BAD NEWS for my A2M

[cudarider1]

Was going to take my bike off the rack to load it up for a camping / riding trip and noticed that my head tube is cracked. there are two cracks starting just under the top half of the headset, one goes down to the weld at the top tube and the other is a bit shorter. I assume the frame is finished at this point since I don't think that can be fixed. I've been riding this frame since 1998 so I guess I got my money's worth out of it but I'm still bummed.

[Mark]

Dang, that is bad news..

I have a crack on the FRONT of my headtube, starting from the bottom, moving up about 2 cms. This is on one of my XXTeam frames (thank goodness I have a few) but I believe if you're in love with the bike, you have options:

1 - I've heard of people placing "rings" around the outside of these headtubes, at the site of the crack, so that the tube itself won't crack apart.
2 - You can find a good welder who can repair a crack.
3 - You can replace the headtube.

Me, I'd trust #1 before I would #2 and #3, but that's just me..

[cudarider1]

All good ideas Mark. My buddies and I discussed the "ring" idea but weren't sure what to use that would work. The thought of the head tube breaking while bombing down a rocky, rooty down hill section will take a lot of confidence out of my riding so I have to either fix it or replace it. I've been looking at some FS bikes lately but planned on keeping the cuda so I was really bummed out when I noticed the crack.

[Mark]

Yeah, I think if you go to a shop that specializes in aluminum, you can get a couple of rings machined, that with the use of a mallet, will slide right over that section of tube. Think of it as the exact opposite of pressing in headset cups. Instead, you're pressing rings on over the headtube.

Me, I'd have 100% confidence back with those on.

[kvojr]

With the crack going all the way to the weld, there is no way I would trust it with the rings. It WILL start to crack around the welds and the headtube could shear off. In my opinion, you need to replace it but atl least you have some awesome looking wall art for the garage. I did see an A2R on ebay today but it looks like it may have seen better days.

[cudarider1]

After looking at it again your probably right. I saw that A2R, I don't car for the purple or the random stickers all over the place. I'm probably going to get a newish FS bike and take my time looking for a cuda frame in the right size and nice condition. If I get a chance later I'll post a picture.

[cudarider1]

Here is a picture of the largest crack. there is another crack directly in the back center of the head tube that goes to the weld on the top tube. NOT GOOD!

[ctk]

Yep I agree and think its time to retire that frame. The price of a repair (+ repaint) would be more than a lot of Barracudas on Craigslist.

Lots of deals on 2010 bikes at the moment aswell.