[Jayem]

Yep, but as guys say the repair also seems to be risky, considering the ride style Evil is build for

Naw, the thing is it's relatively easy to make it far stronger during the repair. That is the nature of CF.

 

[beastmaster]

Never clamp the top tube. Only clamp the seat post. Don't use any bike rack that holds the bike by the frame. Carbon fiber is an amazing material. It is very strong in very specific ways and in other ways it is an imperfect material. It all depends and what the industrial application is. For bikes, it is great. But it can be damaged. So take care with your stuff.
For the best carbon fiber repair use these guys--Carbon repair. They are somewhat expensive, but not terrible and the quality of their work is superior to anything you can do (unless your an expert with this material) and includes painting. It will definitely be considerably less expensive than a crash replacement frame!

 

[GreenEvo240]

I recently cracked the top tube on my Epic Evo when the bars spun and the controls smashed into the top tube. I used Ruckus Composites in Portland, OR to do the repair and re-painting. They are awesome. The entire turn around time was 1 month, including shipping on both ends. The re-painting (Satin Carbon/Oak Green Metallic) matched perfectly. For what it's worth, Ruckus said the frame would be stronger after the repair.

 

[bjcccat]

If the clamping was the culprit, I understand that it can seem shocking.

Sometimes a clamp can feel as light as a feather to the touch when closing the handle, however that can easily still mean 100lb per SQ Inch or more in the clamp itself...

I agree with everyone who says never clamp any part of a carbon, or even aluminum, frame. If you can't clamp the seat post you have, always have a spare seat post that you can swap in for servicing.

Sorry again this happened to you. Hope you find a good repair or replacement solution.

 

[127.0.0.1]

yeah no clamping carbon usually.... you may clamp it fine, perfect control...
and work on the bike 100 times, then on the 101st time just bump a wheel and crunch...frame is compromised

 

[Jayem]

Just a quick question, can I clamp carbon? Thnx.

 

[Vespasianus]

Maybe it's possible to repair. In any case, I think a new frame is always cheaper than a dentist and a plastic surgeon. I wouldn't ride that frame.

For things like this, I don't like carbon. But that's another story.

For this reason, I like carbon. Easy fix - with painting should cost $200.

 

[127.0.0.1]

Just a quick question, can I clamp carbon? Thnx.

Yeshk, yousk canshk.

Coushion !

 

[Jayem]

Just to add to the repair discussion. It's technically a lot harder to repair something like a rim, where you need a mold and/or vacuum bags, because there's really no "shape" other than the rim to wrap or press carbon against. Due to the complexity of that shape, it's hard to wrap a repair or patches. With the middle of a tube, it's quite different. The original layup is quite strong and light, but adding a lot more CF will only marginally increase the weight, the stuff is so damn light. But the original layup is very thin usually, so that's why it's easily cracked. You can't make a "tube" like was originally formed and just putting a "patch" on the CF does not bring the strength back to what the tube had. The tube is usually either in compression or tension and a patch does not make a tube back to what it was. What you can do is make opposing helix wraps, kind of the next best thing. You need to attach these to the bare carbon, but you can make a good strong structure this way. You have the original tube to wrap-against, which makes it fairly easy to avoid voids and to get good resin perpetration (by wrapping with tape). There are good resins that will cure at room-temp. If you have access to a low-temp autoclave, even better, but not necessary. In materials, it cost me about $40 for a square yard of CF, the resin/hardener about 20-30 or so with some mixing cups. You'll need a bunch of sand paper and a power-sander will make life reasonable. You'll loose the cable guide...however, you could probably cut it off and then re-attach it with your resin at some point. All in all it' s a pretty simple and straightforward op, but it's not for everyone. The labor is what makes the CF repair cost what it does. It's just tedious and you need some PPE like if you were painting.

I've seen a few carbon-fiber "patch" kits on ebay and a few other places. These are a gimmick and a sham. Do not waste your money. They are not structural repairs.

 

[idividebyzero]

if you didnt clamp it tight then what probably happened was the bike was moved/bumped and it acted like a lever inside the clamp, which can be a lot of force

 

[Amt0571]

For this reason, I like carbon. Easy fix - with painting should cost $200.

$200 and no warranty that it's as strong as before.

For 300 I can buy a new aluminium frame and be sure it has the strength it should.

