Weird things found in a bottom bracket or frame?

[pinkshogun]

I found these unexploded fireworks in a 1963 Schwinn Traveler

[gpendergast]

That's amazing!

[ElHardeen]

Local legend has it, an unruly customer received a hotdog in their seat-tube.

An unruly shop-owner received a washer on a string in theirs. "Sounds like your frame is about to give out man, you should get a new one"

[David Kirk]

Way back in my bike shops days I was working on a beach cruiser with the big American BB shell and was told the crank made a lot of noise. I pulled the crank out and found that along with some of a normal bearing unit was a Wald headset just loosely slipped over the one piece crank.

I replaced the whole mess with a Wald BB and life was good.

I should have kept that headset/BB combo.


dave

[merckx]

I found two goldfish swimming inside my BB. I had just ridden through a stream that submerged the crank, and then decided to overhaul the BB when I returned home.

Only part of this story is true.

[John H.]

I have seen pictures of cut up frames and forks with newspaper and other junk that was in there from manufacturing.

I also know of a bike shop manger who was pranked by his co-workers (about 35 or so years ago)- He had one of the handmade Fishers- Procaliber or something? Anyhow, it was a very light and nice Tange Prestige frame-
Someone filled the seat tube with the cheap steel bottom bracket spindles (that shops used to stock) wrapped in shop rags. As many as could fit in the seat tube.

No one ever cracked and told him- So they stayed there for years.
He eventually sold the frame, was cleaning and inspecting, took the seatpost out of the bike and turned it over.
Out came a bunch of rusty water, rusty rags, and rusty bb spindles onto the floor-

[dave thompson]

Slightly divergent...when I was in the motorcycle biz in Hawaii I purchased a Vincent Black Shadow that had been sitting for a time. One of the things I had to do was clean out and de-rust the inside of the gas tank. I poured in a gallon of kerosene along with several handfuls of small nuts and vigorously shook the tank for several minutes. When I poured out the kerosene/nuts combination, an intact 4” fish skeleton came out in the mix.

[wc1934]

Slightly divergent...when I was in the motorcycle biz in Hawaii I purchased a Vincent Black Shadow that had been sitting for a time.
Adding to the divergent - your post reminded me of one of my favorite songs by Richard Thompson - 1952 Vincent Black Lightning

[false_Aest]

When you work in a bike store at age 16 with a bunch of other 16 year olds you come up with wonderful ways to prank each other.

Ball bearings in a top tube.
Sand dropped into the frame via a seat tube.
Lunch meat.

Also you can fill up a squeezy tube of embro or chamois cream with a grease gun.

I would punch my 16 year old self if I met him today.

[charliedid]

I found these unexploded fireworks in a 1963 Schwinn Traveler

Yes! That is the best.

[cadence90]

I found two goldfish swimming inside my BB. I had just ridden through a stream that submerged the crank, and then decided to overhaul the BB when I returned home.

Only part of this story is true.
The part about the stream submerging the crank is the embellishment, right?

The stream only partly, sort of, submerged the crank?

:banana:
.

[cadence90]

Slightly divergent...when I was in the motorcycle biz in Hawaii I purchased a Vincent Black Shadow that had been sitting for a time. One of the things I had to do was clean out and de-rust the inside of the gas tank. I poured in a gallon of kerosene along with several handfuls of small nuts and vigorously shook the tank for several minutes. When I poured out the kerosene/nuts combination, an intact 4” fish skeleton came out in the mix.

Adding to the divergent - your post reminded me of one of my favorite songs by Richard Thompson - 1952 Vincent Black Lightning

Diverging the divergent: Verse 4:

"If I was a motorcycle
A Vincent "Red" Rapide
I'd ride around to your house, baby
Get you up to speed"

Knopfler/Harris: "Red Staggerwing", Live (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCSTlTA4iYc)
.
.

[d_douglas]

Not so weird really, but I recently changed the stem on my ti frame with a carbon fork. The compression plug disassembled by accident, so to get it out, I flipped the bike over to extract all of the parts. about 1/2cup of water poured out all over the floor.

First off, it never dawned on my that a carbon fork is fully sealed. second of all, how did THAT MUCH water get in there? I thought about it and then realized that after my little venture into organized cycling events, I recall that a group of volunteer kids offered to clean off the muddy bikes. In doing so, I guess they must've really focused on the headtube area and added a few grams of water!

Anyways, I don't think its an issue since the frame is ti and the fork is carbon, but it did surprise me.

[Clancy]

Mud dabbers nest, no mud dabbers happily. Mud dabbers are hornets