Broken swingarms

[redrizza]

Well, at the end of last season, I broke my stock swingarm

Pic 1

[redrizza]

It broke in 3 spots

Pic 2

[redrizza]

So, I bought a Herrmann Racing swingarm. I already had their front end and have been happy with it. But, it only lasted for 3 races and about 2 practice days. That's it.

Pic 1

[redrizza]

I actually split it in 4 spots, but didn't notice until I had it off, after these pics were taken.

Pic 2

[redrizza]

I've sent it back to Brad Herrmann. It sounds like he's going to weld it again, re powdercoat it and get it back to me asap. Sucks tough, I just spent $35 just to get it shipped to him in 1 day, and I probably still won't get it back in time to ride for the weekend. And this will be one of the first weekends I can actually ride since the ground is starting to dry up:mad:

By posting these pics I am in no way putting down Herrmann Racing. I still think that they make a great product and for a great price. Sometimes there are welds that just don't hold. I am an aggressive rider so I do give it some abuse, although I haven't cased or bottomed or done anything that should break this swingarm. I have a rear elka shock now too, which should really help with the reliability of my swingarm in the future.

Just wanted to share my pics.

I'm not here to flame Herrmann, so if you want to flame, go elsewhere.

[toby400ex]

Geez, do you always land on one back wheel?:huh

[redrizza]

Um, sometimes I guess, but not usually.

[JLanphear]

Dude I hope you have another one of those stickers that you had on there before...that was sweet :D

[quader400]

is your shock set to hard putting too much pressure on the swing arm. that sucks man.

[Bill Fuller]

Dang man what are you jumping the Grandcanyon.You are rougher on your bike than me.:blah

[redrizza]

Originally posted by Bill Fuller
Dang man what are you jumping the Grandcanyon.You are rougher on your bike than me.:blah

HAHA, yeah, I am kinda rough on it. My bike is FAR from pretty. But hey, I have the thing to ride, not to look at. Funny thing is... I'll probably actually make it look all pretty just before I sell it so I get better money for it, because it is a good bike, just not cosmetically.

The sticker JL is talking about... yeah, I gotta call my boyz at Burton and see if I can get another one of those. It's a girl licking her tit, over the word DOMINANT. I put it on my swingarm, so when I pass people they can see it :devil

Well, actually, I've had the stock shock on there forever, it wasn't blown, but the compression was maxed out, and the bottom-out bumper was pretty much non-existant. I put the elka on the same day I broke it. But, I didn't bottom out or anything, so I don't think it's that. It was a rough wooped out track (like Southwick) so it was taking a beating for sure. It still shouldn't have broken though.:rolleyes:

[CAMPRO]

you probably dropped it outta your heavy chevy! Get an S-10 and you won't have so long of a drop outta the tail gate!

Joking mo fo!!! Nice break Crusher!

-Andrew

[Dave400ex]

Nothing is unbreakable. Is Herrmann fixing it for free?

[400exRacerX]

HEHE

[d-14 rider 27]

i broke my herrmann on that same joint, other side, but closer to the pivot, and not nearly that bad. he took good care of me tho so i cant ***** about it. now its twisted tho, like a 2x4 under the left tire straigtens everything out. im still a big fan of herrmann because of his service, plus im real hard on my quad too.

[forum]

it doesn't look like hes using a chromoly though. which worries me. reason im saying this is because it seems to have cracked along a seem. usualy it wouldn't crack like that unless it wasn't chromoly. the whole thing with chromoly is that its seemless.

[QuadTrix6]

Originally posted by forum
it doesn't look like hes using a chromoly though. which worries me. reason im saying this is because it seems to have cracked along a seem. usualy it wouldn't crack like that unless it wasn't chromoly. the whole thing with chromoly is that its seemless.


Hmm, good point anyone know what houser uses i might be getting one of thier swingarms :confused: :confused:

[d-14 rider 27]

herrmann's are chromoly, that seam is where he welded two formed pieces together. however, he might not have used filler material, and just fused it.

[forum]

why would he use two forged pieces instead of one solid square one. if there is a welded seem in the square tube then i wouldn't call it chromoly. He states he does use it. and im sure he does. but it shouldn't crack like that.

