broken frame?

[sdnelson19]

For some reason I decided to dive over the handlebars this morning coming into a hairpin; totally ignoring my usual routine of cautious braking and staying upright. I came out of it reasonably unscathed but my bike doesn't seem quite so lucky... I fear the worst, the paint bubble actually 'moves' when I put pressure on the top tube.

[beanbiken]

Grab a coin and tap the frame with the coin on it's edge. If it makes a different/dull type of sound over the suspect area it is either cracked or delaminating and will need "medical" attention.

[open roader]

From the photos provided..............

.......the bubble damage looks to be a gel coat separation to me but it's very thick for a top gel coat and is an irregular shape which I don't like the look of......... so maybe carbon resin layer delamination

The crack line at the TT / seatpost juncture is just a paint crack but may well bely what lies beneath

I agree with the tapping method for testing a purchased frame with unknown province / history but you know you have crashed this one..... if were mine I'd be taking it a carbon repairer; at least for an opinion.

[jules21]

looks fine to me. no guarantees but what's pictured doesn't indicate structural damage

[Duck!]

.......the bubble damage looks to be a gel coat separation to me but it's very thick for a top gel coat and is an irregular shape which I don't like the look of......... so maybe carbon resin layer delamination

Polyurethane topcoats are typically pretty thick. I'd be tipping it's just the topcoat lifting, but it's impossible to make a definitive assessment from the pics. If the area feels fine and no different to the rest of the frame then it's another indicator that the frame is probably structurally fine. If it feels spongy in that area then it's probable that some delamination has occurred.

The important thing to note is the frame is NOT going to catastrophically self-destruct; it takes a major impact to do that to a carbon component. Secondly, and even more importantly, it is very, very readily repairable and most definitely not the end of the line for the frame.

[sdnelson19]

Cheers people, have had it looked at by the LBS and they've said it's just paint in both cases.


Hasn't stopped me spending my upcoming tax return early on a new frame though