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Steel Frame Breakage Redux

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Cycling Equipment
Published
29 September 2007
Last activity
3 October 2007
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A Muzi
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  1. Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

  2. A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    More:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CIN2.JPG

    Some days were better than others at Cinelli, apparently.
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

  3. A Muzi said:
    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame
    came back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    More:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CIN2.JPG

    the squared ends create much more of a stress riser than the normal
    round tube bridge. cinelli should have known this.

    Quoted message said:


    Some days were better than others at Cinelli, apparently.

    clearly there's a q.c issue regarding the dropout. the broken chainstay
    may be just that squared design, and/or q.c. [excessive brazing heat].
    the latter to be determined by metallography.

    bottom line, iirc, dedacciai specifically recommend chain stay bridges
    for their steel tube sets and cite fatigue mitigation for explanation.
    provided the tube hasn't been butted too thin in that region, and the
    bridge isn't square ended, i see no reason why they shouldn't be right.

  4. jim beam said:
    A Muzi said:
    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame
    came back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the
    sharp square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    More:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CIN2.JPG

    the squared ends create much more of a stress riser than the normal
    round tube bridge. cinelli should have known this.

    here is an example of a text-book perfect bridge:
    http://www.prodigalchild.net/FrameHolesBW.jpg

    from:
    http://www.prodigalchild.net/Bicycle6.htm

    the pad between the bridge and the chainstay helps distribute stress.

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:


    Some days were better than others at Cinelli, apparently.

    clearly there's a q.c issue regarding the dropout. the broken chainstay
    may be just that squared design, and/or q.c. [excessive brazing heat].
    the latter to be determined by metallography.

    bottom line, iirc, dedacciai specifically recommend chain stay bridges
    for their steel tube sets and cite fatigue mitigation for explanation.
    provided the tube hasn't been butted too thin in that region, and the
    bridge isn't square ended, i see no reason why they shouldn't be right.

  5. In article <[email hidden]>,

    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    The clear conclusion is that the other bikes, with full brazings, were
    overbuilt.

    -RjC.

    --
    Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
    "I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
    to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos

  6. A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    I find frames with cracked chainstays often have cracked dropouts as
    well. Guess it was the other way round with this one

    --
    /Marten

    info(apestaartje)m-gineering(punt)nl

  7. "A Muzi" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame


    came

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    More:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CIN2.JPG

    Some days were better than others at Cinelli, apparently.
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

    I cut open a late 1960s 52 cm Cinelli frame that had run into the back of
    a car. I was going to replace the top and down tubes. The original tubes
    were never mitered, just shoved into the lugs and brazed. There was at
    least a 1/4" (6mm) gap between the tubes in the lugs and the head tube.

    The Cinelli lugs were very thick and looked like they were cast. They
    survived a crash that 90 degreed the Columbus SP top and down tubes. The
    owner decided that it was going to cost too much to fix and abandoned the
    project.

    On your repair, were the lugs 1010Bs? Some of those came with a heavy
    black surface scale that needed to be cleaned off before brazing. That's
    pretty amazing that the joint lasted so long.

    Chas.

  8. A Muzi said:
    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the sharp
    square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all that.

    More:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CIN2.JPG

    Some days were better than others at Cinelli, apparently.

    One of my first bikes was a Cinelli. The brake bolt hole was not square to
    the crown (this has since been corrected). This was from a bike with a
    serial number just over 100, but still that's not an excuse.

  9. A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.

    Quoted message said:

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)

    So much for capitalism !!!

    - Don Gillies
    San Diego, CA

  10. In article <[email hidden]>,

    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame
    came back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the
    sharp square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all
    that.

    Triangulation good.

    Mystique-y Italian frames from Cinelli and Masi and De Rosa and the like
    have a reputation among frame builders for having been built with many
    shortcuts and too much heat. The US-built Masis were reportedly better
    constructed than the Italian ones.

  11. Quoted message said:
    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame came
    back from dechroming.
    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    Donald Gillies said:

    Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)
    So much for capitalism !!!

    I do not know of a bicycle manufacturer named "UPS".
    UPS package delivery service started 1907 with bicycle deliveries and
    successfully went public in 1999. Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

  12. "Tim McNamara" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    In article <[email hidden]>,

    A Muzi said:

    Tonight, I started a cracked chainstay replacement after the frame
    came back from dechroming.

