I’m new to Berlin and bought this bike for €100 which I thought was a good deal. I rode it home with no problems, but the next day i realised the back tyre had deflated, so i took it to my local shop. I asked if they could put in a new tube and he took one look at it and said something like “no way am I repairing this bike, it’s dangerous” and pointed to the front fork. At this point I stopped understanding what he was saying as my German isn’t good enough, but it was something to do with the fork not lining up with the front post?
Is this possible? It seems like a normal bike to me, I rode it home and I’m worried it will crash and give me a serious injury. He seemed to suggest something about the weight being distributed unevenly across the front or something…
Thanks guys!
by MeetingSufficient114
26 Comments
the previous owner had a head on collision, the fork, the top tube, the downtube and probably the steering tube as well are bend beyond reasonable repair.
im sorry to bring the news, but your frame is toast.
and yes, your bike mechanic was right, it is in fact dangerous to ride it and can possibly lead to a fatal crash.
_Dont ride it!_
The bike has been rammed hard enough in to something to bend the fork. It looks like the frame itself may also be bent in the same way (can’t tell for sure from these photos but it looks like the top tube kinks down from the gusset). If the frame is fine you could replace just the fork but chances are the frame is compromised.
€100 in the trash. Yes that is unsafe.
The fork looks bent backwards. If such is the case, you need a new front fork, and that fork plus workmanship probably means more money than the bike is worth.
I would need to see the bike in person, but if a mechanic at a shops says we won’t fix it, it is probably unsafe.
Will it fail catastrophically? Probably, but you never know when. Could be in 50,000 miles, you could hit a pothole tomorrow. Steel is normally less catastrophic than aluminium, but it still happens.
quill stems a bit high, maybe it’s not respecting the minimum insersion
Definitely been crashed into something.
Put a straight edge along the top tube near the bars/head tube, quite an obvious bend there.
Straight line through head tube down to forks and they look bent back.
Downtube has a nice curve in it.
Look at the head tube, it is almost in front of the axis on the front wheel. Also it sits really high. Looks off to me, but I’m no bike mechanic
Steel forks can be bent back into shape in many cases. That said, hard to assess the damage from a photo like that.
It’s bent. Dentist appointent coming in soon.
Top tube is bent, down tube looks like it’s been welded/brazed so probably took the brunt of the damage. Forks are fucked. Not worth repairing
Shame, it’s a pretty frame, but yes as others have said, it’s been very bent by a head on collision.
Are you new to Berlin? I’d recommend asking some friends who cycle who their mechanic is.
I live in Nuremberg, and finding a mechanic who is happy to (not just can) speak in English with me really made my life much much better.
You got ripped off. That bike, if it were in non-crashed condition, would be worth ten euros max. In its current condition it’s trash.
The bent front fork has a few effects:
– it will impact the handling of the bike
– the metal may be damaged and cracked and will break at some point, which could cause serious injuries or death
– the frame is probably also damaged and might also break, though this is generally not quite as dangerous as a fork suddenly breaking.
It’s clearly bent at the head tube junctions, and the fork is slightly bent back too. It’s obviously been crashed.
However it’s unlikely to spontaneously fail while you’re just riding along. I totally understand why a shop mechanic wouldn’t want to expose himself to the potential liability of having handled it but I think the other answers here are a bit hyperbolic.
If you choose to carry on riding it you should check the head tube area and fork for cracks every week.
Write it off as a €100 lesson.
That fork is definitely unsafe. Replacing it will come close to what you already paid. But if such stuff is on the surface – there will obviously be other problems uncovered. The whole thing looks like the previous owner did not cared (and I am telling this as polite as possible). You will probably save a lot of money by just getting a different bike.
Rear tire looks deflated.
That top tube is definitely bent (probably the downtube as well). I was a mechanic and I’ve had to turn away my fair share of bikes with frames in that condition, it’s unsalvageable unfortunately.
The frame could be repaired of course by brazing in new frame tubes, but it would cost hundreds of euros and you’d have to find a framebuilder that does repairs like that. It’s not worth it since it’s a pretty run-of-the mill frame with basic components – it would cost well beyond what a new bike would cost.
Frame is toast. Strip the parts off and start a parts bin for yourself. If you stick with vintage several of those parts will be useful one day. The frame should be folded in half so no one else buys it.
If you buy used in the future, please have the bike inspected by a bike shop before purchase. In the US, bike shops will inspect bikes for free
Not sure from the picture if the frame is bent. Post some clear close-ups of where the 2 tubes join the head tube (top and bottom of both, and we might be able to tell you on this sub, or take back to shop and ask about a fork replacement. If the shop declines again, the frame is probably visibly bent.
Repairman made a good call
You will need a new front fork, or if the frame bent, a new bike. If it’s similar size you can keep the old parts (such as complete wheel) as spares.
That top tube has a bend to it.
Get the seller to give you the money back, head to that shop and see what they got cheap for the time being.
Did he say “das ist ein shitze fahrrad”?
It’s a highly technical expression that means in translation, please don’t ride this bike 🙂
a broken collarbone or a broken hip cost more that $100, just buy another bike, sell the working parts on marketplace or ebay
Ok so you’ve gotten the bad news already, your frame is ruined.
But all is not lost! There must be a bike coop in Berlin. Check your local universities, they usually have them. Figure out a way to get the bike there, preferably without riding it. At the coop they can sell you a new pre-enjoyed and pre-tested frame, and they will have the tools and expertise to help you move all your still good components.
Thanks everyone for the help! I contacted the seller and he had no idea either. He has agreed to meet tomorrow for a refund. I guess there are good people out there!
I’m counting myself lucky that I found all this about by taking it to a bike shop for a completely other issue, the day after buying it! And not via a trip to the hospital. I will go to a trusted 2nd hand bike garage next time.