Board logo

life expectancy of aluminium bicycle frame...
tegwin - 30/1/10 at 02:54 PM

I have a Specialized enduro full suspension mountain bike... I bought it in 2004... and since then it has been used almost every other day without fail to hammer up and down the hills behind my house...

Its getting to the point where the 3rd set of bearings are wearing out...

I could replace them again.... but I am slightly concerned.... with all of the flexing and abuse the bike is going to be subject to... how strong do we think the frame is after 6 years of controlled abuse?

Specialized claim the frame has a lifetime waranty....whateer that means....

Its a tossup between spending £200-£300 on new bearings and shock service... or get a new frame for about £1500...

Im just not sure how much life the frame could give

Edit to say... I could get a second hand 2007-2008 frame for about £400 or so with shock... hmmmmm

[Edited on 30/1/10 by tegwin]

indykid - 30/1/10 at 03:07 PM

i'd imagine it'd be heavily gusseted around the head tube but that tends to be where they fall apart if they're going to fail from what i've seen.

keep checking that and the swing arm/shock mounts but unless you want a new frame, run it til it starts to crack, then get a new one under warranty. it doesn't sound like you're unhappy with what you have so i'd keep it if it were mine
tom

Steve Hignett - 30/1/10 at 04:18 PM

If it ain't broke...

will121 - 30/1/10 at 04:28 PM

quote:
Originally posted by tegwin
Specialized claim the frame has a lifetime waranty....whateer that means....


can you speak to the manufacture to confirm what is covered by 'lifetime warantee'? ive come across things in the past which say 'lifetime garentee' but this doesnt mean garenteed forever or your lifetime, but garenteed against failure within the design/projected life of the product which could be 5 or say 10 years. however if its like a good snapon tools garentee might just be worth keep repairing it till failure

RK - 30/1/10 at 04:50 PM

Replace the bearings and don't buy a second hand ally bike.

tegwin - 30/1/10 at 04:57 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Steve Hignett
If it ain't broke...


Yes, but its the "man" thing of wanting new shiny toys...

I think realistically fixing what I have is going to make more sence provided the metal is going to last another couple of years... and then spend a portion of the savings on a new rear brake and wheel perhaps...


All I have to do now is get the rear bearings out which are rusted to pieces... not easy though as they are pressed in either side of an internal web.. so you cant press them out from one side, you need to pull them out from either side... :s any ideas?

indykid - 30/1/10 at 05:33 PM

quote:
Originally posted by tegwin
All I have to do now is get the rear bearings out which are rusted to pieces... not easy though as they are pressed in either side of an internal web.. so you cant press them out from one side, you need to pull them out from either side... :s any ideas?

are you saying they're pressed into a blind hole? i assume not and there's some sort of shaft running through them.

in which case, once the shaft's out, can you not get onto the back of the opposite bearing from one side and drift it out as with, for instance, sierra wheel bearings?

tom

tegwin - 30/1/10 at 05:44 PM

If you imagine a tube with a web/flange halfway down the length of the inside of the tube...

THe tube has two bearings, one pushed in from either side up against the flange inside..

Because the bearings are so small and totally FUBARD, you can not knock them out from the opposite side... the centres wiull fall out, but the hardened race will then be stuck inside...

Hard steel race... soft alloy housing... not good!

dmac - 30/1/10 at 07:01 PM

The lifetime guarantee probably means that when it breaks it will kill you!

Seriously, if its full sus and you haven't been bottoming out the shocks then it should be fine.

On the other hand, if you have the money then you need to get a new shiny thing.

Duncan

Colnago_Man - 30/1/10 at 08:14 PM

I had a Cannondale CAAD3 road frame that I abused daily for 4 years.
One day I noticed that each time I got of the saddle the rear brakes rubbed. Thought at first it was the rear wheel until I noticed that i could pull the rear drop outs apart by about 2 inches if I took the wheel out.
Apparently its well known for aluminium frames to go soft after awhile.

I replaced the frame for a CAAD5 and realized just how stiff an aluminium frame should be.

Obvisouly with a full suspension frame its harder to tell as all the forces get absord by the suspension and bearings but it something to consider.

Back in the 80's when a company called Vitus first started making aluminium frames the proffesionals wouldnt ride the same frame for more than a couple of months as they were told they fatigue and eventually break!

Staple balls - 30/1/10 at 08:31 PM

If it ain't broke, ride it until it is, then replace it.


As far as a lifetime warranty goes, ISTR a few manufactures say it's the expected lifetime of the frame. So a superlight scandium xc frame has a one season lifetime warranty, as they're expected to be used for racing, and not much else.