Fix or leave alone? Vintage steel frame content

[fmradio516]

So of course the week I decide to spend some money to spruce up my oldest, most favoritest ride, i find this. The seat collar braze-on separating from the frame. Not sure how long its been like that, but its the first im seeing it. Looks like its cleanly separating from the tube... probably from years and years of over-tightening, which is ironic because it is a TIGHT seat tube. I can probably do 3nm on the clamp and be good.

That said, do I:

1) grind down to where its cleanly "one" again and keep an eye on it?
2) leave alone?

The diameter w/paint is 31.8, so i imagine if that cleanly comes off one day, i can grind off the other side and use an over-the-tube seat collar.





Not sure why the seat was so high in this picture, but its normally around half that height.

[IMG][/IMG]

[C40_guy]

Send that photo to Toby Stanton at Hot Tubes. My guess is that he can probably braze it, if it needs fixing, and maybe even touch up the paint without requiring a full respray.

And you can drive it out to him/pick it up...much easier and less expensive than shipping...

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by C40_guy

Send that photo to Toby Stanton at Hot Tubes. My guess is that he can probably braze it, if it needs fixing, and maybe even touch up the paint without requiring a full respray.

And you can drive it out to him/pick it up...much easier and less expensive than shipping...

Thanks for the rec, but weeeeellll this is actually the lesser of a much bigger problem with the frame.

I bought it 10+ years ago on ebay knowing there was an issue with one of the head tube lugs. Ive ridden it on crappy boston streets for the last 10 years(commuting) and i WISH i took a picture of this when I first got the frame but i didnt. Not sure how much its changed since i got it, but its definitely changed.

So not really worth putting a ton of money into.

[IMG][/IMG]

[Hindmost]

To enable the flow of opinions and conjecture we need to know what the frame is.

[C40_guy]

You could just hang it on the wall on a vintage oak bike hanger. Hmmm...

[Themountaintop]

A skilled tig welder could solve that pretty quickly. Using a small electrode diameter ground to a thin point and a good back purge of argon you could close that seam.

[mhespenheide]

I mean, if it's me any my money, I'd probably retire it.

Not saying it can't be fixed, but when there are $350 Eddy Merckx framesets with polished head lugs floating around the classifieds...

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by Hindmost

To enable the flow of opinions and conjecture we need to know what the frame is.

Its an early 90s Bottecchia. Just added a pic to my OP.

Originally Posted by C40_guy

You could just hang it on the wall on a vintage oak bike hanger. Hmmm...

Yeah! Problem solved!

[vqdriver]

i'm kinda with ^
steel is eminently repairable, but it's more a question of worth-it
only the op can decide if the cost is worthwhile

after a decade of commuting, i'd say that frame has served you well.

[vqdriver]

just saw the updated pic. that's the columbus sl? i owned that same bike and loved loved loved it!

[AngryScientist]

that half a mile of exposed seatpost might have had something to do with it, with a bike from an era of "fistful" of post common...

[unterhausen]

I can fix frames and I wouldn't mess with it. That crack at the top tube is weird and a good reason to retire the frame

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

that half a mile of exposed seatpost might have had something to do with it, with a bike from an era of "fistful" of post common...

I noted that the seatpost is usually at half that height. I forget why I put it up that high for the picture.

Originally Posted by vqdriver

just saw the updated pic. that's the columbus sl? i owned that same bike and loved loved loved it!

unfortunately the Columbus sticker is worn away. But yeah, i really love this bike..

[fmradio516]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

I can fix frames and I wouldn't mess with it. That crack at the top tube is weird and a good reason to retire the frame

Thanks! Ill hang it on the wall and take it out for a spin when im feeling blue.

[Hindmost]

That is a cool bike. Has it been repainted? I would expect more chrome on a Botecchia.