Broken Skid plate welds......

[RX3James]

I've just hit 2600 miles on my bike so I thought it do an oil change and switch to the 20w50 that was rumored to be the bees knees. Long story short.. I discovered my skid plate mounting bracket welds have rusted completely through and have broken off. The welds had pretty much corroded into red dust inside the paint. It looks as if the paint was the only thing holding it together until that finally gave up. It's starting to make me worry about the welds on the rest of the frame and what other severe corrosion is developing in other areas that I can't see. I've taken the skid plate off for now until I figure out if I'm going to spend the money for the upgraded skid plate or if I'm going to try and re attach the mounting bracket some how. The 20w50 is pretty smooth in the engine and has made neutral much easier to find. I'm in Southern California so the weather is typically warm so I dont know how it would perform in colder areas. I've been trying really hard to love this bike like I used to but the skid plate thing (among many other things) is making me lose confidence in the quality of manufacturing. I've had a fair amount of problems with my bike but I've over looked them all because CSC has always had such amazing customer service and has always been willing to help me out which I believe is awesome. Im still flip flopping over just cutting my losses and selling the bike.. I think I'd happily take $3500 for the bike and I just may throw it up on Craigslist tonight and see if there's any interest here locally.

[Rodtheviking]

I was looking at the welds too and, I agree, they are so-so. I would thing some frame prep spray would be useful.

https://www.amazon.com/Weigles-Bicyc.../dp/B0012GO58Y

I use to use this stuff on all my bike frames, steel is real.

[Lee R]

It's probably wise to keep an eye on all the welds for now. This skid plates broken on a few other bikes at that mounting point as well. It's probably not a bad idea to reinforce it with some radiator hose clamps or carry large zip ties for when it breaks.

[BlackBike]

Originally Posted by Rodtheviking

I was looking at the welds too and, I agree, they are so-so. I would thing some frame prep spray would be useful.

https://www.amazon.com/Weigles-Bicyc.../dp/B0012GO58Y

I use to use this stuff on all my frames, steel is real.

So, you are saying that rust is such a common problem on ALL BIKES , their are products made to combat this common rust issue that occurs on ALL BIKES. interesting...

[pyoungbl]

I do not think the welds are a problem, they are still intact. The problem is most likely due to impact causing a crack, which becomes rust and finally failure. The aluminum skid plate is much more secure. Most OEM skid plates are just barely adequate for real off road use so this is not unique to Zong. I'm very happy with the optional aluminum plate offered by CSC.

[2LZ]

RX3 James, what other issues have you had with the bike?
Also, the quick fix for that is a couple of hose clamps and you're back on the road. These are the only welds I've heard that have ever given a problem. It is strange that you are in So Cal and these rusted. Are you close to the ocean? Rust usually isn't an issue out west.

[SeerAtlas]

Originally Posted by BlackBike

So, you are saying that rust is such a common problem on ALL BIKES , their are products made to combat this common rust issue that occurs on ALL BIKES. interesting...

VERY interesting,,I'm with Black on this one!
I almost NEVER sell a bike I've bought unless it turns out to be NOTHING like what i was expecting after a very in depth research, examination, test ride etc. -which i do before a purchase. consequently I have several garages of bikes,including several bikes purchased over 30 years ago, from a number of different manufacturers. I have NEVER had a welded piece rust off, that's NEVER! I've had some cheap ass oem screws and bolts go bad, but stainless replacements were easy to come by.

On this board, almost ten years ago, is the long THREAD of my first china bike, "WALDO" along with a bunch of high def photos of running him thru rivers, mountain mudholes etc.He's the cheapest "pos" bike I ever bought.
Waldo is still alive, runs great, NO rusted frame parts. I think i paid something around 7 or 800$ for him, and abit more for shipping. He is NOT a Zong....and the welds look like something a five year old did, but they haven't rusted.....and he's spent his life in the dirt, the mud, and crossing water..
In short, rust on "ALL BIKES" my azz.....

