Damaged my brand new TCR
 

Hi everybody,

First of all I'd like to say hello to the forum members. I probably would not registered now, if it weren't for my trouble.

I bought a Giant TCR Advanced nine days ago and right on the 2nd ride I dropped the chain. It did not ring any alarm bells for me, since I did not pedal or force it (or so I thought).
Couple of days later, while inspecting the FD (it needs adjusting), I accidentally saw the damage hiding behind the chainring.

I own steel and alluminum road bikes, but this is my first carbon frame.
I'd like some of your opinions from experience. I assume it is not catastrophic, but should it be taken care of by a professional, or could I, maybe mask it and keep riding. (and buy a damn chain catcher). It is a very nice frame, but fortunatelly it did not cost a fortune.
Apparently, posting images is not allowed for new members, so If there is any other possibility, I'd be happy to share them.


Cheers!

Are you sure it was caused by the chain drop? That seems unlikely to cause damage.

Pic Assist
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b01aa922a9.jpg

https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3399296b64.jpg

Hi,

The damage was not there when I got the bike, and since the winter arriving, and some cold I caught in the meantime, I did only 2 rides.
The dropped chain on the 2nd ride was the only memorable issue I had.

I'll try to post a photo URL without the prefix. You need to copy-paste it into your browser: imgur.com/m8aBUBE

Looks like the leading edge of the damage is on the lower edge of the chain stay....dropped chain, then sucked up into the chain stay on the next half turn?

Unless the chainrings were/are bent, what, besides the chain, would make that radiused mark?

Ouch. My first impression is it's probably fine, but I would have it checked out. That area tends to be built up pretty stout.

You are correct to be concerned. A friend destroyed a frame through multiple chain drops. Yes, he should have figured it out sooner:foo: Get a chain catcher and ask the shop if you should cover the damage to protect against future deterioration.

Most of the damage is just paint. There's a tiny spot at the bottom corner of the chain stay that may be a bit deeper, but I would not worry about it. I did something similar to my Colnago.

recourse/
 

have you asked Giant about crash discount towards a replacement frame? or if you are the org. owner ask about a warranty claim.seems you were not to blame for a dropped chain from a drivetrain out of adjustment.

Did you buy it from a shop? If so, I'd talk to them, 'specially about the mal-adjusted FD.

As someone who works with carbon fiber for a living, I'd clean up the divot-looking area to the bottom of the stay and then paint over it so that I forget it's there. In my experience, most carbon fiber things are fairly overbuilt. The chain drop mostly just abraded the stay which is far better than damage caused by impact.

YMMV.

Get a chain catcher. When I purchased my Defy the shop threw in a nice k-edge catcher at no charge when I asked for them. I was going to have one installed on my Domane but much to my surprise it came with one already installed.

If you want to get it fixed.. I sent mine to Calfee

http://glenn-ring.com/emonda/damage.jpg

http://glenn-ring.com/emonda/repair.jpg

My k-edge chain catcher didn't prevent a drop. All it did was make putting the chain back on the ring impossible without a tool.

Seems mostly cosmetic / paint damage to me. Except for that little deeper chipped area.

You could have it professionally inspected to be sure, but I imagine it is fine. They build some engineering tolerances into these frames.

Get a chain catcher.

Definitely get a carbon guru to look it over. The last thing you need is a catastrophic frame failure going 37 mph.

Bummer, but.... put some nail polish on it.

Thanks all for replying...

I already contacted 2 carbon repair places in my area (Germany) and asked for their rough opinion and a quote, based on the pictures.
Both agree that it is "probably" fine and could be treated by just sealing and painting the damage, but of course cannot give a definitve opinion based on the photographs alone.

Costs would be up to 250€ in case the carbon fiber itself needs repair.

.

Your bike is fine.

A "repair" for something like that is a joke. You can't repair carbon fiber without layering on new cloth, which isn't going to happen on such minor damage.

What you're going to get instead is a glorified bondo job. PASS.

Nice paint job, but what did they actually do besides sand and epoxy fill?

What would you suggest for sealing the mark myself? It is in a well hidden area, but is also exposed to the elements. I considered removing any loose paint left, and applying some clear coating so I can keep an eye on it. After it dries maybe wrap some protective material in case I decide to drop a chain again.

If this was a brand new bike why is it dropping chains on the 2nd ride and needing adjustments? You said brand new.

It should have been ride-able from the shop. Or, was this an internet sale and self-build?

If this was bought from a shop, I'd be extremely pissed and trying to hold my composure while working out something with the shop. A properly ready to ride bike doesn't drop chains into the frame.

I built my older bikes myself, but this was an online season sale with delivery.
I consider myself skilled enough in setting up the drivetrains on bikes, and have experience. It was not set up properly by the shop since the chain rubbed on the FD inner plate when in small chainring and biggest sprocket in the back. That was first time for me to set up the FD r7000, but it is not much different than the earlier designs, regarding the limiting screws. I first lowered the cable tension, but eventually needed to adjust the low limit screw. I still left the chain touching the inner FD plate ever so slightly, with the exact intention of preventing the chain from slipping.

There were some other minor issues I also addressed, like a too long cable outer on the RD, which caused a pretty awkward and sharp bend in it. And also the front tubeless tire was seated horribly :S

But since it was a real bargain, and I like doing those little details myself I did not complain about the shop setup. And if so, I would have needed to send it in and wait, which I hate. And there was nothing actually wrong with the bike.

But apparently I'm a worse of a rider than a mechanic...

Well, my Supersixes both came with one of these little metallic things stuck on the frame in that spot. I've never sucked the chain into there (knock on wood) but I imagine you could find something similar (if not this exact item) and stick it there to both hide the damage and protect the area...

Here's a random online picture where you can see it through the chain rings:
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...171082fe53.jpg


I might suggest painting a bit of black nail polish over all the paint irregularities and then (after a day to dry) swabbing with an alcohol pad before placing the protector...

https://www.performancebike.com/cann...-kp194/p765359

Carbon fiber, like titanium, is inert.

It does not care about the elements.

Metal directly in contact with carbon is a different story, where the metal (not the carbon) is susceptible to galvanic corrosion due to the conductivity of carbon, but that's not the case here.