fried frames

[Mike Lenz]

As most of you probebly saw I had a fire. My question is are my frames still raceable? All the paint was burned off, but the tabs,ect are not warped,just looks like it was sand blasted. Will they bend? Are they heat treated?

 

[Gavin Housh]

Mike, if memory serves I seem to remember some college metallurgy. Metal tubing is drawn into the form it has. Quality tubing is drawn cold which work hardens the tube. Then when the tubes are bent they work harden more in the bent area. An aircraft quality 4130 chromemoly tubing can also be heat treated to achieve ultimate strenth and hardness. Heating the steel to an unspecified temperature and then cooling in the same uncontrolled manner would probably lose some strength. How much is what we don't know. We also don't know the original alloy and heat treatment of the steel. Sorry I'm not giving you any real answers to your question. I do know that steel is made of many different alloying elements. once you make a specific alloy, it allways has the same chemical make up. only the way the micro stucture fits togeather changes with heating, cooling, and cold working. If I was you I would seek out the locale heat treating plant. Ask for the foreman and explain your situation to him. He may be able to put your stuff in with another batch and save you a little money. Gavin P.S. Look in the phone book yellow pages under heat treating metal.

 

[OUCWBOY]

I'll try to help a little with your question about your frames, however, I need a few answers to a few questions.  Were the engines in the frame and were they melted?  Any quess as to how hot the fire was?  I have a friend who is a nuclear welder and proposed the question to him and he requested the questions I just asked.  Basically, if the alumium on the engines were not melted, the chrome-ally frames are still good to go.

Donny Smith

[Mike Lenz]

Thanks for the info. The frames were bare,hanging from the cealing. Probebly got pretty hot before they fell to the floor as the beam burned. The floor didnt get to hot. Had a plastic tool box survive on the floor, well at least the stuff inside it survived,it didnt completly melt. Thats about all I know.