"Headtube... We have a problem"
 

So long old pal, we've travelled a long way together. Hate to see you go like this. Especially now, when you were to be used for winter duty and there is no immediate replacement for you.

A moment of silence for him....

A celebration of life service is to take place soon (TBA). In the meantime, here is a write up about his life's history.


https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...600aabc6be.jpg
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...27d1f245f8.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1141a375d8.jpg
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3a1d9d234d.jpg

bubble gum & masking tape?

Have to wonder if that skyscraper stem contraption compromised it in some way....

Bummer. But I get the impression it was a well-earned death. At this point all that's left is to strip the corpse, bury the bones, and start perusing the local craigslist. :thumb:

Condolences, rest in pieces.

WHY******************************????

Wire brush, clean off with acetone, JB WELD + paint = good to go

What brand/model is it?

Never seen a headset failure that extensive, around the joint and across the tube. Well done.

No, better use the good stuff. Bailing wire & duck tape.

Is that a biplane fork?

I’ve toasted a few regular crown forks with repeated rough landings. Now I wonder if I’d had stronger forks if I would’ve been cracking headtubes.

I'd take the paint off to see the extent of the damage. It certainly does not look good; however the head tube is under some compression so the chance of a sudden failure is slight. A competent TIG welder may give you many more years, though it seems that you bought the bike to be expendable. Cut it up and make a wind chime.

I suspect the headtube failure occured over a period of time. I mean, I never noticed any change in the handling at all, or any noises to indicate it was failing. The Clouds' silver lining occured when I was regreasing the stem and noticed it. I thought it was a scratch at first but getting out the dental pick and investigating further yielded a "wtf moment". I have no idea how the failure came to be. Not from rough riding surely. From what I've read, headtubes do fail.

The deceased frame is a BRC Explorer. I bought it in early 2012. I'd still use it if it hadn't just recently failed and to know it went out on it's shield made me proud to have owned it. This frame helped contribute to the demise of a Schwalbe Marathon Plus. This BRC isn't worth resurrecting however. Below is a picture of the bike as I received it. The only other bike I can ride now is the Raleigh, which I've been hustling like mad to get winter ready. Rode it today even though it isn't complete. Very difficult to find a halfway decent XL MTB frame around here.


https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4d4f08a305.jpg

Thoughts and prayers. It led a good life of dedicated service.

you could possibly braze in a new head tube, but it's a lot of work. Something was wrong with the way the frame was built. Best to retire it.

Tig welding doesn't work near a brazed lug.

The frame got stripped of it's useable components and now it's ready to say Adios.

Here is the Elkhorn which has taken the BRC's place.
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...4515a08618.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...70c282ac5e.jpg

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...596ec53f36.jpg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b8cc8a4daa.jpg

I'm going to go along with shelbyfv's suggestion (especially after seeing the pics of the Elkhorn) that the "skyscraper stem contraption" might have been a significant factor in the headtube failure. The Elkhorn may also fail in a similar manner! There's a lot of lever action going on and with a large frame, plenty of potential for flexing the headtube. Apparently, there's a limit to how much flexing a steel headtube can withstand:eek:.

Hello, the picture of the box in the cargo bay was taken 5 years ago at least and just meant to show utility of this ol' bike. That was an actual carry! The box had full size sheets of wood veneer in it, weighing not more than about 12lbs. The bar/stem on the BRC was original equipment. I guess headtubes can just give sometimes.

That "Sky Scraper" stem contraption is just a common bullmoose bar, common for that era of bike. Lots and lots of them around that did not break a headtube.




Seeing as you are in Winterpeg I would put it down to festering mosquito bite.