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Longer term, I'm thinking Nicolai Argon Rohloff with belt drive and sell the Lynskey frame when I get it back
The thought of sitting down on a Nicolai Argon over rough stuff is making my arse hurt. You're a brave man!
Well I'll be at the LVIS tent all day (except the obvious) so feel free to drop round and ask.
Probably been suggested already but it really sounds like you might be better on a short travel full susser. Although it already sounds like your arse has taken more of a pounding than... some fictional school boy pre the cane being banned.
What about a nicolai 29er ht. I've got an xl on order yor welcome to try when I get it?
MrTall - Member
Must be down to your riding style, i'm heavier than you and have never broken a frame. I ride 29ers and historically most of my bikes have been ridden with a 400mm post at full extension with no problems.Getting out of the saddle more over the bumpy stuff will take a lot of pressure of the area that you keep breaking frames in.
If I bought a quality frame such as a Lynskey I'd expect it to hold together. it is a mountain bike we're talking about. Ti frames can crack, there plenty of examples out there.
If I were you I'd go custom steel....
Graham, I've just bought the Chumba as mentioned previously, but I've gone for the medium size in this frame as the Top tube is very long!
I'm 6'1" too.
I've just collected the Gary Fisher from the welder's.
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Looks good to me for £30.
I'm now building it back up as a single speed.
The plan at the moment, although knowing me it could change at any minute, is to ride BBF single speed with lower gearing than I used at Wiggle 6. Then convert both the Kona and Gary Fisher to Rohloff for MM.
Mr Tall, thanks again for the offer. It's all a bit hectic this week trying to get everything sorted for Bristol. I'll meet up with you another week to borrow that seat post if that's OK.
Clubber and KingTut, could I ask a favour of you ?
Will LVIS have some sort of independent trackside pit area ?
If so, could MuddyPuddle and myself tag on please ?
We're not looking for any sort of assistance, it's just that the solo pit area gets swamped with team riders waiting to change over so I have to barge my way through them to get to my kit, only to find that it's been kicked out of the way and trampled.
We tagged on to another teams remote pit area last year, but I would rather be with people we know if we're leaving tools and spares unattended during the race.
MTG - I don't know exactly where we'll have our tents/stuff set up yet but we have three soloists too for whom we're going to try and set up close to the course so as long as we have space, that's fine. Just come and find me on Saturday morning - I'll be there by 7:30 - shouldn't be too hard to spot but ask for Dylan if you need to.
That looks awesome. I have to say that all the alloy frames I have seen that have been repaired have gone on to crack further... but you'll get some use out of it before it dies and that is all that matters. Hope the other frame gets sorted to your satisfaction.
Great, thanks. We don't need much room,just enough for a couple of tote bins full of fig rolls and inner tubes.
It's more the security aspect I'm thinking of. I don't like leaving spare wheels lying around unless there's someone I know to watch over them throughout the race. Having them trackside saves having to run back to the campsite if I need them.
Messiah, yes, I did wonder how permanent the repair might be.
Those braces will be transferring some of the load on to the seat stays, one of which was already cracked, you can see the repair on the right, so they could well crack again.
For £30 though, it's got to be worth a chance.
MTG - no worries. Just email me in the future and i'll bring it over on one of the Wyre ride nights.
Spare wheels, you say...
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😉
I can just imagine being overtaken by a LVIS rider now and thinking "Hang on, I recognise those wheels...and that water bottle...", then coming back at the end of a lap to find a load of empty fig roll wrappers and chocolate soya milk cartons.
Anyway, I had a bit of a creak at Erlestoke, which I put down to the cracked frame.
I just swapped all the bits from the Lynskey on to the newly welded Gary Fisher and found one chainring bolt missing and three loose. 😳
then coming back at the end of a lap to find a load of empty chocolate soya milk cartons.
i f-----g doubt it 😉
Soy stuff is ok so long as you disguise it sufficiently with something that's actually nice like chocolate. A bit like vegetarian food and adding some meat to it 😉
I hope your repair lasts.