[2LZ]

I'm not at home at the moment so I can't look, but are the two rear bolts rubber mounted? I can't remember. I wonder if this could be a ground/electrolysis type of problem and it's taking it out on the front mount welds?

Just a thought. It's either that or just vibration from the high rpms of a thumper buzzing cracks in the mount, then water collects and it rusts.

[woodlandsprite]

As noted, this issue has been observed on several bikes.
Here's the thread where I posted mine...

I also "fixed" it easily enough until I decide to have it re-welded

[pyoungbl]

Originally Posted by SeerAtlas

I have NEVER had a welded piece rust off, that's NEVER! I've had some cheap ass oem screws and bolts go bad, but stainless replacements were easy to come by.

In short, rust on "ALL BIKES" my azz.....

OK, your azz. I do welding. From the photos the weld is still 100% intact. There was decent penetration. The part did not "rust off". Just look at the edges of the weld where the metal is broken off. That's a sharp edge. The sharp edge is due to a crack and the rust you see is just normal surface rust that you get from bare metal exposed to the atmosphere. The rust is also fairly recent, otherwise it would be crusted over and expanded. No, this is a crack that was either caused by impact or vibration. I'm now of the opinion that vibration is the culprit since others have had exactly the same problem.

[FastDoc]

'I'm now of the opinion that vibration is the culprit since others have had exactly the same problem. '

I agree. The part failed from a crack. The crack was probably caused by vibration. The exposed unprotected steel then rusted.

I think this is the sequence of events, and that rust is a consequence and not the cause.

With that said, it's not a mark of quality per se, but not a reason to suspect the other welds on the frame.

[2LZ]

Originally Posted by pyoungbl

OK, your azz. I do welding. From the photos the weld is still 100% intact. There was decent penetration. The part did not "rust off". Just look at the edges of the weld where the metal is broken off. That's a sharp edge. The sharp edge is due to a crack and the rust you see is just normal surface rust that you get from bare metal exposed to the atmosphere. The rust is also fairly recent, otherwise it would be crusted over and expanded. No, this is a crack that was either caused by impact or vibration. I'm now of the opinion that vibration is the culprit since others have had exactly the same problem.

Awesome answer!...and I am not a welder, nor do I play one on TV.
Do you think this problem could be fixed if they would have welded all the edges of the "feet" that attach it to the frame or would that just move the vulnerable "possible crack area" further up the chain?

[FastDoc]

I think it's just a lower quality steel that resisted vibration poorly.

[RX3James]

Battery died at around 200 miles( I bought a new one with a two year warranty ), front rotor was warped causing pulsating front brakes (replaced under warranty ), had a chain issue causing it to scream really loud even with proper tension and lube (bought upgraded chain ), right side mirror broke off (replaced under warranty ), The engine likes to die at random times, like it just completely shuts off and wont restart until I come to a full stop and shift into neutral and restart (has happened in heavy San Diego traffic twice now which was pretty nerve racking ) the engine temp runs between 4 and 5 bars constantly (but the fans do come on and I haven't over heated so I'm not too worried about that... but it does add a lot of heat in my ATGATT in Southern CA stop and go city driving)

[RX3James]

Originally Posted by pyoungbl

I do not think the welds are a problem, they are still intact. The problem is most likely due to impact causing a crack, which becomes rust and finally failure. The aluminum skid plate is much more secure. Most OEM skid plates are just barely adequate for real off road use so this is not unique to Zong. I'm very happy with the optional aluminum plate offered by CSC.

As far as I know the skid plate has never been impacted by anything. This bike has never even been off road. The bike is pretty buzzy so I do believe that vibration played a large part in the welds failing. I don't think the metal was primered before painting, and after some moisture exposure corrosion was able to develop and eat its way into the welds allowing the vibration to break it down over time. I'm going to take a few more pictures to show a little more detail. I do have some pretty thick zip ties in my tool kit that I always carry with me but I think the metal hose clamps will be what I use to "repair" it.