I’ve had it totally stripped down and forks removed. Had it thoroughly cleaned and dried. Went over it with magnifying glass under my L&M lights and couldn’t find anything other than a tiny chip about 1.5mm round on the lower part of the fork. I then tried twisting, spreading it squashing it and it was fine.
I think if I replace the forks it’ll be fine, but is there a more scientific test?
I’ve just finished a 1.5 hour power interval on the bike fitted to the turbos and it was perfect on those.
What do you reckon?

I’m sure I’ve seen someone post here about a company that does crack checking using some hi-tech method (?x-rays?) but I’d be happy with what you’ve done myself.

is this to do with your collision the other day ?

christ knows what stresses that would put through the frame, even in absence of actual impact damage. even if visible, the outer bit of a frame is only cosmetic normally isn’t it ?

Why are You concerned?

If you visually inspected it and there’s nothing to see then unless you have access to ultrasound and a guy used to doing NDT on compoites then it might just be a case of riding it and see

I crashed some carbon bars a while back. Seemed ok so kept riding. At the start of the following ride, they snapped JRA. I really wouldn’t trust your frame after a shunt like that.

Okay….
Even though the insurance (I’ve been advised) won’t take long it’s still another three months without a bike.

yikes. What do you need to get a bike up & running? STW has helped out at times like this before I think.

Cheers I’ll get by. I’ve got my race cross bike that needs parts and rebuilding. I just wanted to save that for race days, but needs must etc.

well I’ve got a Dialled PA frame (med) sitting here doing nothing if required.

Cheers pedalhead, though I wouldn’t know what to do with such a beast as I’ve not ridden a mountainbike since last November 😳

lol fair ’nuff 🙂 Best of luck getting yours sorted

Just ride it! I stuffed a Trek OCLV into a car at 30mph, shattered the forks, snapped the (alu) bars, broke both STI’s, pringled the front wheel. Frame had a few deep-ish gouges, but I rode it for another 18 months, then sold it to a chap in Jersey who raced it.

I’d be far more trusting of a frame than a pair of bars, particularly if it’s withstood a vigorous turbo session, which does all sorts of unpleasant things to the frame!

what size bike do you need, you can borrow my trek 1.5 56cm if you want, it’s no racebike light weight though!

If there is no obvious creaks or cracks then just ride it!

Another quick test is the tap test – get a coin and tap the frame and listen for a ‘different’ sound.

Not a great piccy. But this is the only odd mark I can find, and it’s on the impact side. The weave is perfect everywhere apart from the bit by the A and N. The surface is unmarked, but it looks like the carbon weave has distorted. On the other leg the weave is perfect and uniform?

This crack? was there already, not sure it is/was anything to worry about. You can feel it with your finger nail, but it could just be the laquer?

Upper pic – can’t see any way the tows in the woven cloth could have moved as much as the the pic would suggest without the resin matrix cracking – a lot. Cloth must have been like that to start with – plus some 3k woven cloth is usually only put on as a surface layer because that’s what people expect CF to look like.

Lower pic – is it tube/lug/bonded construction or monocoque? Probably a crack in the surface laquer/gel coat, but it is right where a joint would be.