Zero Flex Tower Cracks

I’ve read on here before of others having their Zero Flex Towers welded. I have a ’00 and I noticed identical cracks forming on each side of the tower. I’ve indicated the locations of the cracks on the attached picture.



Has anyone encountered similar cracks? And, if so, how much was it to have them welded and do you need to remove the wires running through the tower before the repair?

Any other insight would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Matt Paquette

Are the cracks at the joint or in the tubing? If in the tubing, are the cracks entirely thru the tubing, or just surface cracks. Also how long are they ?

You will definitely need to remove your wiring, before the weld repair.

They are in the tubing. They seem to be protuding out from the welds. I'd say about an inch on each side. How can I determine if they are surface or all the way through?

Without X-Raying the tubes, a simple way to visually check them is to can get a needle and insert into the voids to see if the cracks are completly thru your tubing. Either way you can probably have somebody weld repair it for around $100 or so.

Make sure you drill a hole at the end of each crack before you weld it to hopefully stop future cracking, as welding alone will not stop the stress fractures.

Will do. I greatly appreciate your input.

Ahh yes, those wonderful cracks. My first ones happened in the same place but on the lower gussets. Its been a couple years and I now have cracks in the same place you have indicated.

I had the first set welded for about $30 by someone who had a good rep but it didn't hold. It was later redone by someone who took a little more time and had a better understanding of the forces involved in that tube. The "redone" welds have held up great the last couple of years.

You will have to remove your wiring or risk having it destroyed. In order for the welds to hold up, your welder will need to get some really good penetration into that tube.

I can almost gurantee you that the cracks are all the way through without even looking. I have personally seen 3 of these towers with cracks in the exact same places and have read reports on here of 3 or 4 more.

Also, those tubes are anodized, so your guy will need to remove the coating by sanding/grinding/etc or it will contaminate the weld.

Not a horrible fix considering I love the rest of the boat. Just a small PITA.

Good Luck

I really appreciate all of the input. It has been quite helpful. Thanks.

Can anyone recommend a good welder in the bay area, say Hayward or San Mateo?

Matt,
I deal with metal fatigue almost every day. More than likely if the tube is cracked all the way through it needs to be removed completely. A crack no matter what size will propigate into the weld and into the other tubing. Looks like MC used the wrong size tubing as a stiffener. Needs to be a little larger tubing (ie thicker walled). Is your tower stainless or polished Aluminium. Looks like it could be a T6061 AL. Granger sells AL tubing and you can oder it cut to length and with a small drimmel shape the edges to get the best fitup. Not to bad to weld but make sure you get a welder that knows how to use TIG welding. Gives you a quality, deep penetration weld.
Good luck not too bad of a fix, just get a quality TIG welder who knows what he is doing. TK

Just for the record the tower is brushed and anodized 6061 aluminum tubing not stainless.

If I remember correctly, you need a TIG to do stainless, but Al can be welded safely with MIG.

I would hardly think that the tubing would need replacing, just have your guy weld really deep and add a lot of metal. As long as he really penetrates the whole crack, the stress will be eliminated.

The largest crack I had repaired was encircling about 1/2 way around the tube and was slightly thicker than a human hair.

You might ask a few 4WD and Off Road shops for who makes roll cages, or perhaps there is a tower manufacturer in your area that could help you out.

You what to use TIG 100% Argon gas to weld Aluminium. Have the welder use 40 series filler material and it should be easy to weld. MIG welding the crack will not get the deep pen you need for repair. If you chhose to salvage the factory tubing use TIG. Take Wake Products advice and drill out both sides of the crack if you can see it. Do not be suprised if you have cracking in other places. Stress will find it if a crack is still present. TK

Have the welder throw in some gussets to reinforce the area.

not entirely related, but if you want this to stop happening, get the racks off of the top side tubes of the tower and put them on the lower tubes, putting weight that high just contributes to overstresses on the tower and will cause more cracks