OnOne Pickenflick (Ti Frame)- Post Crash Frame alignment (Headtube)
scaramanga07
Posts: 10
in Workshop
So, back in late Sept i was involved in a collision with a car (their fault). Luckily, both i and the bike managed to come out of it reletively unharmed. Although, upon further inspection, i started to notice the bike had sustained quite a lot of frame alignment issues.
I first noticed my crank ring was rubbing on the chainstay, then after altering that i noticed the crank arm was clipping the chain at its high point. So, the rear triangle was cold set back by about 10mm+ Once i found that just shear brute force was needed, i found it quite doable to return the bikes rear to the correct postion. And i know with Titanium it generally advised not to cold set the frame but it seems to have worked just fine.
I was quite pleased an mounted the bike on to the turbo to give it a run but soon found the handlebars felt uncomfortable and the wheel seemed to be tilted to one side. I have a look and the headtube is almost definitely twisted.
I've tried various methods but with the Headtube, top and down tube all being large, the area is very stiff and hard to budge. I know there is a risk of cracking Titanium but as it is, it seems a shame to class it as a write off.
I have tried the following :-
Can any one suggest an easier way i can try cold setting the headtube?
I first noticed my crank ring was rubbing on the chainstay, then after altering that i noticed the crank arm was clipping the chain at its high point. So, the rear triangle was cold set back by about 10mm+ Once i found that just shear brute force was needed, i found it quite doable to return the bikes rear to the correct postion. And i know with Titanium it generally advised not to cold set the frame but it seems to have worked just fine.
I was quite pleased an mounted the bike on to the turbo to give it a run but soon found the handlebars felt uncomfortable and the wheel seemed to be tilted to one side. I have a look and the headtube is almost definitely twisted.
I've tried various methods but with the Headtube, top and down tube all being large, the area is very stiff and hard to budge. I know there is a risk of cracking Titanium but as it is, it seems a shame to class it as a write off.
I have tried the following :-
- Raising it off the ground on wooden blocks, standing on it and with a pull up bar through the headtube, trying to reset it.
- Clamping the seat tube in a vise with some wood and twisting with a bar through the headtube
- Claming the headtube in a vise and using the seat tube to twist it.
Can any one suggest an easier way i can try cold setting the headtube?
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Comments
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Can you not claim against their insurance?
Or has that ship sailed?
If it were me, I'm not sure I would be wanting to risk all of this re-alignment, for what might end up being a not 100% straight, and potentially compromised frame.Felt F70 05 (Turbo)
Marin Palisades Trail 91 and 06
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Cannondale Synapse Adventure 15 & 16 Di2
Scott Foil 181 -
scaramanga07 said:
I have now looked into stripping the frame down and building an alignment table (Granite based and a large aluminium bottom bracket clamp
How much will piece of granite - big enough - cost you?
Ben
Bikes: Donhou DSS4 Custom | Condor Italia RC | Gios Megalite | Dolan Preffisio | Giant Bowery '76
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ben_h_ppcc/
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Just send it to a dude who does this for a living.
what ypu're proposing will be an utter, utter, utter fag.
simpler
easier
will be done properly.The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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Dan- the claim is in but I'm just trying my best to salvage it.
Ben - piece of granite worktop could be had for about £20 on fleabay
Matt - at this point i am considering trying someone to do this but I am dubious if anyone would touch it. And it may be expensive.
Plus... I'm so close to getting it ridable.
Thanks for the advice all!
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its junk now.
playing with it might be fun
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I agree with MF. It's worth a call to a local framebuilder (preferably one that builds with titanium but a steel frame builder would also work.) I reckon they'd give you advice and/or estimate over the phone.1
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So... Finally got to get something that resembled a alignment table after exhausting all other option (no one was interested or just said to bin it... ).
The head tube was tough and refused to budge... In the process I did deform the down tube a little. Small dent where the tube was not fully supported. Oh, well.
I will piece it together and see how bad things are but would still ride to to and from work if it's ok.
Thanks,
Dan0 -
Just a wee update.. it is straight and ridable once more. So worth it in the end.
