carbon frame

brightlights · Post by **brightlights** » 28 Oct 2012, 6:19am

I'm thinking of a tour using my road bike which has a carbon frame ( to keep weight down on plane) and towing a BOB trailer - anyone done this before?

Aushiker · Post by **Aushiker** » 28 Oct 2012, 12:38pm

I haven't but I know a guy, James Quniton (search Facebook) who rode from Darwin to Perth on his carbon bike pulling an Extrawheel Voyager trailer.

His ride included the Gibb River Road, a very rough dirt road which includes having to walk across the Pentalcostal River which is know for the odd saltie (they like people for breakfast but not carbon frames as far as I know

).

On the iPad at the moment but will try and track down a link to his pages later.

Andrew

foxyrider · Post by **foxyrider** » 28 Oct 2012, 4:36pm

The frame is probably stronger than a steel one!

irc · Post by **irc** » 28 Oct 2012, 4:37pm

brightlights wrote:I'm thinking of a tour using my road bike which has a carbon frame ( to keep weight down on plane) and towing a BOB trailer - anyone done this before?

Will the weight of a carbon bike and a trailer not be equal to the weight of a light touring bike? 17 pound road bike and 13 pound Bob trailer = 30 pounds. A bit like the worst of both worlds. Road bike gearing and comfort without the usual speed and handling.

What is the weight limit on the plane? Can you pay for an extra allowance?

bigjim · Post by **bigjim** » 28 Oct 2012, 6:23pm

The frame is probably stronger than a steel one!

How does that work then?

foxyrider · Post by **foxyrider** » 28 Oct 2012, 7:02pm

bigjim wrote:How does that work then?

I'm sure i could find the figures to prove it but i'm not gonna bother. Steel is weakened by welding/brazing, carbon has no such issues, it also dampens vibration more efficiently making it more comfortable to ride. Wish i could afford one. You can put together a tourer under 20lb - i have at some cost, 25lb is quite easy - if we dump the steel monsters!

So yay for lightweight bikes for touring!

However it would be nice if the airlines were a bit more realistic in their bike allowances, case/bag/box to put the bike in can easily eat 10/12lb of the allowance.

bigjim · Post by **bigjim** » 28 Oct 2012, 7:31pm

I often come across something like this http://www.rideyourbike.com/carbonfiber.shtml and although I am possibly in the market for a carbon bike it looks as if I will be riding my "steel monster" a bit longer.

hamish · Post by **hamish** » 28 Oct 2012, 9:09pm

I like steel frames and forks. I have a couple of titanium MTBs too. I am not keen on the idea of a carbon touring bike but Mike Hall thinks carbon is the best stuff for his kind of touring. And it's pretty full on touring too!

He discusses the frame material half way down this article:

http://road.cc/content/news/59716-interview-round-world-record-holder-mike-hall-talks-round-world-record-kit

andymiller · Post by **andymiller** » 29 Oct 2012, 1:20pm

irc wrote:Will the weight of a carbon bike and a trailer not be equal to the weight of a light touring bike? 17 pound road bike and 13 pound Bob trailer = 30 pounds. A bit like the worst of both worlds. Road bike gearing and comfort without the usual speed and handling.

What is the weight limit on the plane? Can you pay for an extra allowance?

My thoughts as well - although I think that a BoB trailer is roughly equivalent to the weight of 4 panniers plus racks. Your point about the gearing is a good one though. This combination could well come into its own if your plan was to move between campsites and then use the campsites as a base for day rides without panniers etc.

Post by Si » 29 Oct 2012, 1:39pm

foxyrider wrote:
bigjim wrote:How does that work then?

I'm sure i could find the figures to prove it but i'm not gonna bother. Steel is weakened by welding/brazing, carbon has no such issues, it also dampens vibration more efficiently making it more comfortable to ride. Wish i could afford one. You can put together a tourer under 20lb - i have at some cost, 25lb is quite easy - if we dump the steel monsters!

So yay for lightweight bikes for touring!

However it would be nice if the airlines were a bit more realistic in their bike allowances, case/bag/box to put the bike in can easily eat 10/12lb of the allowance.

