Did I break my bike (dented steel content)

[sandyrs]

So the other day I noticed this large dent right near the bottom bracket of a bike that I love dearly, but have left unridden for a while as I save up for a new group for it. Presumably I hit it with the pedal of another bike. I feel extremely stupid. The rust you see was covered in paint but when I touched it it just flaked right off. The white "streaks" are just the light, though.

Given the size and location of this dent, is the frame a goner? If this were the top tube I'd be less worried but given the proximity to pedaling forces this seems like it could get much worse very quickly.

Sorry for the sideways photos and the basement particles all over the bike.

[redir]

I've been riding my 853 Lemond Poprad ever since I got hit by a car ten years ago with a similar dent. It's steel. As long as it's not cracked or folded too badly. Always good to keep an eye on it though.

Also, this is not an endorsement, I'm not an engineer and I don't even play one on TV :D

[old fat man]

Highly doubt it's ruined. Maybe put some electrical tape around the area for now to stop rust and ride with existing parts before investing in new stuff

[R3awak3n]

I would have have no problem ridding that

[bigman]

Sand it and apply a little clear nail polish to prevent more rust. Good to go.

[sandyrs]

Thanks all, good call on the electric tape. This being a travel bike this is far from the only aesthetic wear on the frame, but the depth of the dent had me concerned. I'll definitely ride it for a bit and see what's up.

[berserk87]

I've ridden worse. I doubt that dent would cause a failure. Checking the spread of rust may be a good idea.

[vqdriver]

i'd ride it.
but yeah, watch the rust. just peel off the cracked paint and sand off the rust. cover with clear or touch up and just keep an eye on it. i wouldn't cover it with tape or leave the flaking paint tho. what you don't want to do is trap moisture in there.

edit: is that a vanilla? shoot the pics over to sacha and see what he says.

[Black Dog]

Ride it for sure. Hell, you can even fix it. Buy a wooden dowel that just fits in the seat tube and push it down to the dent and tap it with a hammer and you should be able to push most of the dent out. Make sure you put some grease on the end of the dowel.

[eBAUMANN]

id ride it!


edit: is that a vanilla? shoot the pics over to sacha and see what he says.
pretty sure its a circle a.

Ride it for sure. Hell, you can even fix it. Buy a wooden dowel that just fits in the seat tube and push it down to the dent and tap it with a hammer and you should be able to push most of the dent out. Make sure you put some grease on the end of the dowel.
bottle mounts would make that tricky...

[Black Dog]

id ride it!


pretty sure its a circle a.


bottle mounts would make that tricky...

DOH!!!! Great point.

You would have cut a dado (Channel) down the length of the dowel to avoid the bottle bosses, luckily the dent is on the side of the tube.

[Geekonbike]

Might want to check frame alignment too just in case...not for structural reasons but just to make sure it doesn't ride funny. From where it was hit I doubt it did anything.

[tuscanyswe]

DOH!!!! Great point.

But you could just take a piece of the cake out to get passed those i suppose.

[ultraman6970]

Short answer? no you did not break your bike.

[katematt]

Bondo and a repaint. Never know its there.

[ultraman6970]

Not even bondo, that thing doesnt work :P you have to put 3M acrylic putty, paint and good to go.

[ColonelJLloyd]

Yeesh. Pretty sketchy.


I'll give you 2x the scrap value for it and send you a Bike Flights label and box.

[sandyrs]

Yeesh. Pretty sketchy.


I'll give you 2x the scrap value for it and send you a Bike Flights label and box.

Cool, the scrap value is $5,000 and I will follow up with wire transfer info for my offshore account.

[David Kirk]

A few quick points -

- I would not try to "seal" it with tape. All it will do is hold moisture in place and cause more corrosion. It seems like a good idea and never is. Plus when it starts to rust you'll never see it under the tape and it can progress without your even knowing it.

- putting a wooden dowel down into the seat tube in an effort to push the dent out will not end well. Most likely you'd never get a dowel down that far as bottle bosses protrude into the tube. If there aren't bottle bosses and the dowel will slip into place there is a very high likelihood that banging the dowel down to press out the dent will either get the dowel stuck in place or it will crack the tube.

- if you are concerned with corrosion I would sand down the area to remove any loose or separated paint and to make sure the metal is clean and shiny. I would then touch up that area with a primer and then a high quality paint.

I hope that helps.

dave

[sandyrs]

A few quick points -

- I would not try to "seal" it with tape. All it will do is hold moisture in place and cause more corrosion. It seems like a good idea and never is. Plus when it starts to rust you'll never see it under the tape and it can progress without your even knowing it.

- putting a wooden dowel down into the seat tube in an effort to push the dent out will not end well. Most likely you'd never get a dowel down that far as bottle bosses protrude into the tube. If there aren't bottle bosses and the dowel will slip into place there is a very high likelihood that banging the dowel down to press out the dent will either get the dowel stuck in place or it will crack the tube.

- if you are concerned with corrosion I would sand down the area to remove any loose or separated paint and to make sure the metal is clean and shiny. I would then touch up that area with a primer and then a high quality paint.

I hope that helps.

dave

Thanks very much Dave. Always reassuring to get input from an expert!

[eBAUMANN]

electrical tape over bare steel - works great (ask me how i know)

electrical tape (or any tape) over damaged paint/bare steel - not so great

good luck sandy!

[Kontact]

The thing about this location - even if the bike "failed", it would just crack above the BB and make noise - you could probably ride home. And I agree that is totally unlikely.

I would definitely sand the rust out and fill it with epoxy putty, sand and cover with touch up paint. Do a good job and it will nearly disappear, plus it won't rust anymore.

[rwsaunders]

Bondo and a repaint. Never know its there.

Bondo and paint makes a dent what it ain't...

[john segal]

FWIW, I dented the downtime of a 753 tubed Merckx and rode it for another 4 years before it finally broke....