I think long term you are the ideal candidate for a custom steel frame. Show the builder the pics of your frame failures, and they can select a chunky 853 seat tube - many variants exist - for tandems and other heavy duty applications, add a brace or big fillet braze joints where it meets the top tube. Most importantly beefed up chainstays with a BRACE BOTH sides for disc and Rohloff torque plus general stength, and a Rohloff specific drop out to do away with the Speedbone. As already mentioned have a look at the Curtis T45 or Freeride frames as a starting point at least.
The frames you've busted so far haven't enjoyed the best reputation for longevity!
The first frame I broke was a custom steel one. Due to a superinjunction, I can't mention what make it was or how it broke.
Curtis does look good though, although it's getting on for the price of a Nicolai.
I'm still undecided on whether to go for something mid range at a sensible price, like a Chumba, or something exotic like a Curtis or Nicolai.
If the 27.2 seat tube on the Lynskey means they have strengthened the frame in that area, then I might as well give it another chance.
I've also still got the Kona and repaired Gary Fisher, which can both be run as single speed or Rohloff, so I'll stick with what I've got for now.
If there was something mid range, like a Big Unit, Rig or Chameleon with a Rohloff specific drop out, I'd be tempted.
I rode the Rig to work today and the repair is holding up so far.
I painted it while I was there as well. That's advantage of owning a bus coloured bike. 😉
Jones Spaceframe - the stress from the seastays is transferred the the toptube lower down, the seatstays are also fixed to the headtube. The toptube is also triangulated, to the seatstays. Jeff offers a Rholhoff version (or used to) so I'd be happy that it would be strong enough. The frames are also designed to flex a little, in the seatpost area........ it looks like your stressing your frames in this area, but the frame has nowhere to go - so it fails, the Jones is designed to flex here.
The Lynskey uses a 31.6mm seat post .....
.... the new Ridgelines have got a 27.2 post
It's the combination of inner and outer diameter that will give you wall thickness. Nicolai use 34.9 OD tubing with 31.6 ID on most frames. On XL sizes, DH bikes and for particularly heavy riders (or people who break seat-tubes 🙂 ) we use 30.9 ID.
have you thought about using one of those bmx 'double clamp' seat clamps? Might spread the load over the tube to help. I guess it must be your riding style causing the breakages - what about adding a use or thudbuster post, to take the edge of the hits off the frame?
H
Thanks for the email following my request on the Nicolai site, Simon.
I'm packing for Bristol right now, so I haven't got time to look into this properly.
It's not so much the frame failures that bothers me as the waiting time getting a replacement.
The guy I bought the Rig off got it as a warranty replacement and Trek kept him waiting a few weeks.
I'm still waiting for CRC to get back to me. No doubt, when they do, there will be a few weeks wait while the frame goes back to Lynskey in America before I get sent a replacement.
If Nicolai, or any other manufacturer for that matter, could promise me a new frame on overnight delivery if I break one, that would clinch it for me.
If I bought a new car and it broke down, I would expect to get it towed to the dealer's for free and have the use of a courtesy car while it was being fixed. Bike manufacturers don't work that way though.
Regarding the Lynskey, I guessed they were keeping the same OD on the new frames and increasing the wall thickness by using a smaller ID to shift some of the strain from the frame to the seatpost.
I guessed they were keeping the same OD on the new frames and increasing the wall thickness by using a smaller ID to shift some of the strain from the frame to the seatpost.
I doubt it - 34.9OD to 27.2 ID would give you a wall thickness of nearly 4mm.
I use 2*10 on a 29er (on-one scandal).
28/42 & 12-36
All's good so far! You do loose super low ratios & after perhaps 100 wet km's in wales or somewhere steep they would be missed!
karma for illegally downloading music i think!! haha hope the next one snaps as well!
Well here's pictures of my Chumba HX2, it's been built up of oldish parts I had hanging around my garage, so isn't that pristine for a new build.
Though I did wash the wheels for the first time in ages today!
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You know you need one...
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MTG, are you using shims on your frames/ seatposts? If so, this will be the reason the for frame(s) failing, im sure of it. They dont spread the load well and result in the seatpost moving about in the seatube alot more only being held in place by the seatclamp.
