My beloved Tarmac has a broken fork at the crown due to an unfortunate incident involving a roof rack and the garage. This is bad enough but due to the corona-pocalypse there are no replacements available from Specialized, at least there weren’t when my shop called them. There may be some available in the future as I am sure they need stock for warranty but given production constraints now who knows when that will be. Does anyone have a secret line on any of them?
Another question is has anyone successfully used an aftermarket fork with an SL5 frame? I understand about matching dropout to crown height and rake but the real issue seems to be the shoulder where the (normal) crown race should be. The lower bearing rests on this shoulder and puts the bottom of the bearing about 1/4" above the flat top of the crown (see attached pic) means the whole thing is recessed into the lower race of the frame headtube an extra 1/4" or so. I think I am safe assuming any aftermarket fork would need a shoulder ring to raise the lower bearing the same amount and probably be similar in shape (rounded) to allow for spherical alignment. Maybe have something machined up out of aluminum?
My beloved Tarmac has a broken fork at the crown due to an unfortunate incident involving a roof rack and the garage. This is bad enough but due to the corona-pocalypse there are no replacements available from Specialized, at least there weren’t when my shop called them. There may be some available in the future as I am sure they need stock for warranty but given production constraints now who knows when that will be. Does anyone have a secret line on any of them?
Another question is has anyone successfully used an aftermarket fork with an SL5 frame? I understand about matching dropout to crown height and rake but the real issue seems to be the shoulder where the (normal) crown race should be. The lower bearing rests on this shoulder and puts the bottom of the bearing about 1/4" above the flat top of the crown (see attached pic) means the whole thing is recessed into the lower race of the frame headtube an extra 1/4" or so. I think I am safe assuming any aftermarket fork would need a shoulder ring to raise the lower bearing the same amount and probably be similar in shape (rounded) to allow for spherical alignment. Maybe have something machined up out of aluminum?
Any help or suggestions are appreciated.
Rich
File a claim with homeowners insurance and get the new SL7!
Just took a quick look on eBay. There are plenty of tarmac forks there for a couple/few hundred bucks. Also, the Allez used to have the same fork. It should be compatible even if it’s not an S-works.
I have a search setup on ebay and there are several on there at any given time, almost always with short (<200 mm) steer tubes. There was one with a long steer tube a few weeks ago but it got snatched up while I was reading the posting!
I already consider the bars ruined even though I didn’t mention them…they are probably 7 years old as is the stem so they will both be replaced, so I agree with you here.
The frame is another issue, I have given it the twice over with bright flashlight and in the sun and tapped it at every joint with a quarter. I know that neither of these is definitive but given that the fork failed at the crown AND the dropouts where the lawyer tabs gave way and let the bike pop out of the rack I think that the frame did not take the brunt of the force. I am not entirely sure the fork crown cracked before the bike popped out of the rack or when it hit the driveway.
