[Closed] Warranty experiences - dents in the frame

Surely that's wear and tear, and to be reasonably expected. Either that, or they make it out of scaffolding tube and you won't be able to lift it.

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Man ! It's a mountain bike. My down tube had a rock hit it a few years ago at Afan and almost punctured the tube. It has two or three lesser ones now as well. Still going strong.
I really don't think you'll get far.
Are you really going to ask them ?
No wonder warranties are battened down so tight.

Wear and tear, just be pleased you are having enough fun to kick up some rocks! Oh, and don't look at the tread on your tyres, it will horrify you soon 😉

Don't think I've ever had a mountain bike that didn't dink the downtube within the first 5 rides.

That's what you get for riding in the Peak I guess.

My frame looks like a battleground between a lump hammer and a shotgun. You'll be laughed out of the shop.

I'd be more concerned with the fact the front and rear wheels don't line up (you did say it was an Intense? Google 'Intense alignment issue' 😕 ).

[i]I'm half tempted to highlight the issue with the shop I purchased the frame for but I dont think I would expect a favourable outcome. [/i]

I'd guess they'd be laughing about you even before you left the shop.

Mate of mine once over tightened my frame on a roof rack denting it, I didn't realise I could have got a new one under warranty.

Hmmm going to have to give this one a bit of thought whilst i listen to some tunes

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Iirc SC & Intense frames are not alligned straight as it's something to do with the suss design where it's offloaded to the non driveside then straitens out under compression.

That's my comprehension of it die to the vpp design.

To the op out of interest which Intense dealer was this and how old is frame?
More info pics required !

This ^ is awesumz!!

😆

Iirc SC & Intense frames are not alligned straight as it's something to do with the suss design where it's off loaded to the non drive side then straightens out under compression.

Is that what intense told you singlesteed.....

If thats the case how come ive seen them misalighned to the left and the right......

Do you need a left alligned frame if you ride right foot forward and vice versa.

Fupping codswollop.

A mate of mine who works for a specialized dealer put a mahoosive dent in his new stumpy first time out. Spesh, who have one of the best warantees in the business and didn't even entertain it.

Trail Rat - some of them were obviously went for southern hemisphere markets - duh!

Iirc SC & Intense frames are not alligned straight as it's something to do with the suss design where it's offloaded to the non driveside then straitens out under compression.
That's my comprehension of it die to the vpp design.
To the op out of interest which Intense dealer was this and how old is frame?
More info pics required !

Bahahahahahhahahahahahahaaaaaaahahahhahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for that, needed a laugh. Oh, you're serious?

Go on then clever clogs of stw, who own an Intense that has gone wonky explain !

I've had two new Intense's which haven't been missaligned as you say, am I the only fortunate one to have had this,,, errrr NO!

Plenty of happy Intense owners out there.

Trail rat might want to bk that up!

It's well known intense frames were wonky and they had no qc or real tolerance, nothing to do with vpp so why lump sc in there?

singlesteed - I'm going to throw you a lifeline here. Grab it, and put it all down to a wee bit of misunderstanding.

From Santa Cruz's FAQ on the Blur XCc

IT LOOKS LIKE THE LOWER LINK IS OFF CENTER IN MY FRAME- IS EVERYTHING OK?

Yes- this is correct. With our newer pivot system, the pivot axle draws the link over to one side in order to properly preload the bearings. This offset is accounted for in the frame design so everything ends up nice and straight in the end.

Lets all praisd yemighty sc ffs!

Bell
And
End

Yes scotroutes, I remember reading that like it was yesterday oh how wrong must I have been to used info from SC website.

Stw bitches to flame my nuts off!

Back it up with what .... Having been a mechanic at a dealer the onyl straight one ive seen was our workshop coordinators m3 .... That was returned a few times to get a straight one because he is a fusspot. Ive seen them left ive seen them right ive seen frames that once take apart for new bearing dont go back together without sideloading the bearings ........

Extra never once told me the line you have come up with - maybe you can show me that line in some litrature somewhee ?

We were also sc dealers .... And sc seemed to manage to get most of their frames straight enough not to sideload bearings - the odd one slipped through but no where near as bad as intenses , id never even consider an intense on the back of what i saw.

Fwiw ... My experiance is to do with the sides of the pivot ending up higher than the other side , not it being left to right out..... Twisted as you may.

What sc describe is accounted for and entirely different to what im talking about,

Lets all praisd yemighty sc ffs!

Bell
And
End

Stw bitches to flame my nuts off!

You ok, fella?

Each to their own but sure they have sorted allignment issues out nowadays.

No, I have a stinker of a cold/fever thanks for asking

95% of the people crying warranty this forum are taking the pi55 and trying to get something for nothing, this thread however dives to new depths of utter stupidity.

Wouldn't it be like driving a new car out of a showroom & taking it back with a stone chipped windscreen?

Yer avin a larrf incha?

I think I can beat this one. A workmate bought a new bike (much lighter than his old one)to take part in a combined running/mountainbike event at which he'd been timed out the previous year.

On enquiring how he'd fared I was told he'd timed out again but was considering taking the bike back to the dealer as it was not as fast as it should have been. He was serious by the way but I think my laughter persuaded him otherwise.

OP, warranties are mostly there to help you out with manufacturing issues, stuff like paint, bad welding, misaligned frames that sort of stuff.

If you're worried about rock strikes IIRC there's a guy that fabricates really smart carbon rock guards that will protect your investment. Or ask your bike shop to see if you can fit one of the rubberised guards that Intense fit to their carbon frames.

