Rigid Chromoly Fork Cracked at Brake Boss. Easy repair?

[Grimaldinho]

Hi Folks,

First time poster. I'm in the process of trying to restore my mid 90's bike as commuter bike. No doubt I'm going to be putting on a few more posts over the course of the summer!

I stripped the bike down over the weekend (with the exception of the bottom bracket - that's another story ) and I noticed that there is a crack on the fork where the boss meets the main fork leg (see attached picture)

The fork is project 2 from a 94 Kona.

My question is, will this be easy enough to get repaired, and can any one recommend anybody in Leeds area? An idea of cost might be useful too.

Thanks

[/img]

 

[matthew71]

forks

hi,and welcome
dont want to sound mean,but skip them.it would be cheaper and safer to replace them.front teeth verses tarmac has only one winner.and dental work is very costly

 

[Grimaldinho]

Cheers Matthew.

Yes, I did think that might be one solution! This idea to 'spruce up' my old bike is looking more expensive every minute!

 

[drystonepaul]

Yes that looks more than likely caused by the forks rusting away inside rather then a stress fracture on a weld.

I doubt whether they will be at all repairable.

There's plenty of P2s around to replace them with though.

 

[matthew71]

rust

i think drystone is right,i was looking on my phone while at work,but now i see a better picture it,s as he says.they have rusted and the force of the brake arm has started to tear away the braze on

good luck with the bb to,there is LGF,s guild to stubbon bb removal on here if it becomes a real pain

 

[Grimaldinho]

Thanks for the feedback folks. I'm hoping the frame is a bit more of a goer to restore than the forks. It has a fair bit of rust around the bottom bracket/rear stays. I had a look inside the tubes where I could when taking it apart and it seemed pretty sound, but my concern would be the rear triangle.

Re: Bottom Bracket, yes, I've seen that guide. Unfortunately I bought another BB extractor, but now think the Park tool with the socket adaptor on it will be the way to go! On that note, am I right in thinking that my bottom bracket is installed 'conventionally' for shimano i.e does it look like the cartridge section is on the drive side in the picture? I've been assuming that the 'lockring' side does not pertrude and is on the non drive side.

Apols for all the noob questions. I've been having a good read of this forum for a few weeks now and am finally getting the build together!

 

[hamster]

I've never seen that happen to a fork before. Scary.

Bin it quick, and maybe cut the leg open at the crack for curiosity's sake to see why it went...