Originally Posted by
Harold74
So I am considering sanding the fork to check out the potential crack. Some questions on that:
1) Is there a better or worse way to do the sanding? Steel wool? Super fine grit? OralB waterjet?
2) Is there any reason to fear that the sanding itself would compromise the integrity of the fork if it turns out that there is no crack?
Skip steel wool; it's not very good versus paint. My advice would be to start with a fairly coarse paper, like 150-200, and lightly work your way through the clearcoat and top coat of paint. You can go straight down to the carbon, too. Up to you how much time you'd like to save.
When you go to finer paper, like 300-400, you've got to keep sanding until the carbon in the area is smooth. If you keep seeing a crack, well you've got your answer. But if you smooth it out, it was likely a scratch.
To be sure, move up to finer grits and polish to make the carbon really smooth and glassy, which will show the absence of a crack.
But again, don't make the mistake of not sanding to the bottom of a scratch before going for the glass finish.
Looking forward to seeing the results!