Singlesteed, great that you love your Intense, that they are really cool bikes is not in doubt here, but their QA really needs a shake-up,

My down tube had a rock hit it a few years ago at Afan and almost punctured the tube

Only almost? Dont ask Pedalhead of this parish what a bit of chilterns flint did to the downtube of an expensive Ti frame... 😯

Its odd how the op hasn't replied to justify or explain further!

Rolls ....

Probably waiting for you to stop swinging your handbag around 🙂

Probably waiting for you to stop swinging your handbag around

Mascara running down their face, and bottle of mid-range gin in hand...

Always

I've had two new Intense's which haven't been missaligned as you say,

iz confuzed. You said VPP bikes [i]were[/i] 'misaligned' deliberately, so does this mean that yours, which isnt, is therefore out of alignment?

Because it's so far off topic I've lost interest

Iirc SC & Intense frames are not alligned straight as it's something to do with the suss design where it's offloaded to the non driveside then straitens out under compression.

singlesteed - I'm going to throw you a lifeline here. Grab it, and put it all down to a wee bit of misunderstanding.

From Santa Cruz's FAQ on the Blur XCc

Right so I guess the closest you have got to one is the Internet. The rear stays are asymmetric and look different, this is designed. They are however straight, the wheel sits straight in them with no compression.

4 intense frames so far with one being on the piss. Loved them all. My SS1 is still going strong after 5 years with no dents...! Not sure how I have managed that but then there are not that many rocks round these parts. It's also good to see that after 5 years all the other manufacturers have started using a similar geo for their enduro frames.

OP - Just tap it out, whats the worst that can happen?

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Whilst you don't have warranty claim aginst intense (on the technicality that it's your fault.) if you can locate, and serve a writ on, the stones that actually hit the tube you may be able to take them to small claims court.

if you can locate and serve a writ on the stones that actually hit the tube you may be able to take them to small claims court.

I think you'll have more success on the owner of the stones using the "Mountain not fit for purpose" clause.

A section of tyre zip tied to down tube works well.

Well we all agree that its mountain biking and parts get dented / scratched etc. However it does raise a point to an extent.

Is an iPhone fit for purpose when the anodised back scratches so easily in your pocket and therefore nearly everyone uses a case that then hides the design that Apple have so say spent so much time on
Is car paint fit for purpose when it scratches so easily in normal day to day use and is so costly to get fixed.
Are plastic road cleats fit purpose when they wear out with only small amounts of walking around.
Even are the paint jobs that many mountain bikes have fit for purposes when they scratch and chip so easily and everyone knows mountain biking is a harsh environment.

When you think about it, it is amazing how many products are not actually designed to survive and keep looking good when they are just being used normally. I think we all agree that things wear out and there is a balance between cost, weight and durability but there does seem to be lots of products that look tatty very very quickly.

you get to choose, you get to inspect the product and determine if the compromises in the design are acceptable to you. It's simple the customer must decide if the product is acceptable to them.

But does their tattyness impede their function?

If the paint flakes or falls off you might have a point as that would be a defect, but getting scratched and chipped when things hit it, not so much. Besides, I like the battle scars 🙂

As far as an Alu frame for example, it really is a cosmetic layer, you could just as easily leave it in it's natural/oxidised state.

All of the above you've mentioned are just normal wear and tear really, the cleats one isn't fair as walking on them is not their intended purpose.

I know that the customer has a choice to inspect and decided if the product is acceptable and I agree that tattyness does not impede their function but it is still a product that does not survive well in the environment that it is designed for. Of course there is a balance between durability and design but how many bikes are powered coated which is much tougher or even use special paints to stop them looking good for longer. Remember the Marin's back in the day with there rubbery paint. I don't expect a product to look good for years and years but you do hope it will carry on looking good for some time.

We wouldn't be happy if clothes started looking crap after a few washes.

I guess it is manufactures making a product that looks the best in the showroom to get the sale but then to do this compromising on the longer term cosmetic durability.

I disagree with the plastic cleat example as its impossible really not to walk on cleats at some time. How else do you get to your bike / get on and off your bike.

I disagree with the plastic cleat example as its impossible really not to walk on cleats at some time. How else do you get to your bike / get on and off your bike.

I disagree with the plastic cleat example as its impossible really not to walk on cleats at some time. How else do you get to your bike / get on and off your bike.

But they've not been designed for it, it is not their intended use so you can't knock them for it.

They're designed to do the cleaty thing while riding, some might argue for performace/race applications only?

If you need a clip in system that is more resilient to walking around others are available that have taken that as part of the design requirement.

It would be like complaining that super tacky rubber tyres wear out too fast on the road, and you have to ride to the trails, well in that case a super tacky tyre isn't for you!

I think a simple non controversial solution to rock impacts would be to contact Derbyshire County Council and ask them to resurface the route. I think most rail users prefer a well groomed trail that will reduce or eleminate the risk of frame damage

woody74

I disagree with the plastic cleat example as its impossible really not to walk on cleats at some time. How else do you get to your bike / get on and off your bike.

Metal cleats exist. If you don't need race equipment, don't buy race equipment then make the point that it's not fit for something other than it's intended purpose.

Intense frames are well known for being light. It's one of their main selling points. If they used thicker tubing and/or thicker paint they wouldn't be light, they'd just be expensive. They probably wouldn't dent so easily, they wouldn't crack as much either but they probably wouldn't pass the all important shop floor lift test which we all know is the absolute critical determining factor when it comes to buying a bike.