My steel-riding retro grouch days ended about a year ago. Still, I have no plans to buy another carbon frame. Here’s one of my reasons why.
It’s my old riding buddy’s BMC Cross Machine CX01 – a beautiful frame made with super high-module unidirectional carbon fiber tubes. The only problem is that less than a year after he bought the rig, hairline cracks started appearing in the area around the bottom bracket and chain stays. The company’s explanation was that there’s nothing to worry about because it’s just the paint cracking. My friend wisely refused to accept this explanation and demanded a refund, which he got. He has invested the money in a new Moots Psychlo X titanium cross bike. Bravo.
I apologize for these small photos, which don’t provide a good view of the cracks. The pictures I received were huge, and I had difficulty resizing them. Anyway, let’s suppose that the paint, not the carbon, was cracking. Would I keep riding the frame? Certainly not. I would never feel safe on the bike. It’s possible that a new crack could form and this time it would be the carbon. How would you know? Cracking paint simply should not be tolerated on a frame made of carbon - a material that’s famously strong but when it fails, it fails catastrophically, with little obvious warning. Imagine screaming down a mountain descent and worrying about whether it’s really just the paint cracking on your bottom bracket. Should you have such concerns when you fork over about $1,700 on a frameset?
Some background on my friend. Was he some kind of bike-abusing yahoo? Far from it. He’s one of the classiest guys I’ve ever ridden with. True, he’s solidly built, an Ironman and a powerful time trialer. Think of Fabian Cancellara, all muscle and big bones. But most importantly, he takes great care of his equipment. His drivetrain is always immaculate and perfectly lubed. Everything is dialed in to his incredibly exacting standards. His BMC was in a three-bike rotation, with a Focus tri frame and a titanium Bianchi road bike. He bought the BMC because he was worried about deteriorating road conditions and wanted a bike that was a bit more rugged for training.
Like I said earlier, I’m no longer a retro grouch, and I can appreciate the appeal of carbon. Almost every day, I get an e-mail from Competitive Cyclist, Wrench Science or some other outfit tempting me with the latest carbon goodies. Most of them are absolutely beautiful. I realize that carbon can be a strong, reliable frame material. They make planes out of the stuff nowadays, though it’s my understanding the aircraft industry has access to much higher quality carbon.
My concern is that as carbon frames become more of a commodity, quality is going to suffer. Many, if not most, of the frames are made in China now. There’s greater pressure to bring down costs, and there’s an increasing risk of what’s called “quality fade.” The Chinese factory starts cutting corners to make a little bit extra from razor-thin margins. The frame quality starts to fade.
I think carbon is great for pros, who get a new set of frames every season and have skilled wrenches routinely working over their bikes. Carbon is also great for a dentist or someone else who can afford to buy a new frame every year or two. But for someone like me – with kids, wife, mortgage and a job in a shaky industry – my frame needs to serve me well for 5 or 6 years. I just don’t feel comfortable demanding that length of service from the latest carbon frames. That’s why, just like my friend, I’m riding titanium.
Here’s a good way to figure out whether you bought a great frameset. Before you unpack it, pick up the box. If the box feels empty, that’s a really good sign. My Moots Vamoots CR frame was delivered a few days before I arrived at my parents’ home. I found the big box parked in the dining room waiting for me. I lifted it up and thought, “Hmm, is the frame really inside? Did my father take it out for some reason? Is it possible that Moots shipped an empty box?” I cut open the container and the frame was there. I started feeling silly, but then my father came over and said, “Was something really in there? It felt empty.” I just smiled and thought, “Awesome.” At the bike shop, when the mechanic grabbed the frame and was about to clamp it into his bike stand, he stopped for a second, weighed the frame in his hand, then said to himself, “Whoa!” Maybe they’re trained to do that with every frame – stroke the customer’s ego a bit. Still, it was a good feeling.
The famous Moots head tube badge. After I removed the frame from the box, I spent a few minutes scrutinizing the welds, holding my breath as I looked for imperfections. I found none. The frame is a piece of jewelry.
As I mentioned earlier, one of the reasons I decided to buy a Moots after researching frames for a year was that I wanted my bike to be built by craftsmen in a small shop famous for quality. I didn’t want a cookie-cutter carbon frame churned out by migrant workers in a large OEM factory in southern China. One of the special things Moots does is provide customers with a checklist that shows who worked on the bike. The craftsmen must initial their work and this information is provided to the buyer on a yellow card. Someone named “TSN” played a big role in building my Moots.
