I KILLED MY BIKE

[twistedmentality]

well in the ever existing need to modify and change things i went to far... whats that saying ? measure twice cut once ? well i did and it dint work !

if anyone was following my post in bike builds about my OP cruiser bike they seen that the springer i had would not fit as the frames head tube was way to long. i thought, thought being the key word here was if i chopped some off of each side it would fit. well it was still an inch off and i couldnt take off any more on the frame. :shock:

to make matters worst, half way through the 2nd cut the hack saw broke and i had to finish the cut with a broken blade with masking tape on one end for a handle (think prison shank). so needless to say the cut was less then perfect. :x

well back to the drawing board and i decided i would put the factory fork back on and atleast id have a lowered front end. well apparently the two ends are not parallel to one another because when i assemble it the forks jam and will not rotate 360 degrees.

i thank god it was only a hundred dollar bike. so i can go get another or even better get a different bike and merge the two together !

ill prolly have a ton of left overs if any one needs some

 

[Walker]

Bring it to a shop with a headtube re-facing / reamer and you'll be back in business..

 

[scrumblero]

maybe even just take a file and try and make the ends parallel??

 

[twistedmentality]

tried the file idea...dint work. the bike shop is an idea. didnt even think about that nor new that could do that.

thanks. i think i will still buy another bike though . lol

**quick update**

local bike shop never heard of that tool.

 

[Long&Black]

Look in my build thread for my daughter's bike. I used masking tape to mark cut lines. The wider the tape the less likely it is to lay down crooked as you wrap it around the tube.

I marked, taped, and cut.

OR...

Take it to a machine/metal fab shop and have them clamp the frame into their chop saw. That way the chop saw will cut square once the frame is clamped in place.

 

[Walker]

thanks. i think i will still buy another bike though . lol

**quick update**

local bike shop never heard of that tool.[/quote]

You should buy lots of other bikes!!!

Not that it will do much good if your LBS has never heard of this tool.. but google head tube facing tool and you'll see the tool. Or find another LBS?

 

[X-RAY]

aw man that sucks! sorry to hear it happened. i went to buy an OP today but they were out. maybe next weekend. how hard would it be to cut out and weld in a new headtube? is it a possibility?

 

[twistedmentality]

aw man that sucks! sorry to hear it happened. i went to buy an OP today but they were out. maybe next weekend. how hard would it be to cut out and weld in a new headtube? is it a possibility?

it did suck but i bought another bike and got to building today. the old frame by any means isnt junk as im sure if i put the effort in i could get the top and bottom parallel.

jason i did do the tape trick but the when cutting the top portion of the tube the hack saw blade broke and i had to finish it by hand with a half piece of blade and the cut went off course on the opposite side when i wasn't paying attention.

 

[mikesbikes36]

so what r u gonna do with the extra set of wheels .....? alloy or steel ...?? may b intersted !!!! mike

 

[Bigcam59]

local bike shop never heard of that tool.[/quote]
Try a better shop, one that has more frame experience, or see if there are any custom framebuilders in the area

 

[Uncle Stretch]

The best thing is to keep your eye out for a small fabricating shop in your area. Most will do small side jobs either for cheap , or maybe a case of beer. You can cut the whole neck off of your frame and have a new one welded on. Its a pretty simple deal. Sand down the welds and paint it. If your tubes are too far apart to accept the smaller length head tube , you can bend them together a little and make them work. The one on the frame I'm building right now is 5 1/2'' long and fits a Schwinn springer. Sometimes its easier to lengthen the fork tube (still an easy deal) than cut down the head tube.

 

[twistedmentality]

i looked into buying a refacing tool myself but .... those things are a tad bit expensive.

mike i think they are aluminum id have to check but im not 100% sure what iam going to do with them.

 

[CCR]

i looked into buying a refacing tool myself but dang those things are a tad bit expensive.

mike i think they are aluminum id have to check but im not 100% sure what iam going to do with them.

$400+ for a tool a shop wont regularly use seems kinda silly, let alone a tool you might not use more than once. i would think any machine shop could help you out at minimum cost.