Ti frame repair - any thoughts on these welds?

rohloff-rich

Hi guys, spend most of my time over on the road section (please don't hate me!) but my Ti MTB frame has just come back from being repaired and I was just wondering if anyone has any views on the welds in the pics linked below?:

Clicky link here

Any comments / thoughts / advice much appreciated - just want to know if they look like a good or bad job as I have no idea what to look for!

I've already replaced it with a Nicolai Argon FR but am selling it on - don't want to sell it if it's just gonna break again!

Cheers

Sir HC

Can't see the photos

rohloff-rich

Sir HC wrote:

Can't see the photos

Try this:

http://richard-gearing.fotopic.net/c1333010.html

Seem to be working ok for others - let me know if you still have trouble

8)

ratty2k

Not sure, but I think I can see a crack in this pic?
http://richard-gearing.fotopic.net/c1333010.html Welds look to be pretty neat from what I can see. Just that one issue... it may just be a trick of light, but worth checking closer.

nicklouse

i hate posts like this.

as we have no idea as to what the "repair" involved.

But the Welds do look good. Ratty soon as i saw the picture i knew which ou were on about. it does seem that the filler rod was being added a touch early after a stop.

do you have any before shots. was it a snap off and an insert has be added? of is it just a weld over job?

all i will say is this. better than i could do. but i dont think it was done as well as i would have done if I could Tig Ti.

rohloff-rich

ratty2k wrote:

Not sure, but I think I can see a crack in this pic?
http://richard-gearing.fotopic.net/c1333010.html Welds look to be pretty neat from what I can see. Just that one issue... it may just be a trick of light, but worth checking closer.

If you mean the 4th pic down then it's just a trick of the light, but that shows one of the more untidy parts of the welding.

nicklouse wrote:

i hate posts like this.

as we have no idea as to what the "repair" involved.

But the Welds do look good. Ratty soon as i saw the picture i knew which ou were on about. it does seem that the filler rod was being added a touch early after a stop.

do you have any before shots. was it a snap off and an insert has be added? of is it just a weld over job?

all i will say is this. better than i could do. but i dont think it was done as well as i would have done if I could Tig Ti.

Pics of the original crack here:

http://richard-gearing.fotopic.net/c1273857.html

My concern lies in the fact that advice I have been given from Ti specilaists is that a Ti weld must be 100% for it to be 'sound' (i.e. on steel you can get away with a '95% good' weld but Ti will fail if it is less than perfect). There's a lot of filing (cleaning / sanding / finishing, whatever you want to call it) been done to the welds shown which worries me.

nicklouse

i have just deleted what i was going to say.

If the welder was able to check the Ti and then match it to the correct grade of filler rod the welder should have been aware of the best practaces for preparing and welding Ti and there should be no problem.

rohloff-rich

nicklouse wrote:

i have just deleted what i was going to say.

Now I'm intrigued! Come on, spill the beans!

nicklouse

rohloff-rich wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

i have just deleted what i was going to say.

Now I'm intrigued! Come on, spill the beans!

basically i dont like it.

it seems more like an elsoplaster than a cure.

rohloff-rich

nicklouse wrote:

basically i dont like it.

it seems more like an elsoplaster than a cure.

Nowt wrong with saying that mate, I'm debating rejecting the repair on the basis that I'm completely unsatisfied that it has cured the problem as well as the fact that the repair looks exactly like what you said.

From what I can see they might as well have strapped a couple of jubilee clips around it, or maybe rivetted it! :roll:

Don't get me wrong I'm no welder - to me as a customer this repair job just isn't acceptable.