Owning a Carbon MTB, what to know

[mark ellis]

I am taking delivery of my first "plastic" mtb on Friday/Saturday.

 

What are the do's and dont's of owning a carbon bike?

 

Any special cleaning instructions?

 

Transport? read a while back about people saying dont use the normal hanger racks to transport carbon bikes?

 

Will be insuring for full amount

[Mudsimus]

 

 

What are the do's and dont's of owning a carbon mtb bike?

 

 

 

Dont

[AndreZA]

Get some clear vinyl and cover the bottom of the down tube. The constant spray of sand and stones will destroy the smooth surface very quickly.

 

Apparently you should not wrap the chainstay with an old tube. It does something to the paint.

[Purnjap]

I have been using hanging rack with carbon frame, no problem (there is a thread here that explains why).

One thing to watch out for: the cable holder/ bracket is vulnerable, especially when you place your bike on and take it off the Thule. A chain protector would also be advisable. ENjoy!

[mark ellis]

Get some clear vinyl and cover the bottom of the down tube. The constant spray of sand and stones will destroy the smooth surface very quickly.

 

Apparently you should not wrap the chainstay with an old tube. It does something to the paint.

 

oh yes. good thinking, like that clear 3M stuff?

[Mellow]

if you dont ride it often the carbon becomes brittle and can snap like a toothpick without warning... really

[dts29]

if you dont ride it often the carbon becomes brittle and can snap like a toothpick without warning... really

 

If im not misreading the sarcasm here I would love to know the scientific reason this happens.

[Mellow]

If im not misreading the sarcasm here I would love to know the scientific reason this happens.

 

im just being stupid

[Larry King]

Hi Mark, what bike are you getting? Be very carefull to check your handle bar and brake lever clearance over your toptube for when you have a crash, I shredded the top tube of a brand new Gt zaskar team in this manner, punched a hole the size of a 10c piece. Also be carefull to make sure there is a warenty, since there is a good chance you will crack it at sometime (i have broken every carbon bike i have owned) Good luck!!

[mark ellis]

im just being stupid

 

NO NO!! you cant take it back now!! I already showed the boss and organised extra riding time!!

[dts29]

im just being stupid

 

Dammit, I was going to use this as my defense for training 6hrs on the weekend. Not wanting my fibers to relax and so on

 

Maybe ill still try it!

[Mellow]

Dammit, I was going to use this as my defense for training 6hrs on the weekend. Not wanting my fibers to relax and so on

 

Maybe ill still try it!

 

... find woman tend to believe me

[bontie]

Do's and don't s you want...

 

Do: Pay your insurance premiums

Race hard

Stick some sort of protection on the downtube and around the BB (that plastic stuff bikers stick on their fuel tanks works well)

 

Don't : Listen to people who says you should ride a metal bike.

 

I just got an insurance payout for my '06 Specialized Sworks HT on Monday -

[Guest Iron]

DONT CRASH ON IT !!

 

otherwise you fine. Enjoy

[DMC007]

...Go slow and look Good.

[Wernervdmerwe]

Apparently you should not wrap the chainstay with an old tube. It does something to the paint.

The clearcoat goes opague. No damage purelry cosmetic.

 

since there is a good chance you will crack it at sometime (i have broken every carbon bike i have owned)

 

DONT CRASH ON IT !!

 

Mmmm.. - this is done on a carbon frame

 

Also some guy's Ibis fell of the back of his car while on the freeway doing 80km/h and the bike was scratched, wheel buckled and bar bent, but nothing wrong with the carbon frame.

 

Some input from Ibis on carbon (doubt strongly if it is only them)

 

Carbon Fiber and Durability

Carbon fiber has both phenomenal strength and superior fatigue resistance when compared to other commonly used frame materials. And as it is with other materials, a crash can wreak havoc on your nice carbon frame.

How much do you have to worry about the durability of carbon fiber after a crash? As you might imagine, depends on the crash.

First of all, carbon fiber mountain bikes are not new phenomena. Trek and Giant have had carbon fiber mountain bikes in the field for more than 5 years without a significant history of problems. BCD has been making their bomber downhill carbon frames since 1996.

If you crash any bike hard enough, you’re going to need to repair it or replace it. Before we talk about repairing carbon bikes though, we’ll tell you a little bit about what we do to the frames so that maybe you won’t need to get it repaired. On our bikes, the areas that are most prone to damage are reinforced accordingly. The last couple of layers are engineered to be very resistant to impact. Most of the layup of our carbon frames finds the carbon prepreg in 0º, 22.5º and 45º orientations. The 90º weave you often see as the top layer provides the best resistance to impact.

In all but the most heinous of hucks, it's the resin matrix that fails, not the carbon weave. So the less resin in your layup, the less likely you will see crack propagation. The newer lower resin composites used today are less likely to chip, crack or fail catastrophically. Reduce the resin required to 'wet-out' the matrix and you reduce the risk of failure. See our carbon tech piece for more info.

But let’s say you run out of talent in a big way, and crush some fiber along with your own bones. The good news is carbon can be repaired. You might not believe this, but often it is easier and less expensive to repair than Aluminum, Ti or Steel. An impact that severely dents an aluminum tube might need a tube replaced. Aluminum bikes are heat treated, so in addition removing and replacing the old tube (if it can be removed), you need to also heat treat, realign and repaint or reanodize the frame. None of this is necessary with a carbon frame.