With regards to Ti frames, I reckon they are ok if you ride tow paths and smooth trails.
I have broken two TI frames in 12 months. Although they are guarenteed for life its a ball ache sending them back to be assessed and replaced.
So for a guy like yourself i would suggest getting a frame from either Specilized or Giant from you local Bike shop. There warrenty replacement is brilliant. :0)
If you're going custom steel it might be worth having a chat with this guy 😉
[url= http://www.bystickel.com/ ]Custom lushness[/url]
4mm does sound a bit thick for tube wall thickness.
They don't quote the seat post clamp size and 34.9mm is the derailleur clamp though, so maybe the tube tapers to the top, or maybe they got fed up with replacing frames under warranty and went for overkill on the tube spec.
I've got two singlespeeds now, a Kona Big Unit and the repaired Gary Fisher Rig, both of which I can convert to Rohloff, so there's no panic to buy a new frame.
I don't trust the Rig not to crack again soon, I'm just hoping it last until I get my Lynskey back.
Assuming Lynskey have redesigned the seat tube and it comes back stronger than it went, I'll give it another chance.
I see neither of the dealers on this thread have taken up my next day courtesy bike idea. I thought that would be a marketing ploy if they were sure I would never need it. 😉
Rents, no shims, all my frames have got the correct size seat post.
But from the pictures of the Bikefest, just really tiny frames with lots of seatpost sticking out!
Have you considered something burlier designed for unrelenting military duty?
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It lasted less than a week.
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I think I commuted on it for two days to test ride the Rohloff, then took it to MM to use as a spare bike.
While checking the bike over and fitting the number boar don Saturday morning I found it had cracked through the new weld.
I don't know whether it's worth adding some more bigger gussets or just writing off the Gary Fisher as a total loss.
Meanwhile, I've been in touch with Lynskey, trying, justifiably I think, to blag one of their titanium seat posts.
Hi
I bought a Ridgeline 29 SL, frame number 8621, from ChainReactionCycles in the UK in June 2010.
I sent it back a week or so ago as it had two cracks at the seat tube/top tube junction.I see from your website that the Ridgeline now takes a 27.2mm seat post. Looking at various mountain bike forums, it seems your frames haven't got a very good reputation for long term reliability, I take it this is a way of strengthening the frame while forcing the use of a more flexible seat post.
I bought a new Thomson seat post at the same time as the frame. Assuming you replace my frame with a new model, I will now need a different seat post.
Would you be prepared to include one of your titanium seat posts in with the new frame as a gesture of good will as I spent £1100 on a frame and have now been without it for two weeks as it cracked at less than a year old.
GrahamThank you for purchasing on of our frames
I would check with Chain Reaction about the seatpost size
I would assume your frame would get the same seatpost sleeve that it currently so you can use the Thompson one you haveBest personal regards,
Jack Kopeski, Sales Account Manager
Hi JackI think you've misunderstood the problem.
I bought one of your frames from CRC last June and bought a 31.6mm Thomson seatpost to fit it at the same time.
11 months later, the frame cracked, so I sent it back to CRC.
I see from your website that the Ridgeline 29 now uses a 27.2mm seatpost.
Assming you replace my frame with a new model, this now means that I need a 27.2mm seatpost.
I just thought that as I spent £1100 on one of your frames and it lasted less than a year, meaning I was unable to ride it at Bristol Bike Fest and Mountain Mayhem, the biggest 12 and 24 hour races in the UK, you might feel some responsibility to helping me avoid the added expense of buying a new seatpost by including one for free in with the replacement frame.Graham
Go Graham. Hope they do the right thing.
Loving the way everyone seems to think this is your fault for wanting to sit down. This fetish that MTBing has of making everything as light as possible is a real drag.
hopefully they will give you some advice of getting the right sized frame as well you mug
do you think a ti seatpost would help your next frame to not crack? i cracked a sir9 niner frame on the seat tube about where the end of the seatpost was. i was using a flexy ti seatpost (airborne) at the time. i suspect the seatpost may have played some part in causing the crack, but i am no expert.
timc, http://www.lynskeyperformance.com/store/mountain/frames/trail/ridgeline-29-sl.html
Click on Fit Chart.
