If your LBS says it's fine and you actually think about riding it make sure you get it in writing from the LBS that they think it is fine...that way you have someone to sue when it falls apart.

Filing a claim in small claims court will cost you money and if you bought a used bike and got to inspect it before you bought then you will loose the case unless he had an add saying it wa sin mint or new condition or something similar.