There’s a few bubbles appeared in the paint on the seat tube about 2 inches below TT/Seat Stay junction – just below where the butting for the seatpost stops and the ID of the tube gets bigger. I pressed one with my nail and it sounds a bit ‘crunchy’ underneath.

I suspect the tube’s rusted through from the inside.

due to the way the butting works I can’t really see the point where the inside would be rusted.

I’ve got a ‘big’ ride Sunday and would prefer to ride this frame (SS) over my 456 so if I carry on riding it will I die horribly?

If it has rusted through like this is it fatal for the frame or do I just give it a clean out inside, spray some Dinitrol in there and press on?

easy way to find out…

sand away the paint (its wrecked by rust anyway)keep sanding until there is no more rust. If you’re left with a hole then you know the frame is a right off and you’ve saved your self from inevitable death. If its shiny metal then you are probably ok and you’ve got a new shiny bit on your bike.

If its rusted through its f****d

Take a screwdriver to it, and on the basis that if the screwdriver goes through it was beyond repair and if it doesn’t then it wont damage it, tap/press the rutsy area.

Wouldn’t have happened if it was made of carbon…..

Still not going to break straight away even if it is rusted through.

I like cynical-al’s answer so I’ll take that one 🙂

I think next week I might need to get the dremel out and have a bit of a grind.

If they’re just pin holes for now and I sort it out inside the tube and out should it be ok?

most of the tubes on a bike frame are just there for decoration so it will be fine. put a sticker* over the dodgy looking bit for peace of mind

*depending on your age you might call this a decal.

I’ll get an 853 one just to be on the safe side.

As meehaja says,
Then give it a couple of coats of Ronseal metal paint, or whatever it says on the tin, and keep riding.

Did this to a steel bike years ago after it rusted round the bottom bracket. Fine for the next 10yrs, then I sold it!

If they’re just pin holes for now and I sort it out inside the tube and out should it be ok?

IOf its rusting thru and there are pinholes on the outside how much metal has gone on the inside?

I wouod do the screwdriver of sandpaper thing before riding it

wurst owtcum is it brekes so u get rustee mettal stuk up ur bumholl no nede 2 worey lodes of peeple lik that u culd get 2 lik it 2 if u praktise

Bit of sellotape and it’ll be fine 🙂

Or if you’re pretty sure it’s near enough dead (eg it has rusted through – poke it with a small screwdriver as suggested – if it’s rusted, it’ll go right through), fibreglass/carbon fibre mat and epoxy wrapped around the damaged tube and a couple of inches either side, done tonight and kept somewhere warm will be plenty strong enough (though ugly!) by the weekend to keep it together for a few rides.

thanks Mark – I was rather hoping it would expire gently rather than in a frenzy of ‘where do I put the dressing?’.

On the salid

HTH

HTH

If I knew what it meant it may well do.

[not HTH, ‘on the salid’]

well, I couldn’t let it lie.

Just gone and had a poke around with a screw driver.

Initial investigation seems to show that there are a series of small, round pits in the frame but they don’t go all the way through.

I wonder if there was some weld spatter or something when the bike was made and they’ve just filled the resulting holes with paint?

I’ll have a sand/dremel around tomorrow and see if I’m right – hopefully I am.

So, where can I get touch up paint that’s this shade of Orange;

aargh, I’m paranoid now – there looks to be a little bubble of paint just above the first chain link that crosses the seat tube.

You’re going to get killed to death!

I’d be more concerned about that ugly oversize chain on those beautiful cranks and chain-ring. FFIW with no side play to consider Ive always found an 8sp chain to be perfect for SS use, in fact the only chain I have ever snapped was a singlespeed specific chain.

The frame doesn’t appear very old to have ‘rusted through’.

1/8″ FTW that one is ugly but who cares.

sorry about the chain – was at the bottom of my parts bin and was used to replace a Gusset halflink chain that I’d had on there previously but was giving me grief.

I may well go for something more elegant in due course…

very unlikely it’s rusted through.
when the frame was painted/powder coated, it was probably not cleaned off properly, leaving contaminants. i had a frame which was clear coated. there was what looked like a thumb print on the down tube. it went rusty and started lifting the clear coat.

get a titanium frame next time!

Had a bit of a Dremel attack on it over the weekend;

the ‘holes’ don’t go all the way through the frame but the paintwork was unbroken on the outside so not sure what’s going on.

There’s a similar collection down near the BB I’ve yet to do anything to.

put a bit of anti rust primer on there for now but it does look a bit scabby 🙁