Cracked Condor Fratello steel frame - Excellent response from Condor

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Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
Hi, a wipe down with a damp cloth last week discover a unpleasant loking crack around the joint between top tube and seat tube, at the time I hopefuly thought it just a crack in the paint, on the other side I had a piece of electrical tape to stop cable rub, lifting that revealed more crack, this one with a bit of rust in it, i rode it for a week more (yes I know) before taking it into LBS for new running gear prior to the Dunwich Dynamo

All three LBS wallahs told me the frame is finished and don't ride it, they said it could be wealded but wouldn't look nice

A quick bit of googling shows a few other people have had this happen and seemingly Condor replace in the first two years and say sorry after that, I had some cheerful idea that frames came with 10 year plus warranties on the grounds they donlt break

Googling about welding suggests it to be a last resort as the frame will never be the same again

2 questions really, legal type advice if Condor refuse to replace, I think I'm on 2 years and three or four months, given the usual lifetime of a frame, can I make arguement that they have to replace, EU laws on quality and fit for purpose and so on?

And if I went the repair route, can anyone recomend someone handy for the NE London area? At the moment I wouldn't know there was a problem when riding

I'e had a few minor offs but nothing vaguely rough enough to crack the frame it seemed to me, the only substantial collision with a ped left the carbon forks fine so I assume a steel frame should have survived that

Thanks, I'll keep thisup to date, I did 2 years of law and the wife is a barrister so I might be going down a legal route if Condor walk away from replacing the frame

All advice gratefullly received<br><br>pics attached for the curious, I have to sat it's lloks far worse in these pics that it has to me so far, the gunk on one side it from the piece of tape stopping the cable rubbbing, and covering up the nasty side with crack<br><br><br>
 

Smokin Joe

Legendary Member
I'd say you have a good case for a replacement as just over two years is not acceptable life for a frame. I would approach Condor and see what they have to say. The only issue they might query is if you have fitted your seatpost without it going below the set tube/top tube joint which could put too much strain on that area.
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
P1020157.JPG


P1020158.JPG
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
Thanks

Bloody hell the pictures make it look terrible, it didn't look anything like that bad to me until now, no. I'm defo not going to putting my featherlight 14st back onto that

I have a fair bit of seatpost showing but nothing silly, I'm only 6ft1 and it'sa 58cm semi compact frame that they fitted me for, I'm not sure about what looks like deformation at the back, I suspect that's just the reflection of the back of the car

yes, the chap on bikeradar last year had harsh words about a bike company only doing a 2 year warranty on frames, he seemed to think Condor might have a reason for doing that

We shall see
 

potsy

Rambler
Location
My Armchair
That does look bad Ty,how long has it been like that I wonder? You need to employ the ianrauk method of a deep clean after every ride, obviously don't wipe it down too often then? :dry: Oh and 14st on that would worry me too,thankfully I'm a lightweight 13st 13lb
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
That does look bad Ty,how long has it been like that I wonder? You need to employ the ianrauk method of a deep clean after every ride, obviously don't wipe it down too often then? :dry: Oh and 14st on that would worry me too,thankfully I'm a lightweight 13st 13lb

a while is my guess, as said the serious crack is the one under the tape, the rust in there suggests it may have been there for a while, i do wipe it down perhaps once a month but I don't eyeball it too closely, in my innocence I didn't expect to find anything like that on what is still a newish bike, I live and learn I suppose

and to be fair to me I did find it eventually, before anything unpleasant happened,I have to say that after seeing those pictures I feel slightly queasy about having ridden it like that

anyhow an email has been sent to Condor with pics and frame number and the intention to bring it in on Tuesday morning

I need to get sme words prepared in case they do what they apparently did to someone else with a just over 2 years old cracked frame, offered him £200
 

MacB

Lover of things that come in 3's
Words are very important here Tynan and you should be honest with them, highlght:-

you're a regular rider and commuter so how important a bike is to you

the efforts you went into when choosing this bike as it was a major spend

your reasons for choosing Condor, which I assume included reputation for quality as they're not the cheapest option

the fact that this is on the web now and a lot of traffic will see this and the outcome you post up - you don't need to make this sound threatening it's merely information. Frame failure of this nature wouldn't put people off a brand, this sort of thing happens. A poor response from the shop would be another thing entirely and is the sort of information that I search keenly for when choosing a bike. Nothing sells a brand better than a tale of excellent cutomer service, so far it's been one of the reasons Condor is on my favourites list, I'm sure I'm not alone.

Good luck with this mate and maybe lose a few pounds you fat ********
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
Words are very important here Tynan and you should be honest with them, highlght:-

you're a regular rider and commuter so how important a bike is to you

the efforts you went into when choosing this bike as it was a major spend

your reasons for choosing Condor, which I assume included reputation for quality as they're not the cheapest option

the fact that this is on the web now and a lot of traffic will see this and the outcome you post up - you don't need to make this sound threatening it's merely information. Frame failure of this nature wouldn't put people off a brand, this sort of thing happens. A poor response from the shop would be another thing entirely and is the sort of information that I search keenly for when choosing a bike. Nothing sells a brand better than a tale of excellent cutomer service, so far it's been one of the reasons Condor is on my favourites list, I'm sure I'm not alone.

Good luck with this mate and maybe lose a few pounds you fat ********

Yes although I fear that they'll have a prepared and well used response to this situation, more googling seems to suggest this is a known fault on Fratello frames at least

When i was north of 17st I might have been a tad over the recomended weight for a man of my dimensions, barring a tad of tyre I'm a splendid picture of a grown man, you stumpy types never understand how weight increases as a man gets taller

fingers crossed that Condor give a response worthy of a reputable company
 

snailracer

Über Member
Is there rust inside the tubes? Do you have mudguards to stop spray being thrown onto your seatpost and running down into the tubes?
 

gavintc

Guru
Location
Southsea
I am no expert, but it looks like rust from the inside. This is quite a serious damage. I hope you get somewhere with Condor. I could propose that you get a rust free option next time, but I know you steel people do like the feel.
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
I am no expert, but it looks like rust from the inside. This is quite a serious damage. I hope you get somewhere with Condor. I could propose that you get a rust free option next time, but I know you steel people do like the feel.

It's had mudguards on from day one, fitted by Condor

Surely they don't make steel frames that will fail from internal rust within 2 and a bit years? It's been stored in a proper bike locker overnight too

Internal rust or design flaw or manufacturing issue, it's their fault it seems to me

I went with steel for comfort and also because I thought it'd be harder wearing and longer lasting, this is a considerable disappointment to me on that score
 
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Tynan

Tynan

Veteran
Location
e4
It looks the crack started at the rear, just above the stays, then spread around the tube, then split when it hit the welds.
I don't think you'll be able to argue the bike wasn't fit for purpose, or argue that it should be replaced under warranty. I might be wrong though.

You could get it fixed by Argos, if Condor won't do it
http://www.argoscycl...n-pricelist.htm

Would you mind explaining why you say that?

What have I done to cause this? Surely i can expect a £800 bike to last for longer than this, google shows quite a few COndor bikes failing in the same way after anything from 8 months to 2 years after being bought, that can't be right surely?

genuine questions btw
 

RecordAceFromNew

Swinging Member
Location
West London
1) How much does the bottom of your seatpost extends below the bottom of the top tube (if at all)?

2) If the seat tube is butted/double butted I wonder where the thin wall starts (e.g. for 531DB I believe builders tried to ensure at least 75mm at the top was thick walled)?
 
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