Can you damage a carbon frame (say cracking the top tube) by bouncing it on it's back wheel to get it dry (asking for a friend)?

edruid

Member
Jun 11, 2022
80
37
Gloucestershire
25kg bike. Bounced up and down ~10 time about 20cm 1-2 a week for 2.5 years. Hairline cracks on sides of top tube. Cube say clamped, I say not. Anyoine have a view?
 

Mikerb

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
May 16, 2019
6,567
5,058
Weymouth
no....the tyre and suspension will absorb any shock and the top tube is fabricated to mostly withstand compressive forces ( ud mat laid along the length). Damage to a top tube is most likely to occur with twisting or clamping forces.
 

Plummet

Flash Git
Mar 16, 2023
1,152
1,634
New Zealand
No. Your 80ish puts far more force into the frame.

Ps clamping the tt In a work stand can. Also extension failures are common center of top tube.
 

Streddaz

Active member
Jul 7, 2022
300
427
Tasmania
No, it would only be placing the bike under its own weight plus a bit of momentum. Remember, the bike should be able to handle its own weight plus up to three times that of the rider and the dynamic loading. It's either a manufacturing fault or he has clamped it and crack the frame.
 

Plummet

Flash Git
Mar 16, 2023
1,152
1,634
New Zealand
I agree with Cube. Looks like compression clamping failure. That's not a crash damage. Who services the bike? perhaps the bike shop you purchased this off has done this? maybe a junior staff member worked on the bike. I'd dive into that rabbit hole.
 

Plummet

Flash Git
Mar 16, 2023
1,152
1,634
New Zealand
What is an 'extension failure'?
Thanks
If you nose into something ie a stupid nose heavy landing from a jump or a drop the fork tries to get pushed under they down tube. One result of this is that the tube tube tries to be ripped apart under extension.

Here's a frame I broke by extension failure 4 years ago.
IMG_20190328_175829.jpg
 

RsGaz

Active member
Subscriber
Nov 6, 2020
109
56
N. Lincolnshire
Was looking at buying a cube... but then saw what they believe is level of biking you can ride the bike at.. 😒

With the amount of reported failures, I can’t understand why anyone other than a whippet like xc racer or a sponsored rider who’s not bothered about damage, would want a carbon frame, especially someone north of 14st (of which I am 🫣) I’ll stick with my alloy Whyte thanks.
 

Streddaz

Active member
Jul 7, 2022
300
427
Tasmania
With the amount of reported failures, I can’t understand why anyone other than a whippet like xc racer or a sponsored rider who’s not bothered about damage, would want a carbon frame, especially someone north of 14st (of which I am 🫣) I’ll stick with my alloy Whyte thanks.
Alloy frames fail just as much as carbon ones do and it's fairly rare these day for either to fail in normal riding conditions. I've had a carbon framed enduo bike since 2015 and it's done over 10,000km, 6 years of enduro racing, may sizable crashes and never had an issue with it. Before that I had an aluminium framed bike and it cracked at the toptube/seat tube joint.
You still need to be careful clamping an aluminium framed bike because if you crush the thin wall tube the strength is greatly reduced.
 

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