Whilst cleaning bike this week (Planet X SL pro carbon) i noticed a hair line crack on the seat stay wishbone about 2 inches above where the seat stays converge, the crack is about an inch long (can't do photos as the crack just won't show up) if you run your finger nail across the crack you can just feel it, the bike has never been crashed or had any large impact to it, hit the occasional potholes but nothing i'd consider to be out of the ordinary. Thing is if this was on a black bike you'd never see it, mine is white, so could it just be a crack in the laquer? or should i be concerned?
Cracked carbon frame? or paranoia!
- Thread starter Bazz
- Start date
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Gerry Attrick
Lincolnshire Mountain Rescue Consultant
There is no way to tell how deep it is. I can only advise erring on the side of safety and getting it professionally checked at a good lbs or even get Planet X to look it over.
Gerry Attrick
Lincolnshire Mountain Rescue Consultant
Have a read of this: http://carlhart.com/page.cfm?PageID=220
Mr Pig
New Member
- Location
- North Lanarkshire
Read that article, good grief! I'd kill a carbon frame in no time! ;0)
- Location
- the post-brexit wasteland
i've done the bar-ends into top tube thing far too often to consider carbon from the sounds of it…
Mr Pig
New Member
- Location
- North Lanarkshire
alecstilleyedye said:
I agree, I would never buy a carbon frame. Consider that to buy a good quality carbon frame will cost you a lot of money. Then think about all the knocks and bumps a bike usually gets during it's life and that any one of these could scrap your frame. Not only that but the uncertainty of not knowing if some bump or scratch has damaged the thing or not, is it fine or is it going to snap on you, no thanks.
I would say that about half of the times I go out riding off road I fall off. Think nothing of it, laugh about it, get up, carry on. Can you imagine wondering about whether your frame has been terminally damaged every time you fall off?
And being terrified about clamping it to a bike rack or stand, getting an oil or other chemical on it that will attack the lamination, will that scratch cause a fracture underneath? Bang it putting it into the car, it getting dunted by one of your mates dropping his bike against it, you have got to be kidding.
I see carbon fiber as a high-performance competition material. I think you can get to a point with any product where it stops serving you and you start serving it. I want my bike to serve me and I'm not interested in worshiping it.
02GF74
Über Member
can you see if t he crack is in the weave?
can you rtry flexing the framwe by hand to see what effect on the crack it has? unless you are steve austin I doubt very mcuh you can damage the frame ... altnough wvewn if you did, it would b e a miuxed blessing as it is beter to have it fail then thant when you are on it bombing along at 30 mph.
Iwith metal parts, fracture can be heard by tapping with hammer and listening to the part ringing - a ddll sound indicated fracture not sure if you can do that with CF.
can you rtry flexing the framwe by hand to see what effect on the crack it has? unless you are steve austin I doubt very mcuh you can damage the frame ... altnough wvewn if you did, it would b e a miuxed blessing as it is beter to have it fail then thant when you are on it bombing along at 30 mph.
Iwith metal parts, fracture can be heard by tapping with hammer and listening to the part ringing - a ddll sound indicated fracture not sure if you can do that with CF.
Joe24
More serious cyclist than Bonj
- Location
- Nottingham
02GF74 said:
Hang on a min here.
Its already been put, that a slight knock can damage carbon fibre. Just the leaning against of a post, then then it falling on the top tube can damage it.
So you suggest knocking it with a hammer
No, that wont be an indicator, and seems to be a stupid thing to do.
Gerry Attrick
Lincolnshire Mountain Rescue Consultant
Like I said earlier, we amateurs have no certain way of assessing a scratch/crack (unless we happen to have x-ray diagnostic equipment to hand). Get it to a professional, through your lbs if necessary. The only person who's neck is at stake here is yours.
Have been in contact with planet x who have suggested that i send the frame back to them for inspection, so i'll be doing that, i'm not usualy to paranoid about carbon fibre but in this case i just can't think of any impact or trauma that could have caused a crack in the laquer or inded in the CF itself so if it is one of those one offs then i'd be bettr off getting it sorted.
