I've got an Interloc 15" that I use for bike trails, commuting, light off road stuff. The frame is very flexy, but with a nice ride. It has the Tange Presige tubing. Going down a rather steep hill at 35 or so, 46-11 gear, the bike started to wobble badly. My friend thought I had bought the farm. I'm used to this from my days dirt biking with spindly forks and flexy frames. I don't like it now either. The front wheel is balanced. It seems as though my cadance matched the harmonic resonance of the frame, or some multible there of. I like the short top tube and the ride of this frame. But I have had enough of the wobble. Are all light weight steel frames that flexable? I would gladly trade ride for handling. I'm even thinking of aluminum...almost. Any thoughts on this? Any suggestions on a good hardtail frame for my usage? I need a short top tube if possible. I'm 5-7 and 175 lbs, even torso to leg proportion. Thanx for any help you can provide.
Death wobble, or tank slappers
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Where didja wobble?
riding on the dirt or road?
Too short of a top tube might be the culprit.
I'm 5'8" and a 17 inch frame fits me perfectly. A 15 inch frame sounds too small for someone who's 5'7".
You can try fitting a steering damper like Hopey's to make it more stable if that's what you're looking for...
riding on the dirt or road?
Too short of a top tube might be the culprit.
I'm 5'8" and a 17 inch frame fits me perfectly. A 15 inch frame sounds too small for someone who's 5'7".
You can try fitting a steering damper like Hopey's to make it more stable if that's what you're looking for...
It happened on the road. The frame twists, the head tube gets out of plane from the seat tube. I don't think a damper will help here. The wheelbase is only 39 ". The frame is very flexable. I like the ride, but as my legs get stronger, I can really twist the frame while hammering. My friend says he can see the twist as I pedel hard. I guess a larger frame is in order. I would give up ride for stiffness. Maybe aluminum?
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it needs more gewgaws, hoodjits and doodads.
I'd load it down with another 5 lbs of whatchamacallits and heckamackaws.
obviously that bike lacks sufficient "accessories" to be useful at all.1niceride said:
I'd load it down with another 5 lbs of whatchamacallits and heckamackaws.
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There can be many causes of speed shimmies. It has been discussed in depth on Velonews,com. Here is one: http://www.velonews.com/tech/report/articles/2993.0.html1niceride said:
You can search their site for others.
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2,240 Posts
I'm not alone!
I had that happen to me on a road bike, downhill at speed, in traffic.
It was like a 7.0 earthquake in the bars. How I managed to hold on 'til the bottom of the hill, I have no clue. I stopped, walked to the sidewalk and did a chamois-check, then sat there and tried to figure out WTF I had just gone through. One of my Top 5 Most Gnarliest Moments on a Bike for sure.
thanks for the link
HW
I had that happen to me on a road bike, downhill at speed, in traffic.
It was like a 7.0 earthquake in the bars. How I managed to hold on 'til the bottom of the hill, I have no clue. I stopped, walked to the sidewalk and did a chamois-check, then sat there and tried to figure out WTF I had just gone through. One of my Top 5 Most Gnarliest Moments on a Bike for sure.
thanks for the link
HW
shiggy©®™ said:
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