Broke my handlebars...

[Wendy]

Oops, I changed gear, and got an Unexpected Steering Event.  Turns out my Nazca tiller has broken at the weld where it attaches to the handlebars.  Luckily not during the 40mph descent on the way home, and luckily only a partial fail.

Hurricanes have incredibly twitchy steering, so I could have flicked myself into the hedge in the blink of an eye.  Well, at least my one does (according to Darth Stuart, it is older than old).

[spen666]

Mikey, a safety tip for you

Its probably safer if you don't break your handlebars

however, its a choice issue and if you choose to break them, thats also fine

[Charlotte]

Doesn't bear thinking about what would have happened if you'd have been doing one of your manic descents, Mikey.  Probably best to fit some new ones rather than have the old ones repaired?

[andygates]

See?  Riding breakless is much better.   

Fixable or is it upgrade time?

[Wendy]

Failure at the weld - I think it's steel, so am about to take it down to the local auto repair shop here in Biggin Hill.  I've a piccie, so will upload it later.

[Mr Larrington]

I had a similar experience on my Speedmachine a few years ago, while changing lanes in the Tottenham on-way system.  Fortunately the driver of the 44-tonner, into whose path I found myself tumbling, had excellent reflexes, as otherwise I should probably be typing this with my nose.

[Wendy]

Broken:



Re-welded:

[Torslanda]

Mikey I'm concerned . . .

That clamp does not look to me like it has been welded correctly.

From the little I know about engineering and welding I think that the tube should have been mitred to the clamp. It looks like new weld has been added on top of the old and that can be brittle.

I'll stand corrected if I'm wrong.

J

[alexb]

I'd concur.
You need to get the tube trimmed down, well back behind the heat damaged region, and then re-mitred and welded properly.

[Torslanda]

I'd concur.
You need to get the tube trimmed down, well back behind the heat damaged region, and then re-mitred and welded properly.

Were you waiting for me to say that or did it occur independently?

J

[gonzo]

Re-welding safety critical items = bad idea!

As an aside, I waiting to cross the road when a guy pulls up on his old mtb, puts the brake on, snaps the right side of the bar off, looked at it in an "oh well" sort of way then rode off with only 1/2 his handlebar. It was bizzare!

[Charlotte]

Speaking as a Mechanical Engineer (and as a welder) for the reasons already given, I don't think I'd put that stem back on my bike.

It may well be very strong, but as Gonz says, ultimately it's a safety critical bit of kit and for the cost of it, I'd just not gamble on it breaking when I didn't want it to.  You need confidence in your bike and I'd just not trust it.

[dkahn400]

Speaking as a Mechanical Engineer (and as a welder) for the reasons already given, I don't think I'd put that stem back on my bike.

It may well be very strong, but as Gonz says, ultimately it's a safety critical bit of kit and for the cost of it, I'd just not gamble on it breaking when I didn't want it to.  You need confidence in your bike and I'd just not trust it.

Thirded. When you said you were taking it down to the local auto repair shop, I thought you were joking. You really don't want the stem failing on a fast descent or in heavy traffic. And just imagine it happening on a fast descent in heavy traffic.

 

[Wendy]

Thanks guys.  It's only a temp fix until the replacement stem comes along thanks to the usual high quality service of David at ligfiets.  I'm not worried, given how much bigger and more meaty the new weld is, and even if it does fail, it should remain steerable.  Bear in mind this is an OSS bent, so there's not usually a lot of strain on the handlebars, which is why I'm still at a loss as to why it broke in the first place.  I've not crashed or dropped the bike.

[Fixedwheelnut]

 Mikey, speaking as a technician and welder and breaker of bars [x4] and stems [x1]

 I agree the weld does not look good, you must have a spare bike?