    I lifted the broken piece end and easily peeled off the chainstay:
    http://www.yellowjersey.org/photosfromthepast/CS83CINL.JPG

    There was a small contact of brass for 3-4mm of area (top, inside).
    Otherwise, this 1983(?) Cinelli passed inspection, polishing and
    plating, then got past the assemblers, without actually being brazed.

    OTOH it was ridden for many years before finally breaking at the
    sharp square cast bridge. Draw what conclusions you will from all
    that.

    Triangulation good.

    Mystique-y Italian frames from Cinelli and Masi and De Rosa and the like
    have a reputation among frame builders for having been built with many
    shortcuts and too much heat. The US-built Masis were reportedly better
    constructed than the Italian ones.

    Back in the day a riding buddy had a very early orange Colnago with
    beautiful paint and lugwork. Everyone drooled over it. One problem, it had
    a serious rattle in the toptube.

    A fellow rider from the local school of medicine used a (new product at
    the time) fiber optics scope to look into the toptube through a small hole
    in the seat tube. They found a 8" long piece of brazing rod rolling around
    in the tube. They fixed the problem with some glue. That had to be
    intentional.

    As far as other sacred cow cycling products from Italy, we were assembling
    an all Campy NR bike at our shop in the mid 70s. The left hand pedal
    wouldn't start to thread into the crank arm. On closer examination we
    discovered that the pedal had dual lead threads cut into the shaft.
    Someone had to do that intentionally because the normal pedal threads were
    cut or rolled on a screw machine.

    Chas.

  13. Andrew Muzi mused:

    Quoted message said:

    ...Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format...

    Mr. Muzi's worship of the Capital explains why it is in the background
    of all his bicycle photographs. 😉

    --
    Tom Sherman - Holstein-Friesland Bovinia
    A Real Cyclist [TM] keeps at least one bicycle in the bedroom.

    --
    Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

  14. A Muzi said:

    (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)

    Well they were able to deliver a shipment of nuclear material to
    Syria, according to the Israelis. And then they had no problem
    receiving a shipment of oil from us a week or two after that. So, not
    too bad...

  15. Quoted message said:

    Andrew Muzi mused:

    Quoted message said:

    ...Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format...

    Tom 'Johnny Sunset' Sherman said:

    Mr. Muzi's worship of the Capital explains why it is in the background
    of all his bicycle photographs. 😉

    Pretty expensive thing but at least I get use of it as a photo drop.
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

  16. A Muzi said:
    Donald Gillies said:

    Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)
    So much for capitalism !!!

    Quoted message said:

    I do not know of a bicycle manufacturer named "UPS".
    UPS package delivery service started 1907 with bicycle deliveries and
    successfully went public in 1999. Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)

    Since the IPO, i have tried to use UPS for shipping, but their prices
    are normally 2x Fedex and USPostal. Quite frankly, I don't know how
    they stay in business. Oh yeah I know, they rip off everyday
    consumers and use their booty to subsidize amazon.com ...

    Also, they're the only place ever to charge me $112.00 to ship a
    bicycle across the USA. Most places only charge $35 to ship that bike
    across country. The box bulged by 1/2", i had to go home before the
    drop-off, and they ripped off my 79-yr old grandmother.

    yeah, capitalism works real, real well ...

    - Don Gillies

  17. On 1 Oct 2007 22:29:47 -0700, [email hidden] (Donald Gillies)
    wrote:

    [snip]

    Quoted message said:

    Also, they're the only place ever to charge me $112.00 to ship a
    bicycle across the USA. Most places only charge $35 to ship that bike
    across country. The box bulged by 1/2", i had to go home before the
    drop-off, and they ripped off my 79-yr old grandmother.

    yeah, capitalism works real, real well ...

    - Don Gillies

    Dear Comrade Don,

    Da! In Soviet, grandmothers not ripped off!

    No capitalist shipping size-limit rules in People's Republic! All is
    fair and glorious!

    Apparatchiks handle shipping! Grandsons pay, not grandmothers!

    We invented bicycle! Communist bicycles win Olympics!

    Bicyclists of world, unite! Have nothing to lose but chains when you
    go back to highwheelers!*

    Cheerski,

    Karl--er, Carl Fogel

    *Additional charges may apply for highwheeler shipping behind Iron
    Curtain. Grandmothers ship free to Siberia.

  18. A Muzi

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    A Muzi

    Quoted message said:
    Donald Gillies said:

    Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)
    So much for capitalism !!!

    Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)

    Yes, but there's much merit in what Donald Gilles says. Read an
    interesting discussion of modern-day Capitalism by capitalist John
    Bogle:

    http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/09282007/transcript1.html

    Art Harris

  19. Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:
    Donald Gillies said:

    Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)
    So much for capitalism !!!

    Quoted message said:
    A Muzi said:

    I do not know of a bicycle manufacturer named "UPS".
    UPS package delivery service started 1907 with bicycle deliveries and
    successfully went public in 1999. Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)

    Donald Gillies said:

    Since the IPO, i have tried to use UPS for shipping, but their prices
    are normally 2x Fedex and USPostal. Quite frankly, I don't know how
    they stay in business. Oh yeah I know, they rip off everyday
    consumers and use their booty to subsidize amazon.com ...

    Also, they're the only place ever to charge me $112.00 to ship a
    bicycle across the USA. Most places only charge $35 to ship that bike
    across country. The box bulged by 1/2", i had to go home before the
    drop-off, and they ripped off my 79-yr old grandmother.

    yeah, capitalism works real, real well ...

    I've been around the block with UPS, FedEx and DHL. They are tough
    negotiators with sharp pencils, I agree. Labor fuel etc have made _all_
    delivery services expensive, and strict about size limits and
    surcharges, compared to the low rates of our youth.

    Be that as it may, service is still relatively cheap, quite reliable
    overall. You're welcome to send your small packets by USPS and heavy
    freight by motor carrier, as we do. It's a broad and diverse market,
    package delivery.

    We sometimes do not appreciate the broad and deep societal benefits of
    competition where it exists. I give you Ryan Air or Southwest for
    example. In 1980, Dave Goodall from Holdsworthy explained they were
    opening six new US importers (a company I partly owned imported them
    then). We were shocked. He unrolled a US map, noting that more were
    needed to "get the lorries around to dealers promptly". Our mouths were
    agape. Unlike here, England didn't yet have much FedEx or UPS
    penetration and distributors really did deliver to shops in their own
    trucks. Wanna pay for _that_??
    --
    Andrew Muzi
    www.yellowjersey.org
    Open every day since 1 April, 1971

  20. On Tue, 02 Oct 2007 11:41:38 -0500, A Muzi <[email hidden]>

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Donald Gillies wrote:
    > Aint it always true that quality and value takes a nosedive after a
    > corporate takeover or stock issuance. That, in my opinion, is exactly
    > what people say about Cinelli (and also about UPS here in the USA ...)
    > So much for capitalism !!!

    Quoted message said:
    A Muzi said:

    I do not know of a bicycle manufacturer named "UPS".
    UPS package delivery service started 1907 with bicycle deliveries and
    successfully went public in 1999. Capitalism achieves more, and for more
    people, than any other real or putative format (How efficient is package
    delivery in North Korea nowadays?)

    Donald Gillies said:

    Since the IPO, i have tried to use UPS for shipping, but their prices
    are normally 2x Fedex and USPostal. Quite frankly, I don't know how
    they stay in business. Oh yeah I know, they rip off everyday
    consumers and use their booty to subsidize amazon.com ...

    Also, they're the only place ever to charge me $112.00 to ship a
    bicycle across the USA. Most places only charge $35 to ship that bike
    across country. The box bulged by 1/2", i had to go home before the
    drop-off, and they ripped off my 79-yr old grandmother.

    yeah, capitalism works real, real well ...

    I've been around the block with UPS, FedEx and DHL. They are tough
    negotiators with sharp pencils, I agree. Labor fuel etc have made _all_
    delivery services expensive, and strict about size limits and
    surcharges, compared to the low rates of our youth.

    Be that as it may, service is still relatively cheap, quite reliable
    overall. You're welcome to send your small packets by USPS and heavy
    freight by motor carrier, as we do. It's a broad and diverse market,
    package delivery.

    We sometimes do not appreciate the broad and deep societal benefits of
    competition where it exists. I give you Ryan Air or Southwest for
    example. In 1980, Dave Goodall from Holdsworthy explained they were
    opening six new US importers (a company I partly owned imported them
    then). We were shocked. He unrolled a US map, noting that more were
    needed to "get the lorries around to dealers promptly". Our mouths were
    agape. Unlike here, England didn't yet have much FedEx or UPS
    penetration and distributors really did deliver to shops in their own
    trucks. Wanna pay for _that_??

    Dear Andrew,

    By coincidence, this article caught my eye today:

    http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/014/173rpdzf.asp

    Cheers,

    Carl Fogel

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