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After my should I replace the frame I love thread, the decision has been made for me. Was about to fit a slack-r this morning and discovered a crack running 2/3 of the way round the top tube/head tube join. Absolutely gutted.
Planning to console myself with an epically discounted Epic Evo on the cycle to work scheme, which I could thankfully transfer most of my shiny bits onto. It’s a long time since I’ve had a full susser, but having ridden a couple of longer travel bikes recently which pedalled surprisingly well, I think the Epic might hit the sweet spot for the types of riding I do. Any thoughts before I press go?
Sorry for your loss, but the epics are supposed to be very good so should provide some consolation.
I'm assuming the old frame goes up on a wall somewhere as art...?
Having previously owned an Airborne Lancaster, I also know all about the sadness of a cracked Ti frame.
Everyone I know with a Ti frame has snapped or cracked it. Thankfully they don't build anything important - like aircraft or nuclear submarines - out of Ti.
IMHO the requirements for welding titanium (back purging) aren't good enough within the bicycle industry compared to how titanium is welding in the defense industry (full evacuated argon filled atmosphere).
I've also been the owner of several Ti frames that cracked.
Also had a Ti fork crack.
I won't be buying a Ti frame again in a hurry.
I've got 2 ti custom frames currently on order, obviously I don't want them to crack but I won't be surprised if and when it happens.
<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, 'Noto Sans', sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji'; background-color: #eeeeee;">"Everyone I know with a Ti frame has snapped or cracked it. "</span>
Am I the exception that proves the rule? I've had my Dean SS for over ten years, its over 20 years old, it's ridden just about every day, and no sign of cracking yet...
Or is it that chinese makers haven't got the hang of it yet?
<span style="color: #000000; font-family: Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, 'Noto Sans', sans-serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji';">IMHO the requirements for welding titanium (back purging) aren’t good enough within the bicycle industry compared to how titanium is welding in the defense industry (full evacuated argon filled atmosphere).</span>
+1
Titanium is an ideal material for what we do at work (Defence Industry - Marine heat exchangers and refrigeration) due to its resistance to seawater induced corrosion, however almost no projects/platforms go down that route due to the prohibitive manufacturing costs - there are hardly any manufacturers in the UK set up to weld Ti to the right standards for Marine/Naval use, and the stuff we can source is crazy prices. Therefore we use Cupronickel alloys instead.
I refuse the believe a £1k Ti bike frame has been welded in the right conditions to the right standards.
Most are welded in Taiwan by a machine. The jig, box, argon environment are all setup and the tubes are inserted, set and welded. It’s not dissimilar from what BAE do to manufacture the M777 artillery system.
FWIW - I must have owned 20 Ti bikes (I currently own 3) and have never damaged one.
EDIT - though there were some worrying lines around the headtube on an early Cotic Soda, but it was a properly bendy thing that bike.
I had a ti Bontrager, which cracked round the butt joint in the seat tube, (poor design?).
The Airbourne my partner owned had splits in the seat stays.
The Litespeed road bike had split seat and chainstays but was repaired by Litespeed and is still going strong. (Fingers crossed).
For balance my Kona Unit had the toptube break while I was riding to work.
Is it worth getting your bike fixed?
aren’t good enough within the bicycle industry compared to how titanium is welding in the defense industry
TBF, the requirements for a bicycle and something made for war are a bit different, no?
have never damaged one.
I had a Cove Hummer, that had terrible chain suck, but was solid while I owned it.
Or is it that chinese makers haven’t got the hang of it yet?
One of my frames and the fork were welded by Merlin/Litespeed the others another builder all in the States.
TBF, the requirements for a bicycle and something made for war are a bit different, no?
Yeah - I meant 'methods' rather than requirements.
Yawn. Just as well no other frame material ever breaks.
I've had my oldest Ti frame for about 18 years (cheapie from Taiwan), my VN Amazon for about 15, bought and sold two more (a Burls and a Ragley) and have another Brant special still in use. I'd not hesitate to buy another Ti frame (in fact I was planning a Ti Fatbike, got a bargain on a Cube Nutrail as a "donor" but somehow never got around to swapping out the frame 😀).