I'm 6'1" and I bought a large. Which one do you think I should have bought instead ?
I did enjoy the Lynskey frames, but is it worth the hassle? I seriously can't see that Cannondale being hugely more solid in that area.
[url= 
]Cheapy Scandal[/url] set me back £124 on ebay and I'd be seriously hard pressed to tell the difference. Note the saddle in orbit, slightly masked by the bag.
Is that a 410mm Thomson? Even if that wasn't the issue, having a longer seatpost will spread the load a bit.
Not hugely likely, but there's a couple of Specialised ones going cheap at [url= http://www.bikescene.co.uk/SPECIALIZEDCLEARANCEFRAMES-92.html ]Bikescene[/url].
Edit: Oh and it's probably worth noting, I've killed a Zaskar Carbon Team frame at that exact same spot you broke yours. 🙂 I would say I've given up on carbon, but I like the look of the Lurcher and the Scott Scale Pro 29 🙁
Read through all this thread. You certainly seem to fall outside the demographics I imagine most bike companies design for, which is clearly a bit of a PITA.
I think if I were in your position, to solve this problem long term I'd be having a chat with Curtis, telling him exactly what problems I'd been having, showing this thread, and going for a custom T45 build designed around my needs.
Your fairly unusual requirements from a frame mean you're one of those rare STWers that really can justify a custom built frame :o)
Sorry to hear you've been having such bad luck with it all, anyway.
Update on the email exchange.
Although I bought both the frame and the seatpost from CRC, as I understand UK consumer law, they are only obliged to replace the faulty item, which means I now need to buy another seatpost as the design of the frame appears to have changed.
That's why I contacted you directly.
At one point I was thinking about buying another Lynskey frame as I have a Rohloff and a single speed bike. It's only when I did a bit of searching for second hand Lynskey frames that I realised just how many of them have cracked.
My frame on STW forum.
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/ive-broken-4-frames-in-13-months-recommend-me-a-29er-hardtail
Two warranty repaired Lynskeys for sale on STW forum
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/lynskey-ridgeline-29er-frame-xl
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-lot-of-bits-need-to-get-some-money-in-my-paypal-account-fastI was hoping you might like the opportunity to salvage some of your companies reputation and help out a customer by providing me with a free seatpost.
GrahamAgain have you contacted CRC to see if you will need a new seatpost?
Best personal regards,
This is the original email from CRC.
Hi Graham,We are emailing to let you know that we have received the Lynskey frame that you returned to us. We have emailed photos to our Lynskey supplier so as they can advise us on what action to take. As soon as they get back to us we will let you know.
We hope this is OK.
Kind regards,
Shauna
As CRC appeared to be waiting for Lynskey to tell them what to do, rather than simply replacing the frame themselves, I thought I'd be better off going straight to Lynskey myself to see if they would sort out the seatpost problem.
It looks like that isn't going to work, so as Lynskey suggested, I have now emailed CRC.
Hi ShaunaI see from both the CRC and Lynskey websites that the Ridgeline 29 now takes a 27.2mm seatpost.
The frame that I have returned takes a 31.6mm seatpost.
Assuming that Lynskey replace, rather than repair, the frame, I will need a new seatpost.
I emailed Lynskey direct to ask them if they would include one of their titanium seatposts in with the new frame to save me from having to buy one.
They don't seem all that interested in helping and simply told me to take it up with CRC.
So, please will you answer the following questions.Will I be getting a new frame or will my frame be repaired ?
Your website shows the Large size as due in stock on 4/7/11. If I'm getting a new one, is that when it will be sent out ?
Will you supply me with a Thomson 27.2mm seatpost free of charge as I have paid £1100 for a frame which lasted only 11 months, paid another £30 to post it back to you, missed being able to ride it at Bristol Bike Fest and Mountain Mayhem and now it looks like it's going to be another week before I get it replaced.
I can send you the old Thomson 31.6mm seatpost back if you want. It's no good to me now.Graham
I'm looking around for a second hand 29er frame now.
