Paint my face red. While installing my new eTap front der. on my Ritchie steel Swiss Cross last winter; I used an inexpensive after market der. clamp without a plastic shim. As I was torquing down the clamp, I didn't notice that the clamp was crimping the seat tube. I examined the crimp and saw that the tube hadn't cracked. I replaced the clamp with a Shimano clamp with a plastic shim; and was able to get the der. installed and working reasonably well. I thought I dodged a bullet. Recently however, after washing my bike, I noticed a crack in the paint in the crimp parallel to the seat tube. I'm not sure if the tube itself is cracked. Anyone else have this problem? If so, how did you fix it?
ljsmith wrote:I would be shocked if you cracked a steel tube. Its probably just the paint. Just to be sure you should sand down the paint to the metal to verify.
Thanks for the advice. Fortunately, a good custom frame builder has a shop about 5 miles from me. If he has the time, I'm hoping that he can take a look at it, and give me a second opinion. If not, I'll sand off the paint and give it a more thorough check.
bobknh wrote: Thanks for the advice. Fortunately, a good custom frame builder has a shop about 5 miles from me. If he has the time, I'm hoping that he can take a look at it, and give me a second opinion. If not, I'll sand off the paint and give it a more thorough check.
I'm of the same opinion as LJ - it's most likely the paint which has cracked. Steel simply doesn't crack that easily unless there is another flaw.
Because this is the seat tube, if you want to eliminate or reduce the crimp, you may be able to insert a dowel inside the seat tube and push out the crimp. I'd never suggest this for aluminum, but steel should be fine. However don't be surprised if bending the tubing back to the original shape causes more paint to detach from the frame and the crack grows. Cracked paint isn't structural but will allow rust.
Bottom line, definitely follow up with your local frame builder and good luck! Ritchie makes an excellent frame!
Follow up. The crack is definitely in the metal. Worse, because of the flexing of the frame, the crack is likely to lengthen, gradually effecting the the performance and safety of the bike. Fortunately, this will also likely to be a gradual process, rather than a catastrophic failure. I'm already shopping around for a replacement frame. Ritchie is still making the Swiss Cross Canti. It's still reasonably priced. But, I'm ready to try something more upscale like a custom steel from my local frame shop - 44 Bikes http://www.44bikes.com/road/ - or if I really want to empty my wallet - custom Ti from 7 Cycles .