Mind you, I've lost count of the number of broken Lynskey made frames I've seen 😂. I don't think it's anything to do with the nationality of the builders.
My Dialled ti Morning Glory cracked at the seat tube, there was a small sleeve down the seattube which looks a bit bodged.
Friends Soda had the headtube go, as was the standard.
OP - As the owner of two Ti bikes I feel your pain. Aaand hope I never experience it! My Sabbath road bike is pretty darned old now but so far (touch titanuim) it's still intact. My Tempest is comparatively new and I've not heard of any failing as yet. They are just so good to ride though.
My Lynskey On One 456 Ti Mk2 has covered nearly 9,000 miles, no cracks and while I've not ridden it since buying a 29" Scandal, so it's been parked up for a couple of years now with the exception of one of my lads using it as a 'commuter'.
Have I been lucky or is it that I'm not a particularly heavy bloke for someone on a 20" frame as it's had a lot of hammer and destroyed a lot of wheels/forks etc.
Tripster Mk1 is approaching 10 years. I know of a few that busted from around the same time, but mines been used for commuting almost daily, plenty of gravel rides, not treated with much care, and is definitely never ever going to crack.
Sorry about your frames!
Have any of them been successfully welded and live on?
I'll be riding home on my titanium on one vandal home in mild terror as a result of this thread!
Clearly should have bought a scandal instead 😕
TBF, the requirements for a bicycle and something made for war are a bit different, no?
I take it you've not been in the army 😂
I had 3 Van Nicholas frames crack in the 10 years since the original purchase, all replaced under warranty but still costing me money as standards changed. They changed their policy each time I reported it from keep the frame, we agree based on the photos via send the whole frame back to the latest which was cut the frame up and send us proof. I live in Spain and each failure has been during a long bikepacking trip which was very annoying and costly to abort. They admitted that they had a design issue with the Zion frame and replaced it with a Rowtag gravel frame, let's see if this is any better.
On One Tinbred - never cracked in my ownership
Plant X Ti Pro Road - never cracked in my ownership (over 11k miles)
Ribble CGR Ti - not cracked yet
Wife:
Enigma Road bike - not cracked yet
Litespeed MTB - not cracked yet
Laverack Gravel bike - not cracked yet
Clearly should have bought a scandal instead
nah I broke 3 of those. All of my ti frames have been fine.
no the original slot dropout singlespeedy ones, if you moshed the hell out of them the chainstays would crack, but there were as cheap as chips second hand so for a winter thrash machine it was still cheaper then replacing XTR group sets on the posh bike, after a winter of grinding slop
I've had one Ti frame crack, the other 4 I've owned I sold.
In our household.
1st gen Cotic Soda. Yes one of the supposedly supernoodly ones. Ridden the snot out of for 15 or 16 years. No problems
Van Nicholas Euros. 11 years and counting.
Sample Cotic Ti gravel frame (bit like a Tonic) cracked at the TT/ST junction after 18 months (put down to a slightly undersized seatpost); fixed (not prettily) by a local Ti motorbike exhaust manufacturer and still going strong 4 years later.
Blimey. I looked away for a few hours and came back to find I’d hit a nerve 🙂
I think this is my 5th (and probably last) Ti frame. I love them, but it’s not the first I’ve cracked (early Soda). I had an email from someone I’d sold a Planet X ti frame to 10 years ago recently to tell me that it had cracked and ask if I had any paperwork.
It is frustrating that the Kenesis Sync cracked, as it’s such a beautifully designed and built frame. The three year warrantee should perhaps have given me a hint though I guess.
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TBF, the requirements for a bicycle and something made for war are a bit different, no?
I take it you’ve not been in the army 😂
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Ti fargo cracked on left dropout after 10,000 miles with a rohloff. i have since been told this could be a thing when using a rohloff on a Ti build.
fingers crossed replacement with normal gear may be ok for more miles.
About 10 years ago I found a crack in the seat stay joint of my already very old Raleigh dyna-tech ti frame. I sent it off to a chap in the midlands, can't remember his name, Vernon Baker or Barker or something like that. Anyway, he did a solid weld repair, and its still in one piece. I didn't thrash it after that, but its been fine for gravel-ish riding.