A good friend of mine was riding home from work in the pissing rain, took his glasses off cause they were covered, hit an errant curb and went OTB. Did a little hospital trip and got cleaned up. Chin was pretty wrecked. He got out pretty good considering – helmet took a great deal of force and impact. Firstly – I’ve encouraged him to pursue the city (Seattle) for compensation for the bike and hospital visit. Maybe a long shot but worth trying. Photo attached of the parking curb that was in the road. Imagine it in the pouring rain and without the exposure compensation of his iPhone.
I finally saw his bike (this took place in December) and learned he’s still been riding it. The downtube took the brunt of it. But the top tube even has a crack. I personally wouldn’t feel very safe on it. Carbon fork too. He’s had it since 2003 so there’s sentimentality so I recommended taking it to shop or frame builder and asking what his options are. But curious what the reddit community thinks. Secretly I want him to dismember it, hang the frame on the wall, and let me build him an xbike. His commute is a chill and flat 6 miles one way.
Thoughts? If a welder repaired this bike what would he expect to spend?
by Legitimate_Spinach_9
10 Comments
Don’t know how much it’d cost to fix it but he should absolutely not continue riding that bike.
That frame and fork are dead. The frame is bent, and the fork took enough force to bend the frame, so it’s going to have damage even if it’s not visible outside. Hang the frame on the wall or give it to the scrappers, it’s not rideable anymore.
The frame is destroyed and he’ll probably have another nasty accident if he keeps riding it. New frame would be cheaper than a repair, if a repair is even possible…
It’s trash. Ask him how much he values his teeth.
If this is your town I’d come to this spot with a shovel or pry bar and get that parking barrier going vertical instead of horizontal. I’d hate for the same thing to happen to another rider, which it will by the looks of it. Rain in Seattle is not a surprise, I’m sure visibility hurts glasses or no glasses.
😢 it’s a sad day
To fix this frame you would need to replace the top and down tubes. Even if he hadn’t hit the curb and damaged the frame, a 22 year old carbon fork is a strong wind away from blowing up as well. It would be a good opportunity to replace the head tube with a 1 1/8″ compatible head tube which would open up his selection of forks.
But once you’ve replaced the main triangle, is it even the same bike? Nope. Have you realized any cost savings? Also nope.
There are billion of those frames and similar available for cheap used. Your friend would do well to get something new or used in good shape and start creating new memories with a different bike.
Toast
*MINT*
New bike!