Increasing flex in a steel frame?

[2manyoranges]

I did get very unnerved by the flex in my AMP B3 though.

Forks which bent back a good couple of cm under heavy downhill braking … argh

A back end which visibly went from side to side as we went down hill … like it was trying to find different lines to the ones I had chosen …

 

[vcballbat]

Those Japanese Mini Velo's must be well Flexi..

 

[vcballbat]

Wow .. there's even a Mini René Herse..

Hirose Mini-Velo

The Autumn 2016 Bicycle Quarterly includes a photo feature about riding in the Hirose Owners' Meeting. I really enjoy these events, because they combine amazing bikes with wonderful rides. Many Japanese custom bikes are incredibly elaborate and beautifully crafted, yet they are intended to be...

www.renehersecycles.com

 

[Imlach]

Now I want a mini velo. Tuning out from this thread before I get castrated.

 

[jim haseltine]

If you suddenly notice the flex in a frame increase there's a good chance that a joint has partially failed. Where frames with a lot of chrome plate are concerned it can be difficult or well-nigh impossible to spot such faults as the plating doesn't really bond to steel so can bridge small cracks - it's the reason why chrome plated suspension components are banned in motorsport. All the shiney stuff you see on race suspension is nickel plate.

 

[2manyoranges]

That’s very interesting re chrome plating. I assumed the op would have checked paint and frame for cracks and cracking…maybe not

 

[pigman]

I blame the UCI ...well over a hundred years have passed and we're still stuck with the diamond frame design..

Lotus, Kirk precision, kestrel
All those were invented and raced professionally but I guess didn't prove as effective/durable as the diamond design

 

[Imlach]

Woz…
Floppy bike and floppy parts

View attachment 674676

At least they fixed the toe overlap

 

[mdvineng]

Any body here ridden a Bickerton

Yes, horrible creaky things. Once ridden twice shy

 

[grantoury]

I read about pro cyclists in the 80s who felt they needed a new frame every two years because it was getting flexy. If you ask me, this is purely psychological.

It is possible that as you get used to a frame you start to notice flex more. But if I were to start to feel flex suddenly after riding a bike regularly for a long while, I would first check every inch of it for failures.