I knew it would happen at some point.
.
That is an odd spot to break on a conventional frame. I have not seen that before.
is going big on a bike the only way to get you stoked on the sport? what happened to riding with your bros, travelling, and riding unique places, to get people stoked on riding?
fines are useless. there needs to be more punches to the throat.
thats looks like an aluminium frame ?
Awesome, it's great to get max use out of a frame (or any bike part for that matter).
I've got an old 2000 Norco Nitro frame (Easton Aluminum) that's been through many miles and many builds (xc race bike, "freeride" hardtail, and now a commuter). I suspect it will see a similar fate to yours within the next couple of years but I've been really impressed with how it's held up and it's fun to see how long it will last.
I know it's an apples to oranges comparison, but it's interesting to think about little distance most mountain bikes (especially high end bikes) cover before they are trashed or upgraded.
Maybe a couple thousand kms at the absolute most?
Also, props on 122,00 commuting kms in that time. That's pretty impressive too.
DH/AM rigs lives arent measured in KM travelled horizontally - more like vertical feet
I'm ignoring Smedley.
That is an odd spot to break on a conventional frame. I have not seen that before.
Interesting. Most of the broken commuter bikes we see through the shop are broken in this spot. I think we actually have one in right now.
Interesting. Most of the broken commuter bikes we see through the shop are broken in this spot. I think we actually have one in right now.
What causes them to break in that spot?
is going big on a bike the only way to get you stoked on the sport? what happened to riding with your bros, travelling, and riding unique places, to get people stoked on riding?
fines are useless. there needs to be more punches to the throat.
What causes them to break in that spot?
bottom bracket flex would be my guess , you can get alot of leverage and torque from the cranks , remember being an aluminum frame it is naturally stiffer so if and when it starts to flex it will eventually start to crack . i remember when KONA introduced the KULA back in the mid 90s my brother inlaw bought one i had a HOT and we switched bikes on Fromme oneday , my 1st time on a aluminum HT i was amazed at how rough the ride was when compared too my steel framed bike .
#northsidetrailbuilders
Did all the kona frames go to alu at some date?
I have a kona Hahanna steel frame I use for touring which I must have bought in 2000 most of the components were upgraded long ago but the steel frame still makes for a nice ride
What causes them to break in that spot?
If I had to generalize/make an educated guess it would be failure due to overheating while welding considering that there are 4 welds that intersect in that small area combined with years of flex and movement OR just years of flex.
I don't really know anything about metal or welding, I'm just one of the guys that makes the fiddly bits work.
Try flexing a piece of aluminium and a piece of steel to see which one breaks first, aluminium will break before steel does … aluminium has less duty cycles than steel before it breaks
Soul transfer and restored!
Thanks Cove for the new frame!
Shirley you jest?
Kona have a lifetime warranty policy, and being that it's cracked around the weld, I'd imagine they'd warranty it. They've done it before for us at the shop I work at.
Ride, don't slide.
Kona have a lifetime warranty policy, and being that it's cracked around the weld, I'd imagine they'd warranty it. They've done it before for us at the shop I work at.
Its 3 years for Kona Jake the Snake frames. I've had a frame warrantied after 2 1/2 years (cracked weld around the head tube), but they gave me a new frame.
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