Chinertown
Chinese Carbon MTB => 29er => Topic started by: carbonazza on February 15, 2015, 02:40:18 PM
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Not sure how this happened.
But one of the chainstay(brake side) of my 256 was hit during a ride today :'(
I've read some car custom shops make repairs here in Belgium, but for about 250 EUR!
I guess this involve some paint work, which does not apply here, and it could cost less.
Or try a DIY repair kit such as: http://carbonmods.co.uk
They do not take any responsibility for bike frame repairs.
But they say that if you want to do it anyway. And at your own risk.
It is better to use, their fishing rod pole repair kit: http://carbonmods.co.uk/Products/fishing-rod-pole-repair-kit.aspx
Or may be simply go to an LBS?
Does anyone had to deal with this already?
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There have been some discussions of carbon frame repair both in the US an Europe on MTBR, I don't remember who does them but you would need to disassemble the bike and send the frame out. A DIY repair might be good enough, as you might be able to just patch the frame up enough to keep it from failing completely. I'm sure a DIY repair will not look pretty, but it is your cheapest option.
Doing a Google search, here is one in the UK: http://www.carboncyclerepairs.co.uk/index.html
Here is one in Germany: http://polytube-cycles.de/en/index.html
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Man, I feel your pain! Hurts just looking at those pics. At least that isn't a $1500 frame - It would hurt a lot worse!
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http://www.carbonreparatie.nl/
Friend on mine had the same damage (different frame, Trek 26") and had it repaired for € 125,00. I think it was the same shop as of the link I just posted. Could be a different one: http://www.carbon-reparatie.nl/ or http://www.carbonherstel.nl/.
Normally they'll ask you to send a picture before they can give you a price. Just send a mail to 3 or 4 of them and you'll be fine. I recon you should be done for max €125,00-150,00 :)
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After some more research, there is a fair number of single-guy-shops that offer carbon repairs.
And I found shops that sell carbon fiber, resin, etc. in Belgium too.
As CD says, "just" a patch could be enough. As there is no other cracks on the tube except the direct hit.
I'll give this option a try!
I'm afraid I'll have to remove the dust that settled on my old Cannondale Rush, for the Wednesday ride... That will hurt :)
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Might be a good idea to wrap the chainstays with an old tube.
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I'm afraid I'll have to remove the dust that settled on my old Cannondale Rush, for the Wednesday ride... That will hurt :)
My first MTB was a rush! Loved that thing.
Sorry about your frame, but sounds like you'll be able to get it fixed for a reasonable price, at least.
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Im pretty impressed that it took that hard of a hit and didnt do more damage. The layup is pretty thick there pretty impressed with chiner frames.
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Andy, I extracted a white sharp debris(not sure what it was), that perforated the frame at the bottom of the hit.
May be the rest of the hit is due to the initial shock.
Or because I didn't see it immediately and finished my bumpy ride.
I will try the DIY option first(because I like to try things, and it is cheaper).
There are plenty of videos explaining how to do it, and it seems definitely doable.
Tomorrow, a package from http://carbonmods.co.uk will arrive home.
And if I mess up things, I'll leave it to a "composite material expert", that will happily do it for... 190€
I did my Wednesday ride, back on a 26" FS (the Rush). What a sad ride it was :-/
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Andy, I extracted a white sharp debris(not sure what it was), that perforated the frame at the bottom of the hit.
May be the rest of the hit is due to the initial shock.
Or because I didn't see it immediately and finished my bumpy ride.
I will try the DIY option first(because I like to try things, and it is cheaper).
There are plenty of videos explaining how to do it, and it seems definitely doable.
Tomorrow, a package from http://carbonmods.co.uk will arrive home.
And if I mess up things, I'll leave it to a "composite material expert", that will happily do it for... 190€
I did my Wednesday ride, back on a 26" FS (the Rush). What a sad ride it was :-/
The good thing is it doesnt look like it went all the way through the chainstay. I bet if you repair it and then just flat black it itll be fine. Granted I dont know much about carbon layup but its just like working with fiberglass I would imagine. Lay down a layer, epoxy it, lay another, epoxy it.
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Mission completed. The chainstay is fixed!
Here is the video that I followed on how to repair a "fishing pole":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCY8tLHyeJQ
The repair kit they sell has everything you need.
And it was quite easy to wrap 4 times the tube.
I tested the repair on a 30km ride today(rocks, roots and mud as usual).
Checking a couple of times during the ride. Everything looked normal.
After cleaning the bike, I inspected it carefully.
Nothing cracked, and hitting the zone with a coin make a nice sound everywhere.
So far so good!
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Nice job! You will need to keep us updated on how well the repair is holding up long term.
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Sure I'll report any issue.
But after doing it, I'm quite confident to repair any future cracks it they occur.
Cracks is a frequent excuse of the carbon frame haters.
Well... ignoring that carbon snaps all of a sudden instead of bending.
Epoxy and carbon cloth, are finally simple and soft tools compared to what you need to weld aluminium or titanium.
Others on youtube have repaired much more critical parts of their frame.
As you said, I'll probably put a chainstay protector on both sides now.
If you look again at the repair picture there is a serious scratch just on the left side.
I initially though it was a crack after the ride but no.
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Hi Carbonazza,
Are you still happy with the repair?
I have crashed my bike on Saturday, pretty hard in the rocks. The right seat stay has an impact in the middle. Still in one piece (and I did 25k after the crash to finish the race) but I see 2 cracks. I will sand it to check if it's just the clear coat or if the structure is damaged.
