Safety help! cut into bike frame what should i do?

[Harrison Wade Inman]

in order for chain clearance i thought it would be a good idea to cut into the frame a little,but i cut to far and the frames integrity is at stake, i dont want to be goin 25 and my back tire fall off so i thought i would look here for suggestions. here are some pictures. sorry they aren't better but basically its a pretty severe cut into the down tube of the rear fork, the frame is steel hollow tubing if that matters.

 

[V 35]

The picture is meaningless, but you said the frame is steel, that is a wonderful clue.

Sand away the paint an inch or two away from the damage, and have it brazed,
better yet, use a sizzors jack to splay rear chainstays while the brazing is in progress.

I don't know your community, but muffler shops often have skilled torch men who
could braze the prepped frame. Sheetmetal workers, Gas Stations, if they have a torch,
and brazing rod, your all set. Prep the job yourself, prepwork costs plenty, compared
to waving a torch around. If you were local, I'd do it.

After brazing, file, or sand weld for a smooth look, best to leave * some * metal
for strength, prime and paint, should wind up a highlight, not a F U B A R

 

[darwin]

Everyone has a different opinion on this and i'm sure theres more than 1 safe way to fix this. If it were me i'd junk that frame and start over with a good used bike/frame. Theres too much at stake as far as saftey is concerned. Going 35mph and that stay snapping will do alot more harm then just the rear wheel. Your going down hard and maybe for a roll over the handle bars. How much would it cost to repair that stay correctly? Looks as if the chain wore on the frame. If the stay is fixed properly the material will be even thicker hence more clearance issues.............anyways good luck and be safe.

 

[graucho]

Bummer. The chain may also be compromised from wear. (even if it rubbed for a few revolutions) If you can't weld or fabricate... well, it's not a good story. If you can't afford to have someone who knows what their doing to fix it then you should switch to plan "B" as dawin stated above. A good used bike/frame. We don't want to read a tragic story here on the forum down the road.

 

[Samdallas214]

I had the same problem with the chain not clearing What I did instead of cutting into my frame witch you should never do.
I loosened the Axle moved it over about 1 inch and add spacers to make the chain clear, I did have to use a jack to widen the frame but it fixed it and now the chain clears.