Reynolds 531 PRO tubing

[RecordAceFromNew]

I was made very aware of the importance of that when I encountered a rider walking with his no longer rideable bike on a local audax ...

!!!

(In this case, he should have spotted the rust before the forks snapped!)

Looking at the pic, the interesting thing is it seems perfectly round holes had been drilled into the blades at the crown (don't know whether it is fore or aft) which could not have helped their survival, evident by the splits at the holes. Having just examined my 531 fork blades they do have similar round holes, but much nearer the axle than the crown and on the inside surface, not fore/aft where I would have thought the maximum stress and strain would be.

 

[ColinJ]

Looking at the pic, the interesting thing is it seems perfectly round holes had been drilled into the blades at the crown (don't know whether it is fore or aft) which could not have helped their survival, evident by the splits at the holes. Having just examined my 531 fork blades they do have similar round holes, but much nearer the axle than the crown and on the inside surface, not fore/aft where I would have thought the maximum stress and strain would be.

That's the rear view. I imagine that the idea was to let any water out, but it probably had the opposite effect!

The exterior rust must have been visible for some time before the forks broke. It shows the importance of checking your bike regularly. Which reminds me ... I noticed that my front brake blocks have almost worn out - I must order some more!

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

Fwiw Jobst Brandt has some interesting comments about rust and those vent holes from the brazing process.

 

[EYE-TYE-MAD]

That's the rear view. I imagine that the idea was to let any water out, but it probably had the opposite effect!

The exterior rust must have been visible for some time before the forks broke. It shows the importance of checking your bike regularly. Which reminds me ... I noticed that my front brake blocks have almost worn out - I must order some more!

To be honest, I think the holes are for gas expansion during brazing, but what is for sure is that they have been a major contributory factor to some heavy corrosion.