Originally Posted by sheddle

What I was going to do was go to the Rodriguez shop (really well regarded frame builders who also do steel frame repair) and get a) a quote for repairs, and b) hopefully an opinion that this was almost certainly due to a repair stand.

I figure that if I have a) a time stamped photograph showing no frame damage the night before, b) a statement from the seller that the damage didn't exist at the time of sale and I somehow missed it (already confirmed this) , and c) a statement from a frame builder that this was almost certainly a repair stand, then I can probably have enough leverage to hopefully get the repair costs covered.