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Well folks, that's all she wrote for this FZ

ChevyFazer said:
Just got the call I've been dreading, Yamaha said F you, and your bike too!
Click to expand...

40-for-my-homie.jpg
 
Sorry for your loss. I cannot believe that Yamaha would walk away from something like this. That's just wrong!

Are you parting out or looking for another Fizzer to move the goodies to?
 
Ahhh hell...

I should have just rolled it off the trailer and parked it, but NOOOOoooo I had to take it for a quick spin, and now I'm back on the fence. The bike is just too much fun, and runs too damn good for me to just up and walk away with out at least trying...

Now I'm kind of considering welding it, I'm thinking about magnafluxing the frame to find how far the crack goes, drill a 1/4 hole at the end of the crack in hopes of preventing the crack from going any further. Any welders know that you can chase a crack for hours especially on aluminum. But not just welding the crack I'm also thinking about cutting out a piece of 3/8" 5052, 6061, 6063, or 7075 aero aluminum alloy plate to match the backside of the frame and go as far as I can above and below the crack to add some strength. Any aerospace guys, or machinist should know that those are some very high quality, heat treatable aluminum alloys and when welded to the backside of the frame should be pretty dang strong. I'm still not 100% sure if I'm going to go through with it or not, but I'm going to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion from another metallurgist at work who has 30+ yrs and go by a fab shop to get a opinion from another guy with 30+yrs experience. If they think it will be alright I might do it, I've flip flopped so many times about what to do with it I just don't know though...
 
ChevyFazer said:
Ahhh hell...

I should have just rolled it off the trailer and parked it, but NOOOOoooo I had to take it for a quick spin, and now I'm back on the fence. The bike is just too much fun, and runs too damn good for me to just up and walk away with out at least trying...

Now I'm kind of considering welding it, I'm thinking about magnafluxing the frame to find how far the crack goes, drill a 1/4 hole at the end of the crack in hopes of preventing the crack from going any further. Any welders know that you can chase a crack for hours especially on aluminum. But not just welding the crack I'm also thinking about cutting out a piece of 3/8" 5052, 6061, 6063, or 7075 aero aluminum alloy plate to match the backside of the frame and go as far as I can above and below the crack to add some strength. Any aerospace guys, or machinist should know that those are some very high quality, heat treatable aluminum alloys and when welded to the backside of the frame should be pretty dang strong. I'm still not 100% sure if I'm going to go through with it or not, but I'm going to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion from another metallurgist at work who has 30+ yrs and go by a fab shop to get a opinion from another guy with 30+yrs experience. If they think it will be alright I might do it, I've flip flopped so many times about what to do with it I just don't know though...
Click to expand...

I never had to fix a frame but my educated guess would be to drill the frame 1/8"-3/16" at the end of the crack and weld a patch with 3/16" plate on each side. You can also drill hole through the plates and fill the hole with welding.

What I'm afraid with welding the frame itself is... you know how bad aluminum pull when you weld it, I'll be afraid that it slightly bend the frame or put more stress on the frame and will eventually crack somewhere else. I would believe welding a patch over it on each side will distribute the stress on a larger area... should be better.

But again I never got into this issue. And I'm sure if you ask 20 people, you will end up with 20 solutions.

Good luck Mate!
 
That was one of my main concerns about welding to begin with. I think if its tacked up before I remove it from the bike it might hold its shape pretty good. I'm not too concerned about the after welding cracks, because I can bring it into work and throw it in a 300* temper an stress relieve it without loosing and strength or hardness.
 
TOOMA - making any one part stronger than the rest may not be the best idea. From reading various bike articles the frames despite looking solid/rigid, they flex a good deal.

If it were mine and given the option you have at work - weld it and into the furnace it goes for some stress relieving. So now you have the added burden of correcting the paint. This is just another WAG but I'd suspect it'll need to hit at least 1200F to be of any value and then cool vary slowly to prevent it from just breaking right next to the weld. But if anyone is in a place to do this, its seems you are!

Did you find/check for any loose bolts, or loosen the mounts to see if anything moved? Again, its not in a place to crack from doing wheelies - I just don't believe that is the cause.
 
I just got it back from the shop yesterday so no I haven't checked yet for any loose bolts. But the tech I was dealing with said that, that is one of the most stressed parts of the frame and they often see the tabs break off for the passenger brace/pegs. Personally I don't really see it being under that much stress if everything was tq right, but I'm no expert of physics or any of that stuff lol so I still don't know what to think as far as what caused it.
 
ChevyFazer said:
Personally I don't really see it being under that much stress if everything was tq right, but I'm no expert of physics or any of that stuff lol so I still don't know what to think as far as what caused it.
Click to expand...

yeah, uh huh, not much stress, streetfighter right?

