how would i fix this

[supermario]

hi guys looking on ebay . and saw this frame . it has a small hairline crack on the left handside bottom side of the headtube. how would you fix this

 

[47p2]

Needs a new head tube

 

[jonnyboy666]

while i am not a fan of repairing aluminium (my view is to bin it) the best way would be to drill a small hole at the end of the cracks then have the frame welded up properly, then smoothed out to look better aswel as then facing and reaming the headtube.

 

[pigman]

Jubillee clip round it. Don't laugh ... a mate did that to his alu Bianchi and rode it for a few years as a winter bike. It looked a real bodge and was a constant source of ridicule tthough

 

[jonnyboy666]

personally i wouldn't be happy with re-welded aluminium let alone the bodge of a jubilee clip, while i accept some people are happy with that kind of bodge i think you're asking for trouble.

 

[Robbied196]

Most likely that crack has been caused by a heavy impact. If the forks aren't available with the frame that would be another sure sign, they're probably bent like a banana. They maybe other problems with the frames alignment that are not going to show in the photos. I'd say one for the local tip, scrap metal dealer.......or Ebay :facepalm:

 

[diditte911]

Most likely that crack has been caused by a heavy impact.

would an ill-fitting cup forcibly pressed also cause that?

 

[agentorange]

Most likely that crack has been caused by a heavy impact.

would an ill-fitting cup forcibly pressed also cause that?

Thing is, you wouldn't really find an ill-fitting cup, most are set to a standard. Have you tried wacking a 1 1/8" cup into a 1" tube? you kind of know it's going bad quite early on.

 

[lewisfoto]

I like the repair solution Jonny suggested, and if it were my frame I might take a whack at it, but I would never BUY a frame in that state.

 

[keithglos]

Certainly would not buy it, but what is the worst that can happen while riding it? Probably a gradual loosening of the bottom head cup, nothing remotely dangerous. If the front forks break just above the fork crown then you are face into the tarmac. Nothing like that.