I've seen a couple of Lynskeys, but with the lifetime warranty only being valid for the original owner, a second hand Lynskey is worth whatever the scrap value of 3.5lbs of titanium is.
I like the idea of a new Nicolai Argon. Simon never took up my suggestion of a courtesy bike though, which doesn't inspire confidence. They're quoting 7 weeks delivery as well, so that means when it breaks, and it [i]will[/i] break, I'll be without a £1200 frame for 7 weeks.
timc you are a muppet! there is no more to say on the matter.
Graham, jeesus what a nightmare. just read the whole thread. Good luck with the Lynksey/CRC nightmare.
From friends who ride a bit like you i'd look into either Nicolai or Yeti even?
I've broken almost every non Nicolai frame I've owned. There was a large Argon FR in the for sale recently... don't let the FR tag put you off, angles are not radical by it will be strong.
If you buy a Chumba hx2 and it breaks I'll either replace it, or give you a refund. I don't think you will break it though.
just a quick question.. I haven't read through the entirity of the thread thoroughly so please forgive me if the question has already been raised..
That lynskey frame is sold as an out and out cross country race machine isn't it..?
If you're doing a lot of hard miles weekly should you perhaps be looking at something a little more substantial and workhorse-like..?
[i]"Loving the way everyone seems to think this is your fault for wanting to sit down."[/i]
Since all this started, I have been thinking more about how I ride and sort of watching myself to see what I do.
I almost always sit down to pedal. I like covering long distances, rather than doing technical stuff, so in that respect, I ride like a roadie. I'll just set a comfortable cadence and slog away in the seat and only stand for short sharp climbs.
I [i]always[/i] stand when freewheeling. I tried deliberately sitting while freewheeling and it just feels wrong.
Most trails are a mixture of pedalling and freewheeling, so if it's a grassy field,I'll sit down and pedal all the way. If it's a single track through the woods, I'll sit and pedal where I can, stand up and freewheel over the roots and rocks, then sit down and pedal again.
[i]"do you think a ti seatpost would help your next frame to not crack?"[/i]
That's something else I wondered. You'd think that a flexi post would help save the frame, but I'm not so sure. As it flexis at the point where it exits the seat tube, it would concentrate the load at that point.
[i]"You certainly seem to fall outside the demographics I imagine most bike companies design for"[/i]
I think that is the problem. At 95kg and 600 - 700km a month, I'm probably well outside the expected usage range of most bikes.
That Argon that's been in the classifieds is a 26er. 🙁 Otherwise, at £400, I'd have bought it by now.
[i]"If you buy a Chumba hx2 and it breaks I'll either replace it, or give you a refund."[/i]
Isn't that what you'd be obliged to do under the Sale Of Goods act anyway. 😉
It's not so much the replacement, as the time it takes to get it replaced.
I noticed the crack in the Lynskey on the day of Erlestoke 12.
Supposing I had had a Chumba and emailed you pictures of the crack on Sunday night, would you have got a replacement frame to me in time to build it up and race it at Bristol the following weekend ?
[i]"That lynskey frame is sold as an out and out cross country race machine isn't it..?"[/i]
http://www.lynskeyperformance.com/store/mountain/frames.html
COMPETITIVE CROSS-COUNTRY...PRO29 VF PRO29 SL PRO29 Lefty SL PRO26
TRAIL...Ridgeline-29 VF Ridgeline-29 SL M240...[b]These bikes are perfect for all mountain riding and endurance events.[/b]
One good thing about the Nicolai is that the 7 week wait makes it sound like they build the frames to order.
The XL Argon has got a thicker walled seat tube and the FR has got extra gussets at the seat tube/top tube junction.
I wonder if they'd build some sort reinforced Argon/Argon FR hybrid for me in Large as a no cost option if it meant they were less likely to get it back for warranty repairs.
I've been logging my bike mileage, although I only started at the beginning of this year.
http://www.bikejournal.com/profiles.asp?rname=VeganGraham
1200km on the Lynskey in the first 6 months this year, so if I guess at the same again for the last 6 months of last year, it lasted about 2500km.
The Kona I bought second hand, and which has got a shorter seat tube, is still going OK at 2100km.