[email protected] (supabonbon) writes:
>I've got a 75 Paramount track bike with a big ding in the top of the
>top tube ... I'm considering having the top tube replaced. How much
>can I expect to pay, and can anyone recommend someone in the NY/NJ
>area?
How will you feel if you spend $125 to get the tube replaced and then
the handlebar swings around and dents the top tube again ?? Moreover,
reynolds 531 tubes are getting rare - they are out of production - and
spending $125 for a repair that is ALWAYS done with bondo during a
repaint is using a precious resource for a frivolous purpose.
I, have a raleigh competition with a top-tube that was crumpled in two
places during a crash. I have priced the cost of getting a new top
tube installed. It is a dangerous repair because it reheats and
weakens the lug area. The top tube is typically under compression and
its one of the least structural tubes on the bike, so a small dent
does not compromise strength.
To replace this tube it costs about $125 at a low-cost frame builder
(franklin frames of ohio), and $175 at a high-cost frame builder (just
about anybody in new york city or california probably qualifies), not
counting paint and rechroming of the lugs, which should shoot the
total price up to about $500 or $600 on your bike ...
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA