Yes there are non-destructive ways to test what appears to be a crack, dye penetration test or magna-flux to name two. They do require specialized tools, materials and training. A frame builder, or someone else with experience in the area can determine if it is a crack by visual inspection when the crack is obvious. If there is any doubt, a test is preformed. The dye penetration test is the simplest and it wouldn't surprise me if a well stocked frame builder had such a test kit.
On Sunday, March 6, 2016 at 11:51:16 PM UTC-5, dougP wrote: > > Mike raised the possibility that this is not a crack, and he has > experience in this issue. Is there any type of non-destructive test (X-ray > or something?) that can be performed to determine the exact nature of the > situation? Before taking any more aggressive action? > > dougP > > On Sunday, March 6, 2016 at 8:25:36 PM UTC-8, Wayne Naha wrote: >> >> As second owner, any warranty offered by Riv does not apply. If it is a >> crack, which is not completely certain, it would at the least, need to be >> stop drilled. That will prevent any further propagation of the crack. I >> would say that a crack will certainly grow if left unattended. Stop >> drilling it will buy you some time to decide if you want to go the route of >> replacing the tube or not. I would avoid any further sanding, and remove >> any more paint by chemical means. If you get it evaluated and the tube is >> cracked, stop drilling may be all you need. It's a good first step, but it >> would need regular inspection after that. If the crack progresses beyond >> the stop drill holes, then you are assured that the head tube is garbage >> and will need replacing. My guess is that replacing the head tube and >> repainting the frame would equal the cost of a new Sam, but maybe not. >> Anyway, it's not hard to do the drilling yourself. Plug the holes with >> silicone caulk. Good luck! >> >> On Sunday, March 6, 2016 at 5:27:28 PM UTC-5, Edwin W wrote: >>> >>> I was performing a very rare bike cleaning and saw a bit of a chip in >>> the paint of the headtube on my Sam. It is a 60cm, single top tube orange >>> one with side pulls, if you are interested. I am the second ownder and have >>> put 5000 or so miles on it over the last three years. >>> Can you all take a look at the two photos posted here >>> <https://www.flickr.com/photos/90785999@N06/sets/72157665396088401> and >>> let me know what you think? >>> Is it a crack? Yes, it looks like that. It is right where the point of >>> the lug is, which must add some kind of stress? Metallurgists and engineers >>> please chime in. >>> What to do about it? Replace the head tube? What size of a job is that? >>> Does every city (even a not very bikey city like Nashville) have someone >>> who could do this? >>> Any other wisdom would be appreciated. >>> >>> Why does steel have to be THIS real? >>> >>> Edwin >>> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
