is this dent terminal?
 

thank you TSA. i feel much safer now.

*sigh*

that said... what do you, my compatriots, think? terminal, rideable but risky, or stop crying and ride? frame is aluminum. i'm going to take it by an LBS and get an opinion from them, but i value your opinions as well. i'm thinking it's on the border of rideable, but maybe i'm biased....

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SUXX. Well, I don't see any cracks, just a big honking dent.

pity party here. I cant see it :(

ooh...i see a hairline right up above that dent. Not good. If you can afford to replace, do so. Otherwise...Ride carefully and wear a helmet.

yep... that's what worries me

I think that might be paint flaking off...

I would take it into a shop you trust. I can't tell if that is a crack or a paint chip, but that dent would make me nervous on an AL frame (heck, any frame).

i'm with no minkah here. dents suck, but except on the headtube, if there's no fracture or apparent stress, the thing isn't going to fall apart because it's uglied up a bit.

edit: though i do think barba's on to something. be sure "uglied up" is all it is.

could just be paint- try picking at it a bit and see if you can expose the aluminum underneath.

is the tube round at that point? you could do the ghetto pipe clamp technique.

what happened?

i'll probably take the paint off later.

bike was in a trico case. tsa went through it, and i'm assuming in the course of their investigation of my bike bomb *cough* they moved one of the wheels which then pressed down on the downtube in the course of being tossed around, etc.

what? that bike's not made of silly putty. that shouldn't leave a dent like that. then again, people who work in baggage are *******s who don't care if they break your ****. make a fuss with the airline...it's rideable, but someone not taking care of a spendy-ass frame like that? c'mon...take 'em to task for it.

that crack looks like the paint to me as well...

I'm no expert, but it doesn't look very nice to me. Under the part where the paint layer cracked, there are a couple of ripples in the paint. Looks like the tube under it got deformed quite a bit. If it was mine, I'd ride it, but that's because I'm cheap;)

Can't you get the airline to buy you a shiny new frame?

dude, that sucks.

if thats just the paint, then i'd say its ok. if its a real hairline... time to ***** out TSA and get some money

you bailed right before the rain, its poured all day long

It's ugly, but I think you should be fine to ride it. Remember that the downtube is under tension rather than compression. Also, given the size of the tube, the dent could certainly be a lot larger. The crack just looks like the paint rather than the tube itself. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

i guess my concern is that if the paint is cracked, then the tube underneath is cracked/fractured as well.


a little update in general:

i'm definitely going to file a claim with TSA, which apparently are usually settled within 60 days. the usual government process applies, meaning i have to submit independent verification of the damage, etc.

how do you know it was TSA and not the airline?

don't they usually put a card in your luggage that says "this was inspected for yaddayaddayadda...."
at least that's what they did with my skis.

if you end up filing with the airline, too, stay on top of it and call them at least once a week, because sometimes airlines conveniently "misplace" or "misfile" your papers and such. especially if you flew NWA.

and don't forget, when submitting your independent verification with TSA, to tell them to suck it.

i shipped my bmx home once and a huge hole got ripped in the box leading to my pedals and pegs falling out. can't remember what airline, but i filed a complaint and was reimbursed within a week

Contact your airline about this. I think most of them insure your stuff and will pay for anything that is lost/damaged. That's what I heard though, it might not be correct.

i wouldn't have a claim with the airline because the case wasn't damaged - it was TSA which put the wheel over the downtube and thus caused the dent. i called the airline and they basically said that without actual damage to the case i wouldn't have a claim with them.

i'm pretty sure TSA puts a slip in there. they did once when i flew with a guitar.

damn it whoosh, you beat me to it!

+1 to the NWA pic. actually made me smile over this whole thing...

and yes, there was a slip in there, so i'm at least covered in that respect.

The problem is if you ride the bike will you ever fully trust the frame from killing you? Regardless of what your lbs says - and it would be surprising if they would give an unqualified 'don't worry be happy', but if they did - could you?

before i got my new bike, i had a ****ty gaspipe tubing conversion that i beat the **** out of.

in my first night of new whip ownership i threw the new triple-butted frame into a signpost to lock-up, and made a hefty dent in the TT. i was super pissed and worried about structural integrity, but i'll tell you what, i havent cared at all since i covered it with a reload frame pad. out of sight, out of mind.

buuuut, theres a big difference between steel and alum.

With steel I would say you've got no worries whasoever. But with aluminum, things are not so friendly. I do think that your frame is safe to ride however, because the downtube is under tension with no torque or rotation to speak of like a head tube or seat tube would have to bear. If you can't get TSA to make it right, you should be able to ride the frame without worrying too much about it. If you do take this route, definitely buff the paint off of that area to see if there is any fracturing or if it is a clean dent.

You could also get someone to weld a scab over the dent to ease your mind. Aluminum welds great with the right technique, and an oval patch about twice the diameter of the dent and bent to form smoothly around the tube would pretty much eliminate any worry about structural problems. Hell; if you found a good machinist, you could have them mill out the dented area and weld in a circular patch of sheet stock then grind the welds smooth and repaint. The only hint of a dent will be your frightening memories of it. :)

Dude,

If they dented your frame then you should talk to them about it. Explain to them what you know of what happened and what you would like them to do for you (this is important). Don't speculate. Just give them the facts like, "the bike was fine when I gave it to a woman at the ABC Airline check in. When I got to my destination and unpacked it, I immediately saw the dent." Don't put any assumtions in there because they may call you out on it.

They have insurance to cover events like this. Just write a nice, well thought out, pleasant letter with as many details as possible (flight number, dates, when you saw the bike before and after the dent, etc...). Include detailed photos and copies of your ticket. The sooner the better.

Explain to them that it's more than just a blemish, it is part of the structural integrity of the bicycle. Especially since it is aluminum. Also mention that it cannot be repaired. Maybe say that you would like either another identical frame or cash for you to buy one yourself. Let them know from where to get a new frame for you or how much cash it would take them giving you to replace it.

Remember, they handle stuff like this all day, every day. Just be nice and level headed about it and things should work out.

Good luck.