Frame failure experiences
- Thread starter bikeworkshop
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A first for me, it seems 
1990 Scrambler Line ATB (French framebuilder, as the name doesn't imply). Made of Aviatube (a Pechiney brand) 6106 aluminum alloy (not 6061, as e.g. Kein or Cannondale). Bought two years ago and just noticed the crack in the seat tube while cleaning up the frame tonight. Unknown history, but the frame did come with the original carbon seatpost manufactured for Scrambler Line by TVT - Technique du Verre Tissé (yet another French company), so not a problem of wrongly-sized part. And from the marks on the raw carbon, the insertion length seems to always have been more than adequate. What to do now? Drill a tiny hole at the end of the crack to prevent it from propagating further (seen that on some Yeti A.R.C.s)? And then, good luck locating someone here in France willing/able to repair such an antique aluminum alloy frame...
1990 Scrambler Line ATB (French framebuilder, as the name doesn't imply). Made of Aviatube (a Pechiney brand) 6106 aluminum alloy (not 6061, as e.g. Kein or Cannondale). Bought two years ago and just noticed the crack in the seat tube while cleaning up the frame tonight. Unknown history, but the frame did come with the original carbon seatpost manufactured for Scrambler Line by TVT - Technique du Verre Tissé (yet another French company), so not a problem of wrongly-sized part. And from the marks on the raw carbon, the insertion length seems to always have been more than adequate. What to do now? Drill a tiny hole at the end of the crack to prevent it from propagating further (seen that on some Yeti A.R.C.s)? And then, good luck locating someone here in France willing/able to repair such an antique aluminum alloy frame...
highlandsflyer
Retro Wizard
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35 years is a good run. Hang it up?
highlandsflyer
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Take a picture down?
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
A first for me, it seems
View attachment 936908
1990 Scrambler Line ATB (French framebuilder, as the name doesn't imply). Made of Aviatube (a Pechiney brand) 6106 aluminum alloy (not 6061, as e.g. Kein or Cannondale). Bought two years ago and just noticed the crack in the seat tube while cleaning up the frame tonight. Unknown history, but the frame did come with the original carbon seatpost manufactured for Scrambler Line by TVT - Technique du Verre Tissé (yet another French company), so not a problem of wrongly-sized part. And from the marks on the raw carbon, the insertion length seems to always have been more than adequate. What to do now? Drill a tiny hole at the end of the crack to prevent it from propagating further (seen that on some Yeti A.R.C.s)? And then, good luck locating someone here in France willing/able to repair such an antique aluminum alloy frame...
You can't really repair that - short of glueing the post in at the right position.
bikeworkshop
Old School Grand Master
Also steel can be repaired by brazing without overly affecting the material properties
"Luckily" enough, the seat tube extends "quite a bit" above the top tube on this frame (random picture of an older MY with U-brake mounts):
Dammit! And about drilling a tiny hole to stop the crack from propagating, is it a good idea? And then, if for cosmetic reasons, I fill in the drilled hole with metallic epoxy such as JB Weld (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Weld-8265S-Steel-Reinforced-Hardener/dp/B01MTR3OA2), will it have the same nefast effect of not having drilled the hole at all and help it propagate again or not?
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