 

[noapathy]

Just to add to the repair discussion. It's technically a lot harder to repair something like a rim, where you need a mold and/or vacuum bags, because there's really no "shape" other than the rim to wrap or press carbon against. Due to the complexity of that shape, it's hard to wrap a repair or patches. With the middle of a tube, it's quite different. The original layup is quite strong and light, but adding a lot more CF will only marginally increase the weight, the stuff is so damn light. But the original layup is very thin usually, so that's why it's easily cracked. You can't make a "tube" like was originally formed and just putting a "patch" on the CF does not bring the strength back to what the tube had. The tube is usually either in compression or tension and a patch does not make a tube back to what it was. What you can do is make opposing helix wraps, kind of the next best thing. You need to attach these to the bare carbon, but you can make a good strong structure this way. You have the original tube to wrap-against, which makes it fairly easy to avoid voids and to get good resin perpetration (by wrapping with tape). There are good resins that will cure at room-temp. If you have access to a low-temp autoclave, even better, but not necessary. In materials, it cost me about $40 for a square yard of CF, the resin/hardener about 20-30 or so with some mixing cups. You'll need a bunch of sand paper and a power-sander will make life reasonable. You'll loose the cable guide...however, you could probably cut it off and then re-attach it with your resin at some point. All in all it' s a pretty simple and straightforward op, but it's not for everyone. The labor is what makes the CF repair cost what it does. It's just tedious and you need some PPE like if you were painting.

I've seen a few carbon-fiber "patch" kits on ebay and a few other places. These are a gimmick and a sham. Do not waste your money. They are not structural repairs.

Dude! This sounds like what I've been after. I just want to fix my downtube, so nothing complex. Every one of the half dozen threads I read broke down into arguments about this or that with everyone trying to be an expert so the frame was relegated to trainer duty. I really just need a shortlist of the cf materials and where to buy them (sanding I can handle and have a respirator for the cf dust) that'll come out looking even half as good as yours. I live in a pretty rural area, so online sources are ideal but I can drive to get something if necessary.

 

[Jayem]

Dude! This sounds like what I've been after. I just want to fix my downtube, so nothing complex. Every one of the half dozen threads I read broke down into arguments about this or that with everyone trying to be an expert so the frame was relegated to trainer duty. I really just need a shortlist of the cf materials and where to buy them (sanding I can handle and have a respirator for the cf dust) that'll come out looking even half as good as yours. I live in a pretty rural area, so online sources are ideal but I can drive to get something if necessary.

Marine shops usually have the West System resin/hardeners. From there you decide what you want. Slower hardening stuff is usually a better cure. Look at the mix ratios, you don't want two same-size cans, I believe it's something like 1 part hardener to 4 or 5 parts resin. CF is kind of up to you. Simple alternating/3x weave is simple and the easiest to get and use. UD is going to be stronger, but more of a PITA to work with. If you are over-doing it, as in laying down 3-4 strips in either direction, for around 8 total, plus possibly a cosmetic layer, the exact thickness and other properties aren't really going to matter. Just stand it down afterwards and make sure to leave on your 8 strips, rather than trying to sand down to the original thickness. This is how you end up with a stronger structure. Something like this is probably perfectly fine:

Amazon.com: Aerospace Grade Carbon Fiber Cloth, 50" X 12" : Industrial & Scientific

Amazon.com: Aerospace Grade Carbon Fiber Cloth, 50" X 12" : Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

Usually where you get the resin/hardener will sell mixing cups, those can be handy to have.

It's a bit tricky to get the CF to stick on there and you only have about 15 minutes to work with the resin before it starts hardening. To that extent, always cut these strips a lot bigger than you think you'll need. That allows you to have free length at both ends you can later cut/saw/sand off, but when you start putting layers on layers it tends to start moving around, so having them be anchored well is pretty important. I like to use a paintbrush and "paint" resin on for the first layer, then keep repeating the process for subsequent layers strips. Ideal would be to have a helper do the resin painting and one person to lay the strips. It gets harder to work with as the strips get resin on them. It's just very messy and it's a good idea to practice on something else first. Nothing technically hard, just messy and tedious. I used some painters tape to wrap it with the idea that it all gets sanded off later on. The less residue/glue on the tape, the better. Idea there is to squeeze out air and voids. Plummet mentions the preferred tape in one of his threads about his repair. That stuff is easier to use. The sanding at the end is a lot of work/time. It's up to you how you want to finish it. You can try to do a cosmetic layer over the top, clear coat it, or try to repaint. You have to sand away more than you repair to expose the CF, so usually you end up repainting.