I might buy a magic fishing pole repair kit if you still recommend it... or I explain to my wife that the frame is dead and I need to buy a CS-M04 :D
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In the video the guy is not wearing any protection when sanding the carbon. He is only wearing gloves when putting the epoxy on, which is a good idea.
Carbon dust is not good - it is the same kind of dust as asbestos or silica, so some dust mask, goggles or gloves are good to have.
One small exposure will not hurt, most of fine particulates are caught in the moist secretions of the nose mouth and trachea and pushed up via small motile hairs on each cell until we can cough them out. But generally it is not a good stuff to be exposed to.
I'll just leave it here for any dyi repairers.
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Are you still happy with the repair?
It worked well yes, I was riding as hard as before 24h after the repair.
I did check regularly the fix and around when cleaning the bike initially, but then forgot about it.
Unfortunately, I broke the frame about a year later( seatstay in 3 parts beyond repair ).
If you are lucky on the position of the crack, it is quite easy for a DIY repair, I guess compared to reshaping/welding aluminium or titanium.
I would do it again for sure if it happens again.
@Jerryno, good reminder!
I was surprised too to see the guy doing the sanding indoor and without mask.
The same applies when cutting bars or a carbon fork tube.
I do that outside, caring about the wind, with gloves, glasses and mask.
Probably overkill, but it doesn't last long.
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Thanks for the feedback.
May I ask if the chainstay that you broke in 3 pieces is the same as the repaired one? The reason I ask is because sometime you can create a weak point by adding a super strong part. Let's say you have a 30 cm long rod, uniform. Under pressure it will flex all along the length of the rod. If you add a super rigid part in the middle, then the pressure will not be distributed evenly but concentrated locally, outside the strong segment. And it breaks!
That's for instance a reason why double butted spokes are "stronger" then plain spokes. DB are not really stronger but they better absorb forces and will break under stronger constraints then plain spokes.
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I repaired the chainstay on the left side.
But then broke the seatstay on the left side too, falling clipped on an unlucky rock with all my weight on it.
I doubt both are linked.
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Thanks for the update!
Now, I've had time to sand my seat stay and... it's damaged. A circular crack, but not 100%, only 50% of the circumference (outer side).
(http://s31.postimg.org/no3dm3ogn/IMG_2434.jpg) (http://postimg.org/image/no3dm3ogn/)
(http://s32.postimg.org/wmpg3hp01/IMG_2435.jpg) (http://postimg.org/image/wmpg3hp01/)
Honestly, that frame is rock solid. I crashed really hard on the rocks. I'm surprised it's still holding strong. It would probably do with a ghetto repair (try to force some epoxy in the crack and call it good) but I plan on repairing it with the fish pole kit. I will order it now.
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I wouldn't ride it anymore until fixed.
However when I broke my seatstay in 3 pieces, I was able to ride back to the parking lot for about 5-10km.
Sometimes the tire was touching the wishbone linking the two seatstays, but just on important bumps.
Seatstays seems there just to keep the chainstays in place. Probably why they are so skinny.
Your crack definitely looks a good candidate for a carbon "sparadrap" :D
Good luck with fixing this!
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I have ordered the kit yesterday, it looks like an express shipping (2 days). It rains most of this week, so I plan on taking it easy and not riding the bike till fixed. The last thing I want is to break completely the frame because I did not wait for 2 days to fix it.
That race was really hard on the bike (and very much on me too :)). I have already replaced the RD pulleys (stuck in mud from km 20 out of 80), the chain (after a week in petrol it was still full of crap and stain), the grips (nicely damaged). Nothing expensive but no doubt this race is one of the most difficult in France... that's what pro-cyclist say, they must be right!
Thinking twice about it, Carbon is probably the easiest frame to fix on your own. A bent/dented Aluminum seat stay would have been more expensive to repair.
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That race was really hard on the bike (and very much on me too :)).
Is it a race in the Alps? Which one?
You had snow right :) ?
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Yes, it is precisely in the Vercors section of the Alps. A very wild place difficult to access (that's where the "resistants" were hiding and established their HQ during WWII).
The race is know as the "Mythic" and this year it was also the XC Marathon National Championship. Every year, winners says that it's one of the most difficult race (and those guys are World champion level).
No snow but it's been raining for the last 4 weeks. It was muddy as hell (as I mentioned, I have killed my RD pulleys and chain - stuck in mud from km 20 up to 80 :) ). Many people fall in the muddy section. They don't know their chance :) it's nothing compared to falling in the rocks!
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it's nothing compared to falling in the rocks!
Thanks for the info. We are in a kind of perma-mud here in Belgium since October, I don't even remember what a rock is :)
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Done! Nicely repaired with the kit. You really need to look at the seat stay to realize it has been repaired. A friend had a look and was amazed, she expected a big patch!
So, right after removing the shrink tape (very glossy but you can see the spiral pattern of the tape wrapped around)
(https://s31.postimg.org/xqrxfy09j/IMG_2440.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/xqrxfy09j/)
A close up on the "junction" (at the same stage, post shrink tape removal), you can see the different weave
(https://s31.postimg.org/uwbggol6f/IMG_2441.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/uwbggol6f/)
Gently sanded and repolished, ready to rock'n roll
(https://s32.postimg.org/w6xo27k2p/IMG_2449.jpg) (https://postimg.org/image/w6xo27k2p/)
Thanks much Carbonazza for sharing info on this kit, it has saved my frame!
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Nice repair! Glad it helped you.
It reinforce this kit as a very good option for everyone to fix cracks on their frame.