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K62ClPFahRA]GSXR1000 goes off jump and lands doing a wheelie - YouTube[/ame]
 
So after going back and forth, supposedly having my mind made up numerous times about what I'm doing with the bike, I've finally 100% sure that I'm going to weld it up, if for nothing else to get a few bucks more out of the bike when I do sell it. I decided after talking with my buddy who owns a fab shop, and one guy in particular who has welded another bike frame on a R6. He showed me pics of before, after, an then the bike. I've also decided that I'm going to let him weld it, I know I can do it, but I also know that he is a much better welder than me when it comes to thick aluminum.

So I took quite a few measurements yesterday from center to center on bolt holes, as well as started stripping down the bike. I didn't get to carried away because I wanted to check 1st if there is anything I need to watch out for, specifically around the head bearings. I'm also going to make up a jig to bolt up to 3-4 different points on the frame to help keep its shape, that's what the measurements were for. I know I've changed my mind a dozen times now, but this time I'm serious lol....I think...,lol

So is there anything I need to know before going gun-ho on it?

Also, as for the paint, looks like a perfect opportunity to go murdered out, or go with the black and gold scheme I had talked about at one point an time.
 
ChevyFazer said:
So after going back and forth, supposedly having my mind made up numerous times about what I'm doing with the bike, I've finally 100% sure that I'm going to weld it up, if for nothing else to get a few bucks more out of the bike when I do sell it. I decided after talking with my buddy who owns a fab shop, and one guy in particular who has welded another bike frame on a R6. He showed me pics of before, after, an then the bike. I've also decided that I'm going to let him weld it, I know I can do it, but I also know that he is a much better welder than me when it comes to thick aluminum.

So I took quite a few measurements yesterday from center to center on bolt holes, as well as started stripping down the bike. I didn't get to carried away because I wanted to check 1st if there is anything I need to watch out for, specifically around the head bearings. I'm also going to make up a jig to bolt up to 3-4 different points on the frame to help keep its shape, that's what the measurements were for. I know I've changed my mind a dozen times now, but this time I'm serious lol....I think...,lol

So is there anything I need to know before going gun-ho on it?

Also, as for the paint, looks like a perfect opportunity to go murdered out, or go with the black and gold scheme I had talked about at one point an time.
Click to expand...

IMHO, I'd keep both frame halves bolted together(I'd keep the rear sub frame on also).

Maybe make a round, HOLLOW, spacer the exact width of the swing arm and engine near the crack, thread the stock bolts thru and torqe to spec's before welding(so the frame is where it should be when fully assembled), (similar idea as bolting on a head plate when boring a V8 engine block).

As for the color, I believe "Colorite" will have the exact Yamaha color in rattle cans. You can likely get by with wet sanding the area after the repair and feather in the color if you keep it the same color. I did that with my FZ frame...

Good luck, pic's please!
 
Ssky0078 said:
yeah, uh huh, not much stress, streetfighter right?

GSXR1000 goes off jump and lands doing a wheelie - YouTube
Click to expand...

That reminds me of the ride around the back side of Mt St. Helen's! Numerous places the earth just launches you! :thumbup:

Travis,
I'd suspect your welder person would be attempting equal amounts of fill from both sides. Easier said than done tho as its likely fractured at a rib cast into the frame. So its not actually in two pieces is it? As for what caused it; if under tension (bolt tight) and subject to lots of vibes, a small imperfection in the casting is all that may be required to allow a fracture to begin and propagate.
 
It's certainly worth a shot to weld and stress relieve. I imagine that the frame will twist measurably, making it difficult to reinstall the motor. But, you never know....

Remove your VIN sticker before heat treatment, it might be impossible to ever sell the bike if it becomes damaged.
 
Cali rider said:
It's certainly worth a shot to weld and stress relieve. I imagine that the frame will twist measurably, making it difficult to reinstall the motor. But, you never know....

Remove your VIN sticker before heat treatment, it might be impossible to ever sell the bike if it becomes damaged.
Click to expand...

Its etched into the frame at the head! The sticker can go it just has some emission crapolla on it/valve specs IIRC.
 
removing the frame was suprisingly easy! less than 45min minus the tank

" One half missing 3 thirds faild'!"
 
Cali rider said:
It took me three different views of this post to realize that the carcass of the bike is just sitting there without a frame holding it together...I am not very observant at times!
Click to expand...

1/2 a carcass I suspect! Then again, there may be other forces involved keeping her upright!

Like guttin dear eh Trav! lol Good Luck!
 
Well, I never would have thought to do it your way (which is really, really smart!). I'd likely, semi follow the manual, pull the engine, swing arm, etc

Excellent work!!

IMHO, after the initial fix, I'd beef up both halfs, just inside that particular box with some 1/16th aluminum..
 
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