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Broken wing stays
scutter - 25/2/06 at 06:54 PM

Well I've offically joined the club, broke the wing stay today (indicated in red) and like others I'm looking for a way to improve the design?

I think to first error was using 3.2mm flat strip for the piece over the wheel and secondly having to run them 55mm off the upright to clear the focus wheels offset.

Do you think I could get away with replacing the strip with a 6mm piece or will this move problems elsewhere?

Also will a piece of the same size flat strip assist the stability(drawn in blue)

Many thanks Dan.
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raccoonradar - 25/2/06 at 07:20 PM

after breaking 3 in 2days i removed mine & bent a same bit of metal and welded under the original length, now they don't even move, before they would wobble every Bump or bit of gravel


JoelP - 25/2/06 at 07:55 PM

id skip the blue idea myself. It breaks at the red line usually (mine did) due to the change in section (stress point) and the edge of the heat affected zone around the weld. Only idea that occur to me (not tried them as i never bothered fixing mine!) is weld a small arc shaped piece of metal over the join, at 90 degrees to the flat piece. This reinforces the weak point, and spreads out the stress point.

Ideally the flat piece would be blended with the round tube smoother, maybe notched together or somesuch.


Avoneer - 25/2/06 at 08:10 PM

Mine never broke.

I just used 2 lengths of flat right from the mounting plate.

Nothing to snap.

Pat...


Avoneer - 25/2/06 at 08:12 PM

Pic...


rusty nuts - 25/2/06 at 09:04 PM

Mine broke in about 500 miles, welded break and reinforced with another length of 3mm steel. So far they have been OK .


Alan_Thomas - 25/2/06 at 11:16 PM

An addition like that in blue would not help. They fail (mine did!) through fatigue of the guards jumping up and down.
I doubled up the 3mm flat strip from the end of the rod round the curve and half way across the guard.
Welded down each edge, dressed it with a gringer/file and it looks like 6mm strip with fully rounded edges.

Not broken since and the guard does not bounce either.
Remember it not the weld that breaks (well it shouldn't if the weld was good, its the stress concentration at the point where the bendy strip meets the rigid rod.

- Alan