Yer problem is that although it can be made stronger in terms of hits coming up from the road (great for race bikes etc) it won't be as strong in terms of hits coming in along the tubes - touring bikes tend to suffer especially from bashes and dings such as these as they might often be loaded onto trains and planes, have big locks put on them, get stuffed into people's sheds, be leaned against all sorts of things, etc etc. It is this sort of damage that would worry me - dings and small scratches causing the carbon lay up to delaminate. Plus when damage is done it is often (but not always) easier to detect on a steel frame before it falls apart under you.

Plus remember that the OP already has the carbon bike so it's not a question of going out and getting a really beafed up one, but of using what might be a light weight race bike.

That said, if the load is in the trailer, and the trailer attached to the dropouts rather than the frame, then I don't see that the OP should be overly worried...the bike probably wouldn't take that much extra a panning than when doing normal rides. However, if going to the trouble of hitching up a trailer to it I wonder if the few grams that using a carbon frame will save will really make any real world difference?

irc · Post by **irc** » 29 Oct 2012, 9:24pm

andymiller wrote:My thoughts as well - although I think that a BoB trailer is roughly equivalent to the weight of 4 panniers plus racks.

Add a Bob Dry Sac though and the trailer and bag is 16 pounds. Nearly twice the weight of Tubus racks and Ortlieb panniers at around 4kg or 9lb total.

foxyrider · Post by **foxyrider** » 29 Oct 2012, 11:18pm

Si wrote:Yer problem is that although it can be made stronger in terms of hits coming up from the road (great for race bikes etc) it won't be as strong in terms of hits coming in along the tubes - touring bikes tend to suffer especially from bashes and dings such as these as they might often be loaded onto trains and planes, have big locks put on them, get stuffed into people's sheds, be leaned against all sorts of things, etc etc. It is this sort of damage that would worry me - dings and small scratches causing the carbon lay up to delaminate. Plus when damage is done it is often (but not always) easier to detect on a steel frame before it falls apart under you.

From my experience Carbon is pretty robust these days, i've a pair of forks that are still good after far too many impacts, six years daily commuting and general abuse that would have killed a pair of steel wheel holders long ago. Your point about day to day dings - well the OP is looking at a single trip not a long term touring career so i think you are being a little paranoid. Potentially he could do more damage in one race pile up than i'm sure his careful locking and stowage of the bike will attract.

However, if going to the trouble of hitching up a trailer to it I wonder if the few grams that using a carbon frame will save will really make any real world difference?

I can't see that its a weight saving exercise, leastways the OP doesn't say it is, rather a question of whether it would work - the answer to that question is yes it will

Brucey · Post by **Brucey** » 30 Oct 2012, 9:35pm

foxyrider wrote: ....I can't see that its a weight saving exercise, leastways the OP doesn't say it is, rather a question of whether it would work - the answer to that question is yes it will

OP wrote;

brightlights wrote:I'm thinking of a tour using my road bike which has a carbon frame ( to keep weight down on plane) and towing a BOB trailer - anyone done this before?

its weight saving exercise then....

You can tour the world by unicycle if you want, that 'works' fine too.

However for most people the disadvantages of carbon outweigh the sole 'advantage' (being light weight) for touring purposes.

Understandably, you don't see many people touring on carbon frames then.

cheers

foxyrider · Post by **foxyrider** » 30 Oct 2012, 10:21pm

Brucey wrote:
However for most people the disadvantages of carbon outweigh the sole 'advantage' (being light weight) for touring purposes.

What disadvantages? Okay its expensive but so is a museum piece Daleaxy, what about lightweight don't you like?

gordy · Post by **gordy** » 30 Oct 2012, 10:30pm

brightlights wrote:I'm thinking of a tour using my road bike which has a carbon frame ( to keep weight down on plane) and towing a BOB trailer - anyone done this before?

Go for it. People tour on all types of bikes. I tour on bikes that the panel would consider to be ridiculous.

If your carbon road bike is comfortable, then just do it!

Successful touring depends on the mindset, not the frameset.

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