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Is this a wind up? That downtube is a catastrophic failure waiting to happen. Throw that frame in a skip...3
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If I was going to mend a frame I would doing it on one that was the right size for me.0
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It deserves to end up in a skip for wrapping the bars with pink tape alone 😀
Seriously though, it's just downright dangerous to ride now. Don't risk it.1 -
Other than the risk of the down tube folding, or one of the welds that has been strained in the crash and again in your workshop cracking, I'd be worried about speed wobble on a bike like that. You may only realise that as you face plant into the tarmac on a fast descent.
And how many of those other parts were in the crash? Forks? Bars?
It is un-sellable and not economically fixable.
Perfect bike for a stationary trainer.
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I've got a new bike in the way, this will purely act as a commuter bike. And yes, I agree with all of the above and intend on taking things slowly...
The picture makes the dent look worse than it actually is. The bike is feeling great at the moment with no weird creaks or anything.
If anything does happen I will update the thread as a warning to others but the bike still feels plenty strong and to throw it away seems over cautious to me.
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So if it collapses when you are only doing 15mph it will be fine then. Just to practice go for ride, gradually come to a stop and instead of putting your foot down throw yourself on to the floor. If this feels fine then it’s ok to ride.1
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This thread seems more optimistic
https://forum.bikeradar.com/discussion/12972893/dent-in-ti-frame/p10 -
Not sure why you would think that thread gives you any optimism whatsoever. There are two clear and distinct creases in the dent on your downtube which are the reason why I would not even consider riding that frame on anything other than an indoor trainer. In fact I already have an indoor trainer bike, so in my case, I would put in straight in the scrap metal skip at my local recycling centre.scaramanga07 said:This thread seems more optimistic
https://forum.bikeradar.com/discussion/12972893/dent-in-ti-frame/p1
Not sure what it would take for you to see sense, but some people just can't or won't be told...0 -
Just to add...scaramanga07 said:The bike is feeling great at the moment with no weird creaks or anything.
If you understood what is meant by the term 'catastrophic failure', then you'd understand that it will obviously look and feel great with no weird creaks - right up until the time that it fails without warning.
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Right. I've been known to colour the pasty, fluff the pillow and blanche the potato.
But that things a friggin' dangerous, ridiculous, ill fitting knackered shed.
I can't believe you thought it fitted you before it got totally fckdeu.
In.
The.
Bin..The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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Yeah look OP, the difference between some other dent and the dent on your frame is that the dent on your frame was associated with bending the rear triangle and the front triangle.
There are only two triangles on your bike. So absolutely all of it is bent.
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Btw - I'm 6'3" and it's an XL (58cm?) Frame .
Alright, I do appreciate the advice / opinions and will be checking it before and after every ride.
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FFS, you are still missing the point in a spectacular fashion....scaramanga07 said:
Alright, I do appreciate the advice / opinions and will be checking it before and after every ride.
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It’s clearly too small never mind it’s now bent. What’s the cost of a new frame and what’s the cost of facial reconstruction.scaramanga07 said:Btw - I'm 6'3" and it's an XL (58cm?) Frame .
Alright, I do appreciate the advice / opinions and will be checking it before and after every ride.0 -
i'd check it right in the bin if I were you.scaramanga07 said:Btw - I'm 6'3" and it's an XL (58cm?) Frame .
Alright, I do appreciate the advice / opinions and will be checking it before and after every ride..The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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Mec, if even MF is saying sling it in the bin then I suggest you follow his lead.
And anyway, bent or not, its far too small for you.
In.
The.
Bin..The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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Are you having a conversation with yourself?MattFalle said:Mec, if even MF is saying sling it in the bin then I suggest you follow his lead.
And anyway, bent or not, its far too small for you.
In.
The.
Bin.0 -
No - MF is.
Why?.The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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I know it’s trendy to take pots shots and so on.First.Aspect said:
Are you having a conversation with yourself?MattFalle said:Mec, if even MF is saying sling it in the bin then I suggest you follow his lead.
And anyway, bent or not, its far too small for you.
In.
The.
Bin.0 -
No reason.MattFalle said:No - MF is.
Why?
I think he should keep it as a trainer bike, personally. But binning it is a viable option.0 -
I thnk he should bin the whole sorry sackofshit and get a frame that fits him then transfer all the bits across.
.The camera down the willy isn't anything like as bad as it sounds.
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That dent is frightening. If i wanted to bend your bike in half that is exactly how i would dent the tube to make it easy.
Catastrophic failure aĺways results in the worst crashes imaginable.1
