Just riding along...

[DirtDiva]

Oops. :(

http://www.vorb.org.nz/images/attach/close-up_disaster.jpg

http://www.vorb.org.nz/images/attach/disaster_177.jpg

[crazycanuck]

:eek: Òh dear!

DD..are you ok? What happened??

I do hope you're not on the injured list too :(

C

[OakLeaf]

Yeow! Bummer!!!!

Really just riding along? Is that frame still under warranty?

[bike4ever]

Take the bike back to where you purchased it since this is a new model Have them take pictures and send in for shot at warranty coverage with Fisher. To me it looks like you landed very hard on the saddle during a jump. I broke a saddle like that once - not a seat tube. Boy did I have bruises. Fisher will have to make the decision as to whether it is impact damage or warranty. Good luck.

[bike4ever]

Take the bike back to where you purchased it since this is a new model Have them take pictures and send in for shot at warranty coverage with Fisher. To me it looks like you landed very hard on the saddle during a jump. I broke a saddle like that once - not a seat tube. Boy did I have bruises. Fisher will have to make the decision as to whether it is impact damage or warranty. They usually try to cover most broken frames. I have never been able to get the frame covered when the break is behind the head tube - due to damage from missing a landing on a jump.

[KnottedYet]

Is it from that batch of aluminum that's caused so much trouble? Someone posted a link somewhere on the board to the brands that got hit with some aluminum stock that fails.

Terry was one of the brands, but that's all I can remember.

(the real question is: were you riding near any holly bushes?):D

[bike4ever]

I sell Gary Fisher bikes. We have not had any bikes effected by "bad aluminum".

[melissam]

Oh no!!! Looks like all the holly bushes, world traveling and time zone shifting has taken its toll on your bike.

Hopefully you'll be able to get it fixed under warranty. You bought this bike in the UK, right? I hope you'll be able to work with a shop in NZ to take care of this.

By the way, I'm waiting to hear the story of the breakage. After the holly bush, you have a reputation to uphold, my dear!

-- Melissa

[SadieKate]

I am getting very cautious about reading threads that DirtDiva starts. Ouch.

Interestingly, she used fewer words to describe this outing.

[DirtDiva]

It's all in the title. :( Not a holly bush for kilometres. :p Was out with a couple of mates for a regular weekly after-work blat around a very easy, completely non-technical loop. Felt the saddle slip and thought perhaps I hadn't done the seat post collar up tightly enough. Felt it slip again with a definite backward tilt this time and figured it must be the saddle rail clamp instead. Got off and scratched my head when I saw that both were secure. Then I saw the big crack and just gawped for a while. :eek: I guess it's a long-term fatigue thing that has resulted in catastrophic failure. Thank goodness for the lifetime frame warrantee.

[melissam]

Holy metal fatigue, Batman!

DirtDiva, I'm glad you're OK. That could have been disastrous if it had happened during some of your more death-defying stunts.

How long will it take to get a replacement frame?

[spokewench]

That's a weird failure right above the weld! Just curious, is your seatpost long enough? Sometimes when it is too short, it will cause a failure in the bike frame in that area? Just want to be sure if you get a new bike, that it does not happen again - if that was the cause

spoke

[bike4ever]

spokewench - If it's a stock seatpost, it should be plenty long. I just checked a 17.5" model - it has a 350mm post in it.

[sgtiger]

:eek: OMG!:eek: Thank goodness it's something you didn't discover going downhill or on a jump.

[DirtDiva]

It was the stock seatpost. Had a good couple of cm more than the minimum insertion line in there. No idea how long the replacement will take. Depends a bit what's in the country at the moment, etc. Sounds like I can chip in some cash as well to upgrade, should I chose. The short-travel Fuel 7 (http://www.trekbikes.com/us/en/bikes/2008/mountain_full_suspension/top_fuel/topfuel7/) would look nice with all my bits on it. :)

[smilingcat]

It's all in the title. :( Not a holly bush for kilometres. :p Was out with a couple of mates for a regular weekly after-work blat around a very easy, completely non-technical loop. Felt the saddle slip and thought perhaps I hadn't done the seat post collar up tightly enough. Felt it slip again with a definite backward tilt this time and figured it must be the saddle rail clamp instead. Got off and scratched my head when I saw that both were secure. Then I saw the big crack and just gawped for a while. :eek: I guess it's a long-term fatigue thing that has resulted in catastrophic failure. Thank goodness for the lifetime frame warrantee.

You're so non-chalant about the whole affair. I would have freaked...

The bike is an aluminum frame. And they do have to temper them to get it strong; but when welded, they lose their temper and makes them weak. That is what I was reading about 6005? aluminum. It can be retempered in welded area so perhaps the frame builder didn't adequately retemper the area.

Anyway, I'm really glad you didn't get hurt. I hope you didn't ride like that back to your house or your car.

Smilingcat

[RoadRaven]

Whoa, Diva... scary!
I know its repetitive, but so glad this didn't happen while you were trying out some wylde move!

You say long-tewrm fatigue - so how long have you had the bike... or perhaps more relevantly approx how many hours or miles has it done...?

[DirtDiva]

Me too! Not that I really do wylde moves (I'm all talk :p), but I certainly ride much more challenging terrain in much more isolated places at times.

I've had the bike since July 2005. Goodness knows how may hours of use it's had. A reasonable amount, but nothing over the top. Plus, it's always been treated like the kind of bike it is - a cross country hardtail - not a huck machine. Personally, I think the stock seatpost probably was at fault - barely long enough for a frame of that shape (30cm, perhaps less) and never quite as tight-fitting as it ought to have been. But then again, I know nothing about metal engineering and such.

Anyway, the distributor told me to take it into a local dealer for them to eyeball it and such, so that's where it's at at the moment.