Monday, February 18, 2008

7 Dubious Frame Cracks

Here's a crack on the down tube of a carbon fiber composite Cannondale System Six, noted by the user after 3 months of regular riding. The clear coat is surprisingly intact. Cannondale agrees with the user's dealer, concluding that it resulted from a crash. A crack without damage to the clear coat is dubious. It seems to me to be a fault during manufacturing or packaging.

One can see the crack in good lighting.



Here's another 'crack' in the top tube of a Scott Addict Limited 2007. Again, the clear coat is in near to perfect condition. It almost looks like a cosmetic flaw to me, but with carbon fiber, you can't take any chances.



Both sound like warranty issues and should be communicated with the dealer, or the bicycle company itself.

Labels: Pollinated by Ron George

7 comments:

  1. gwadzilla5:48 PM

    so many companies are free and easy when it comes to warranty

    I had a few bad experiences with Cannondales way back when

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ian Read2:49 PM

    I just got a 2009 Specialized Epic yesterday, and noticed some strange "crack" type lines on the frame - when you feel the frame with your hand, it feels smooth and fine, however after paying £2500 for a brand new bike, I am not happy!!! Did those cracks feel smooth or was there an obvious imperfection when touched?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ron George3:13 PM

    Ian,

    Those frames aren't mine. I was only showcasing issues that other's have come across. Since they were under the clearcoat with no damage to the coating itself, I would assume they felt pretty smooth. I don't know what it is in your case but you'd be better off reporting this to Specialized.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ian Read3:51 PM

    Thanks - the dealer will be getting an email from me in the morning :)

    Here is a photo of the frame http://www.readikus.com/bike/specialized-epic-2009-frame.jpg - just doesn't look pretty anymore, does it?!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ron George4:35 PM

    Thank you Ian. From what I see, that seems cosmetic, however I cannot say a whole lot about the depth of that crack just looking at that picture. Nevertheless, if you're finding that the crack extends upto the headtube or seattube, you better send it back and let them have it checked for you, since I wouldn't ride anything in those conditions. What is your observation as you feel the crack?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ian Read4:47 PM

    The crack appears to be isolated to the cross bar and when touched, it feels smooth - i.e. like the rest of the frame. However, having only had the bike a day and spent a £2500 (i.e. $4597.91 US) on it, I don't think I am being unreasonable to say that the bike is clearly not acceptable. Gutted! Have emailed the photo to the dealer - will let you know how it pans out! Think I will stick to road bikes from now on ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Ron George4:52 PM

    With the kind of stresses an off road frame goes through, I will have it double checked before I sit on it. That does seem like a good sum of money and I can understand, but for the price you paid, you must also receive a fixed or unlimited period warranty.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you. I read every single comment.

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