I had a bit of a crash Sunday and managed to rip my charge spoon out of one of its rails. Can’t bend it back in for the life of me,before I stick it in a vice and risk bending the rails out of shape is there a technique?

That’s quite some impressive damage!

and risk bending the rails out of shape is there a technique

Now I’m as cheapskate as they come, but the technique to me sounds like going online and buying a new one.

I’ve been there, best option is a new saddle, it’ll never be right 🙁

Probably more the seat bending and stretching until it popped off. Suspect the rails won’t have enough give to get them back in.

Did charge spoons get expensive? Replacement will be quicker and last longer

Put the rear ends in, then put a curved metal surface against the rail front end so the rail locates into the curve, lever tip on the base at the rail fitting point, then flex the base and lever it into position. I’ve used an old seatpost with an angled cut on the end like a scoop to replace rails a couple of times. Not easy but the right lever in the right place will do it. I needed to really like the saddle and have an old trashed one to take a rail off to figure this out ..

Unfortunately the colour I have isn’t available anymore so was hoping to fix it as it matches my bike perfectly.

Also driving to the lbs and spending £30 is not cheap, and ordering one online is hardly quick.

Thanks for the useful responses, though, annoying it can’t be done as it so nearly goes in!

Well it can be done as stated above!
“Ordering one online is hardly quick” – have you used Wiggle’s app? 3-4 clicks………….

£18 and with you in a couple of days.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/charge-spoon-saddle-with-cromo-rails/

£18 is not cheap either, compared to £0, as a couple days delivery plus a couple days to find time to drive to the post office to pick it up isn’t quick as a trip to the shed.

Hence the question, ‘is there a way of fixing this?’, ‘not can someone tell me how little money means to them?’

If you work it out, let me know. I’ve got several saddles with Ti rails and knackered covers and some with good covers and steel rails. A swap would be good, but I suspect it requires proper machinery.

yeah, i’ve done it, but it was saddle in vice on one rail, big mole grips on the other rail, and the biggest screwdriver i could put my hand on inserted through those to act as a lever.
as above, it was never quite right.

Chris, if you’re keen to try mail me (MIP) and I can send you pics of how it’s done, I have an old saddle the same as a spoon here. If it’s a rear end that’s out you’ll need to pop the other side out to remove the rail fully then refit the rears, then pop the front end in with force.

Wifes da sorted one out for me when I ran out of ideas. Vice between saddle rails with the ends of them in place, spread them out until the nose piece has had just enough bend back to get in under the lip

was simple once described how he did it

Just needed fresh eyes and thoughts

I tried it, the leverage required got past the point where I thought something was going to have my eye out. It’s either an acquired technique or brute force.

The question isn’t so much can you put it back together, it’s will it stay together- I straightened a Spoon succesfully but when I put the rail back into my SDG it just popped out again after a little while.

A seatpost makes the perfect rail clamp/lever, btw- stick one rail in it and clamp down. Not all of them will clamp a single rail so you might need to stick something in the other side.

I’d get a new one if I was you. Change it to a Charge Scoop, a black and green one. Get it second hand though so it’s not too expensive.

Now if only you knew someone who had one for sale on eBay……………

not can someone tell me how little money means to them?

I obviously value my bollocks higher 😉

Well, cp, then just say ‘don’t do it, it’s likely to fail’ like others haveinstead of writing 3 smart arse comments and not contributing, as we’re obviously not all as clever as you.

Again, thanks for the suggestions guys, I’ll post back if I fix it, if I don’t you’ll know I died trying!

On seeing the thread title I thought – blimey that must be an expensive/niche saddle if the OP is even thinking about risking that.

I assume the OP is male from the username – I may be wrong.

If you are male and still considering this, have you already fathered all the children you would like to? If the answer is yes – do you like hospital food and embarassing injuries?

Buy a new saddle.

writing 3 smart arse comments

lol, I was trying to be helpful!

If you do manage to bend it back in then the rail is going to be under a large amount of spring force to try and pop itself back out (in the crash you’ll have bent the rail and/or seat base out of its original alignment, bending the rail or seat base back it’s going to be trying to spring back to its crash bent state). The plastic base of the saddle will flex whilst you’re riding and the likelihood is that it wouldn’t take a huge amount of flex for the rail to pop out again.

On top of which I imagine it will creak like hell.

good luck though either way eh.

Quite a lot of anger here from OP when people have tried to help…..thats a shame 🙁

The saddle rails will probably be bent by the time you get it back together, probably bent different amounts. So your saddle won’t be level.

Probably.

Did he die the first time the saddle popped off the rails? Nah. And he won’t lose his balls if it comes off again you know.

The saddle in question in my scenario was an old SDG Bel Air. I didn’t even particularly like it. Maybe I don’t earn enough to lurk round these parts.

Maybe I don’t earn enough to lurk round these parts.

The chip on the shoulder on the other hand is more than sufficient…….

Not that you are the OP, but I think one lesson to learn is not to ask the question if you pretty much know what you’re going to do anyway and get all punchy if others advise against it.

Still, it takes all sorts…………..

Maybe say what colour it is or post s pic, someone might have the same colour hanging about, sure I have about four spoons in the shed of various shades.

You need to put the saddle in a bowl of boiling water for several minutes to make the plastic more pliable then take it out and working quickly flex the shell enough to pop the tails back in.
I have done it on old Bmx saddles I restored to replace knackered rusty rails with decent ones.

blimey that must be an expensive/niche saddle if the OP is even thinking about risking that.

Not really much of a risk, plastic and steel or ti parts flex enough. They can pop out, they can pop back in. if the rails are still straight it’s fixable.