 

[plummet]

Here you go. Read up on my carbon repair in pretty much the same spot.

Carbon frame repair

Hey team. As some of you know i cracked my beloved Rocky Mountain Slayer by massive over clearing of a step up. I got an insurance payout and bought a replacement Slayer and so have ended up with the old cracked bike. I decided to repair the frame stronger and heavier than before and build it...

www.mtbr.com

 

[Vespasianus]

$200 and no warranty that it's as strong as before.

For 300 I can buy a new aluminium frame and be sure it has the strength it should.

$200 with a warranty to the original person. I also recommend coastal carbon for repair.

 

[Ogre]

I personally would not feel comfortable with doing a fix like that myself. We've had some CF repairs done by Ruckus Composites and they did a good job. Cost was under $400... but we didn't get it painted. Painting was going to cost almost as much as the repair.

 

[WHALENARD]

I recently cracked the top tube on my Epic Evo when the bars spun and the controls smashed into the top tube. I used Ruckus Composites in Portland, OR to do the repair and re-painting. They are awesome. The entire turn around time was 1 month, including shipping on both ends. The re-painting (Satin Carbon/Oak Green Metallic) matched perfectly. For what it's worth, Ruckus said the frame would be stronger after the repair.

How much did the repair cost?

Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using Tapatalk

 

[noapathy]

Marine shops usually have the West System resin/hardeners. From there you decide what you want. Slower hardening stuff is usually a better cure. Look at the mix ratios, you don't want two same-size cans, I believe it's something like 1 part hardener to 4 or 5 parts resin. CF is kind of up to you. Simple alternating/3x weave is simple and the easiest to get and use. UD is going to be stronger, but more of a PITA to work with. If you are over-doing it, as in laying down 3-4 strips in either direction, for around 8 total, plus possibly a cosmetic layer, the exact thickness and other properties aren't really going to matter. Just stand it down afterwards and make sure to leave on your 8 strips, rather than trying to sand down to the original thickness. This is how you end up with a stronger structure. Something like this is probably perfectly fine:

Amazon.com: Aerospace Grade Carbon Fiber Cloth, 50" X 12" : Industrial & Scientific

Amazon.com: Aerospace Grade Carbon Fiber Cloth, 50" X 12" : Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

Usually where you get the resin/hardener will sell mixing cups, those can be handy to have.

It's a bit tricky to get the CF to stick on there and you only have about 15 minutes to work with the resin before it starts hardening. To that extent, always cut these strips a lot bigger than you think you'll need. That allows you to have free length at both ends you can later cut/saw/sand off, but when you start putting layers on layers it tends to start moving around, so having them be anchored well is pretty important. I like to use a paintbrush and "paint" resin on for the first layer, then keep repeating the process for subsequent layers strips. Ideal would be to have a helper do the resin painting and one person to lay the strips. It gets harder to work with as the strips get resin on them. It's just very messy and it's a good idea to practice on something else first. Nothing technically hard, just messy and tedious. I used some painters tape to wrap it with the idea that it all gets sanded off later on. The less residue/glue on the tape, the better. Idea there is to squeeze out air and voids. Plummet mentions the preferred tape in one of his threads about his repair. That stuff is easier to use. The sanding at the end is a lot of work/time. It's up to you how you want to finish it. You can try to do a cosmetic layer over the top, clear coat it, or try to repaint. You have to sand away more than you repair to expose the CF, so usually you end up repainting.

Here you go. Read up on my carbon repair in pretty much the same spot.

Carbon frame repair

Hey team. As some of you know i cracked my beloved Rocky Mountain Slayer by massive over clearing of a step up. I got an insurance payout and bought a replacement Slayer and so have ended up with the old cracked bike. I decided to repair the frame stronger and heavier than before and build it...

www.mtbr.com

Thanks a lot, guys. Now following that other thread, too. I hadn't considered what clothes to wear other than nothing nice, obviously. Time to see what I can find and if I can keep the total around $100 or less.

 

[dysfunction]

The most important thing you can wear is a respirator. Tyvek coveralls are good too.

 

[r-rocket]

There is one other possible cause of this damage where you wouldn't have noticed it when it happened. Is there any chance you practice Iron Crotch Kung Fu?