Question for silver Nukeproof owners

So I just got a silver Mega frame through and I’m really not happy with the finish of the frame. Not sure if there is something wrong with this frame or whether this is how it is supposed to be – any other silver frame owners out there who can comment before I get back in touch with the retailer.

I would expect the frame to have a uniform finish (like the welds joining the chainstay to the machined bit in the top photo), not the much darker colour every other weld on the frame seems to have been done in.

I’ve only seen them in shops but they don’t look like that. :-/

That looks dreadful. Probably fine structurally, but look dreadful.

Cheers, that’s what I thought so it’s going back. Shame they don’t have any more in stock in that size, I’ll have to shop around for a replacement I think.

Tom

That looks, errr, interesting…

Only ever seen unpainted/lacquered steel frames with contrasting welds. (think curtis and the raw finish o-o 456). All the laquered alloy frames I have ever seen/owned had welds the same colour.

I’m wondering if a raw frame which was going to be painted/anodised has somehow made its way into the silver batch

I got one..
wasn`t happy with the dark welds
(same look as tomtomr´s)
frame went back..

it’s not finished is it? someone just slapped the stickers on and said “meh, that’ll do”? frame looks great apart from that. if it’s ano on top this might be finished, they just changed weld material…
i like it. got that prototype look? if it’s the frame i wanted i’d probably keep it 🙂
edit2: wait no it looks crap doesn’t it.

Looks like it’s been stuck together with Araldite 🙂

I think it has a certain charm.

Mines similar

that looks guff.

I like it 🙂

Did they paint the tube first, THEN weld them together?
Looks toss, send it back!

To be fair, it doesn’t look much different on the Nukeproof website. Looks like the tubes are anodized and then welded together?

More likely the alloy in the weld material anodises differently to the pipe alloy and with it being natural it shows up more

Or that

It’s the same on mine but I quite like it.

I don’t spend that much time looking at it though!

Edit, they’re pretty nice welds 😉

That looks Mega crap!

They ride REALLY nice though.

Are you looking to win a car park bragging competition, or ride a good bike?

Mine’s the same in some lights I think – just stop looking at it and ride it, you WGAS once you’ve realised what a stupidly good ride it is.

Get a painted or black ano one, the welds on the silver ano frames are slightly darker in all the ones I’ve seen in the shops. Not THAT much darker like in the OP’s post though.

Has the OP’s bike even been anodized? I know Nukeproof did some custom polished frames for some teams that ride Nukeproof. Maybe a mixup, the bike looks almost just like a brushed alu finish to me?

Every silver NP I’ve seen has been the same to be honest. Some just slightly less noticeable than others.

Both the black and Silver are anodized and the Yellow painted. I think it looks alright to be honest. It rides brilliant regardless.

Bwaarp – I’m not sure it has been anodised, it certainly looks like raw aluminium to me and you can see the cosmetic effect of the heat from the welds on some of the tubes too.

I was trying to avoid a black one since I have a black Scalp. And I don’t think I’m brave enough for the yellow! I’ll see what I can find out there at the same price as the original retailer – if there’s a silver one which is a bit more like the photo of the Scalp above then I’ll go for it.

Cheers for the feedback guys

Tom

When different grades of aluminium and parts finished in different ways are anodised they can look different. This is especially so on welds, which almost always come out looking darker.

Normally the welded frame is bead blasted before it’s anodised. This evens-out the finish, giving the tubes and welds a more consistent surface texture. The more recent trend for “raw” looking frames means the tubes are left brushed or unfinished so they are “more shiny” than the welds, which are fairly matte in texture. This means the tubes reflect more light than the welds so the welds appear even darker. This can be seen clearly on the Scalp in bwraaps post.

I think it looks great. Get it built and enjoy it! 😉

I´ve seen several NP silver ano frames…
and for me there are differences !
the welds on the one I got where really! dark and had a rough surface,
on the welds, the welding itself was perfect
normally I like the industrial look of it ,
but on mine it was just looking like something went wrong !

the look was quite different to the scalp shown !!

I’ve got that exact same frame which I bought about 4 months ago. The welds are similar in that they are darker than the frame material and the two you picture round the chain stay are darker than other welds. It’s hard to tell how similarly dark they are to the ones on your frame without having them side to side. I inspected every weld when I got the frame and although they are a different colour to the frame each one is immaculate. I’d post a pic up but bike is currently in the back of the mota covered in mud and it’s raining pretty bad so will probs stay there today…

I actually like the look of it

Here’s some pics of my (dirty) frame. Similar dark welds but hard to say if they are as dark as the ones on yours. And the two on the chainstay are darker than others.

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P1030916[/url] by VeeeDubStar[/url], on Flickr

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P1030917[/url] by VeeeDubStar[/url], on Flickr

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P1030918[/url] by VeeeDubStar[/url], on Flickr

depends on which filler rod is being used on the outcome of the anodize bead blasting has f-all to do with it .If you have different grades of aluminium you can pick a grade of filler rod that is compatible with both and will give a good weld but may not be a good candidate for anodizing,

Some of the factories are also employing double pass welding on frames also

Go for the yellow 😛 I’ve got one in yellow. I wouldn’t have any other stock colour.

Here’s why the OP should swap for the yellow

1) It’s New York Taxi Yellow
2) You could always strip the paint and polish the frame
3) You can repaint powdercoated frames when they get scratched, in a colour you like. I’m doing mine in metallic kawasaki green once the warranty runs out.

Take a look, none of the Megas I’ve seen have been as bad as the OP’s.

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=12841920

There’s a HUGE Nukeproof Mega thread with loads of pictures over at mtb-news.de, maybe post there!

http://www.mtb-news.de/forum/showthread.php?t=521318&page=95

Some of the bikes have dark welds and some of them do not, quality control issue with the silvers? Or maybe some variation in the grade of tubing employed by the factories? Ring Nukeproof.

Maybe this guy used flash when taking this shot and that’s lessening the differences between the weld and the tubing? As the welds look considerably different to the OP’s. Maybe Nukeproof have gone for more of a ‘factory’ look with the 2012 model?

Mine’s just like this; the silver welds on the chainstays shows that you have the redesigned ones. The old ones that used to crack on the original frame were dark and matt like the rest of the welds on the frame. I suspect the new ones are stronger but more expensive to do. Can any welders out there confirm the silver welds are TIG and the darker ones are MIG?

What so the OP’s got a 2011 frame, with a 2012 chainstay and sticker set? Hope MIG welding is not to weak as I have a 2011 frame with the new chainstay!

Bwaarp – MIG/TIG is only supposition on my part. i think this year’s frame is unchanged? – OP has “2012” frame, 2012 sticker set and new chainstays. Every owner 2011 or 2012 should have the new chainstays too. I don’t think the other welds are anything to worry about, they’re the same as on the Scalp, and (with the exception of the original stays) my rig has stood up impeccably to a fair bit of abuse over the last year and a bit.

Washing my black Mega in the dark last night with my led headlamp I noticed that the welds are a completely different shade. So it’s not just the silver.
I’m not sure if its partly because of texture?

Not as noticeable in the daylight or something I give a bugger about 🙂