I was still living in China when I was close to making a decision about buying a Moots. The big story at the time was a rash of suicides at a massive Foxconn factory complex, which makes iPods and numerous other gizmos for the world’s biggest electronics companies. I received an e-mail from a labor rights group that included a long, detailed list of complaints and allegations of mistreatment from Foxconn workers. One of the things they were unhappy about is that the company was asking workers to initial their work so that any problems could be traced back to them. I just chuckled when I read this because the Moots’ quality checklist was a key factor in getting me to buy a frame from them. If you take pride in your work, you’ll put your name on it. That’s what I’ve always done with my work, and I was always happy to do so.
(Special note: I paid full price for my Moots, and I doubt the company knows that this Web site even exists.)
My yearlong search for a new bike has ended. I’ve bought a Vamoots CR from the small Colorado company Moots, maker of hand-built titanium frames. I’ll build up the bike in late June when I’m on home leave in the U.S. I’ll use the Campy Record gruppo and Zonda training wheels from my climbing bike – my trusty magenta Giant T*Mobile carbon frame that I’ve been riding since 2004. It has served me well and has left me with many fine memories. But a few months ago, it started making a knocking sound. I can’t figure out where exactly it’s coming from, and it worries me. Carbon is a strong material, but when it finally fails, it fails spectacularly. (Check out the Busted Carbon site)
I’m still a big fan of steel. But it’s too heavy for climbing. And I don’t like to worry so much about corrosion. I like riding in crappy weather, and this really takes a toll on a steel bike. I was tempted to buy another carbon frame. It’s amazing how inexpensive they’ve become. They’re close to becoming a commodity. I find this a little troubling, though. As I’ve mentioned before, I’m concerned that as carbon frames become lighter and cheaper, they also become less reliable. Some of the big brands (like Giant and Specialized) offer lifetime warranties, but far too many don’t. How is it that Colnago, De Rosa and Pinarello only offer pathetic two-year warranties for frames that sell for about US$6,000!
Many carbon bikes are being made in China now and that makes me uneasy. When I buy an iPod, I don’t have much choice. I’ll have to buy a product made in a sweatshop. But when buying a bike frame, I have more of a choice. I can purchase one built in a workshop in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where the craftsmen have lives and make a living wage. Or I can buy one made in a huge factory in Shenzhen, where the workers come from faraway villages, get to visit their families once a year and go home every night to a bunk bed in a factory dormitory. The Colorado-made bike will definitely cost more, but I’m willing to pay. I’ve toured way too many Chinese factories. (Check out this interesting article about how the factory town manufacturing model is on its way out in China)
I was tempted to buy a mid-level carbon frame (like the Gary Fisher Cronus Pro) and ride it for two or three years before replacing it with some fresh carbon. But that’s not my style. I wanted a frame that I can ride the rest of my life. Titanium seemed to be the obvious choice for a frame. It’s light, great for climbing. It’s low maintenance, doesn’t corrode. It’s tough, lasts a lifetime.
I hope my Moots will help me do this or, better, keep me out of such situations.
I guess I’ll need to change this blog’s name to Waffles & Titanium now.
started appearing in the area around the bottom bracket and chain stays. The company’s explanation was that there’s nothing to worry about because it’s just the paint cracking. My friend wisely refused to accept this explanation and demanded a refund, which he got. He has invested the money in a new Moots Psychlo X titanium cross bike. Bravo.
ew crack could form and this time it would be the carbon. How would you know? Cracking paint simply should not be tolerated on a frame made of carbon - a material that’s famously strong but when it fails, it fails catastrophically, with little obvious warning. Imagine screaming down a mountain descent and worrying about whether it’s really just the paint cracking on your bottom bracket. Should you have such concerns when you fork over about $1,700 on a frameset?
solidly built, an Ironman and a powerful time trialer. Think of Fabian Cancellara, all muscle and big bones. But most importantly, he takes great care of his equipment. His drivetrain is always immaculate and perfectly lubed. Everything is dialed in to his incredibly exacting standards. His BMC was in a three-bike rotation, with a Focus tri frame and a titanium Bianchi road bike. He bought the BMC because he was worried about deteriorating road conditions and wanted a bike that was a bit more rugged for training. 
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