I´ve got a Dawes 601 discovery, which has acquired damage to the front
forks. Someone else has access to the bike and I strongly suspect
they´ve caused the damaged. The other day, I found the front brakes
were catching hard on the rims. I loosened off the handlebar adjustment
to no avail, then the wire on the brake itself. This cured the catching
brake but not without a lot of travel on the lever before the brake
became effective.
I rode the bike for a few days and certainly found more vibration being
transmitted to my hands. However I didn´t look for or notice the fork
damage until yesterday. Basically the left front fork near the lug is
flattened on the inside for a distance of around 3 inches. with a
´crease´ in the metal at the top (again on the inside)
The bike hs had little use but does take some hammer from cobbled rough
roads and rubberised sleeping policemen which some will have been riden
over at 25mph.
I´ve several questions all kind of interelated, which I´d love
opinions on.
1. Do the ´symptons´as described indicate the damage was done before
I rode it again?
2. Is it likely that the roads/ sleeping policman caused the damage, if
not any other ideas how?
3. I´ll need to replace the forks and I´m concerned that getting an
identical one from Dawes that the same damage could happen again. Are
there stronger alternatives, whilst still retain same rake and
geometry?
Many thanks in advance