On 7 Aug 2006 16:05:44 -0700, "Sir Ridesalot"
<
[email protected]> wrote:
>Hi there.
>
>I was prepping this Norco touring frame for a friend prior to painting
>it.
>
>When I cleaned the gunk off the seatstay I discovered the left one is
>broken very close to where it joins the seat tube.
>
>There aren't any bicycle frame builders or bicycle shops in our area
>that do this kind of repair.
>
>Therefore we wonder if experts here think a competent auto body
>repairman could braze/weld such a break in a manner that would last.
>
>Here is a link to an image of the break.
>
>http://www.flickr.com/photos/73832500@N00/209509671/
First, determine if that shaped end on the tube (with "NORCO" stamped
in it) is a formed part of the tube or an insert that was pushed in
prior to brazing the frame together.
If it's part of the tube, then I'd expect that the best repair would
involve a bit more than simply brazing over the crack. Mostly that's
because unless the crack is opened up so that all the corrosion can be
removed, the brazing will not migrate into and bond to the faces; all
you'll accomplish is an overlay of brass across the crack, and it'll
break through again in short order. Also, that crack probably doesn't
stop at the edge of the flat part.
If the NORCO badging is via an insert that's separate from the tube,
it's still going to get interesting. In that case, it's likely that
the insert was supposed to have been brazed or silver soldered in
place around the entire margin of the part, but the joint wasn't
properly made; if that was the case, then the reason for the crack
also becomes apparent. I'd hesitate to try to predict the best repair
route in that instance; ideally, removing the plug, cleaning all of
the corrosion off, and reinstalling it with the joint correctly
sweated might be enough...but I'd be a lot happeir if it could be left
stronger than it started, and this would not necessarily be
accomplished by what I just described.
All things considered, the original question of whether an auto body
artist could properly repair this can only be answered with full
knowledge of the person's skills. I've known body men that I'd trust
with this...and I've also known some whose ability to make things look
good was unsurpassed, but whose attention to the necessity to preserve
structural integrity left a great deal to be desired.
I think I'd be tempted to set this frame aside and work on something
else until the right person could be found to do the repair.
--
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