[JLanphear]

It's probably because Ryan (Redrizza) can't ride ;) .

Here is a shot of him trying to tear his subframe apart....He is studying to be a Mechanical Engineer and his current project is testing the breaking point of different materials. :D

Ryan, see those sparks, those are a bad thing... :devil

http://users.adelphia.net/%7eredrizza/2002/stunting/images/ryan.4.jpg

[redrizza]

Yeah, there is a seam there, where it cracked. It's not really a main stress point either, but if I twisted it you could feel the crack streching. From what I gathered, that area is welded, ground down flat, and then a thin peice of metal is put on top to give it the finished look.
I talked to him a couple days ago, and it sux that I'm not going to have it till next week, but he's stripping it down, fixing the problem area, re powdercoating it, and getting it back to me. So, basically i'll be getting a brand new swingarm back. I also have been happy with Brad's customer service and will continue to purchase there products.

[ZRacer]

I agree with Jason, and I wish more riders understood that no product is industructible. No matter who makes it, it will eventually break even if it is over engineered. The manufacturers that everyone think are the best still break. The important factor to me is how well will the company stand behind its product in reasonable amount of time after it was purchased (6 months, 1 year).

If a swingarm is a over a year old and used for racing or aggressive riding, then if it breaks, I don't feel that it is the manufacturers problem. Everything wears out over time, I replace tires every month. I replace skid plates every couple of months no matter what they are made out of. Wheels bend and plastic cracks, chains stretch, sprockets wear down, brake rotors warp, brake pads wear out, handle bars bend, but no one really complains about them.

Swingarms, A-arms, and frames receive the same abuse as the other products menitioned. Yes, they cost more an I guess we all expect them to last forever, but they don't. Even Shocks have to be rebuilt even though we pay between 1,000.00 and 2,100.00 for them.

Now go out and bust up some stuff!

[d-14 rider 27]

yup, everything is gonna break, back when i cracked my herrmann swingarm i sent it to him, he fixed it, repowdercoated it, and i got it back and its twisted now, i think its from the same wreck that cracked it but theres no way of telling if its bent or not when its not on a finished bike so brad couldnt have noticed it either, im sure theres no way to fix it, but im sure brad will take care of me when i call for a new one, hes a hell of a guy to deal with and i am 100% happy with his service. cant really complain about the wait time to get the stuff back because hes gotta be a busy man. so a month or so really isnt bad if you think about it.

[redrizza]

Good posts guys. I haven't wrecked or done anything really to overstress the swingarm. As far as I could tell, it's not twisted or anything either. It still looks like it's straight.

[Dave400ex]

I agree with ZRacer. Nobody complains about the cheap stuff that bends, breaks, or wears down, but when it comes to the expensive stuff guys do. They have to realize if they ride them hard, or race, things are going to break no matter what you use. The aftermarket just better last a lot longer then stock...

[d-14 rider 27]

its twisted, i built the subframe myself and thats what i thought too, maybe i built it crooked. but then i got to playin with it and when i was liftin it up the left rear tire would come up before the right, so i put a 2x4 under the left rear, and measured from the frame to the ground and its within 1/8" by doin that and them ny subframe is straight, i built a jig for my subframe so i figured thatd be alright. i also looked at how the sprockets were wearing, but you cant judge by that either seein how its a conversion motor, and theres a good chance thats not perfect. also i dunno if brad put it in the jig or not when he fixed it. thats a excellent point, cuz the way its twisted, theres no way it woulda fit in the jig. or maybe he couldnt put it in the jig at all with my chain guide mount i put on myself. even if he has a perfectly flat table, you wouldnt be able to tell by that either cuz my skid mounts are beat to chit and half ripped off. i dunno, i guess we'll never know:confused: but i called him today and hes takin good care of me. ill still stay with my herrmann racing products, now i wish brad would build me a crf frame with ex geometry.

[redrizza]

Originally posted by d-14 rider 27
now i wish brad would build me a crf frame with ex geometry.

:cool: OH YEAH :D