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not a support questionJust had a chat with Ben Kinetics. If the hinge plates have worn, then they can be bored to 1/4" or 8mm depending on wear, and bushed to 6mm and new pins pressed in. But that takes time and money. The older frames are showing their age these days and usually eventually fail just behind the main frame clamp - but you pile on a new fillet braze and carry on.
It may well not be cost effective to repair an old frame, all things considered.
Arellcat, thank you very much for that, much appreciated.
That agrees with what the man at Biketrax was saying about having to bore out the hinge. It just feels like it isn't worth the cost and hassle any more.
Oh well.
At least you can look forward to enjoying a brand spanking new Brompton sometime soon! :-)
Also if you auction off the old one on fleaBay for parts you can offset the cost.
Well, I was worrying that I wouldn't be able to get another Brompton through my employer's bike to work scheme as it is run by Halfords - but eventually (on the part of the website behind a locked door with "beware of the leopard" on it) it would appear that there are independent retailers that I can go to as well. Including BikeTrax. Result!
Just a random thought but would you need to buy a like for like new Brompton? Depending on the spec of your current Brompton, could you buy one of the pared down ones e.g. with no mudguards or rack or dynamo lights for example and transfer over the good bits from your existing Brompton?
@twinspark I intend to do that to some extent.
Well, (for anyone who might be interested) I finially got to BikeTrax with my Cycle To Work voucher on Saturday and a new Brompton is on order. It was a very smooth process (helped by the fact that I pretty much knew what I wanted). 4 - 6 weeks, the man said, probably nearer 6.
Unfortunately my road bike has now died as well (temporarily, I hope, it needed a service before the Brompton died and it became my only bike, now it has to go to be fixed and I am bicycleless (a carbon fibre TT bike used for triathlons does not a suitable back-up utility cycle make...))
I am bicycleless
You're welcome to a loan of my Dutchie. Great training I'd imagine. Weighs a tonne.
Sorry came to this late (my ears are burning & my spies failed to prompt me. There are 2 oversize steps for the frame/steerer hinge pins (ream & press in new pins). This can be done with a hammer & centre punch but works better with a fly-press and the right mandrels.
At 12 years you'll have a Mk 4-6 (Long Wheelbase) frame, which has the machine brazed hinge lugs - these do not fail.... often. I've only broken one, and it was an early Mk 4 where the main tubes were not seamless, and a small crack developed on the seam-line, possibly after a wee shunt. I've ripped around 6 SWB front ends apart.
The other wear I'd guess is rear pivot, once it gets really sloppy the chain will keep falling off. Can be re-bushed, & reamed with new pin. Later rear triangles have much thicker hinge plates, a better 'change of section' joint for the chain stays, and I've not ripped one of the new ones apart. A good move here is to fit brass washers in place of PTFE, and drill & tap for an M5 nipple to fire light grease in to the frame pivot pin. This hole also offers the handy option of replacing the nipple with a bolt, to lock the pin solid when tightening or trying to loosen the securing CSK bolts. Lubricating the pin vastly increases life/reduces wear.
Early rear triangles had a vent hole as brazing techniques assumed the risk of trapped air
ream & press in new pins
Hence my earlier reply to fimm about exactly this. It's not whether or not it could be done, because of course it can be done, but whether or not it was cost effective.
Can be re-bushed, & reamed with new pin…fit brass washers in place of PTFE, and
Most of us don't wear out things at quite the same rate, though. :)
I had oversize pins reamed and pressed by Brompton as a while you wait job a few years back. As long as wear not too severe should be quick & cheap job.
Had to abandon last post - the hole in chainstay brace meant water, salt etc accumulated in this tube & eventually these rusted away, giving the bike a distinctly spongey ride and hig risk of tearing chainstay tubes from pivot hinge plates
I have a new Brompton!!!
It feels lighter than the old one, which is odd, as I have not paid for lightness. It is obviously a lovely smooth ride because it is new. The gear changer is different, unsurprisingly.
I took the front bag mount block off my old Brompton, to put it on the new one, only to discover that the new one needs a different size bolt to attach it. So I'll have to go back to BikeTrax to see what they can do to help me with that.
The big difference is that my old bike didn't have the facility to lock the rear hinge while the new one does; that will be convenient while carrying it up and down steps.
I dismantled the old bike to get the rear rack off. I can't think of anything else I should remove - pedals, maybe? - they are quite new? Suggesting as to what to do with the remains of the old one appreciated - I'm not sure if there's going to be much worth having as spares. Would a scrap metal merchant take the frame?
Donate it to someone who could repair the hinge?
It's steel, so it should have some scrap value, if you can bear it!
Grr, proof reading failure.
Suggestions, not "suggesting"...
It is of no use to me and I have no space to store it, so "bear it" means nothing :-) - The Old Brompton Must Go.
You could saw it up and make a great big wind chime.
i know a man who recycles Bromptons if interested.
He is in Gateshead so logistically may not be worth the hassle.
Does the old Brompton still have wheels? Gears? Tyres? Handlebars? Gear shifter? A chainring and cranks?
Could still be worth something for spares or repair. Try selling it on fleaBay?
Iain McR, having thought about it, I'm wondering if the man you know might be interested in mine as a source of parts, so if you have a contact email you could pass on to me I'd appreciate it.
I'm not sure I can be bothered with the hassle of selling on eBay - though again I suppose I could strip off the bits I think might be worth something and see what I can get.
I don't think the frame is worth anything - as well as the hinges, there's rust, and the doofer where the saddle goes up and down is very, very stiff so I suspect that's on its way out too.
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