Mountain Biking - notch in frame

I was on a long ride last weekend and the wheel got knocked out of true, which caused some rubbing on chainstay (there's not a lot of clearance on this frame, and FWIF, I'm running WTB Bronsons). I continued with the ride thinking that worst case scenario, I'd wear a tad off of the side knobbies of my tires. Well, it turns out that the tire rubbing wore a tiny v-shaped notch in chainstay of the frame (an '09 Jamis Durango 29er). So I'm wondering if I need to replace the frame, and if so, does this have a shot of being a warranty issue. Obviously with the latter question, I'll be contacting the lbs as I imagine that each bike manufacturer deals with these things differently, but I'm mainly interested if anyone else has had similar experiences.

I'll post a pic when I have a chance later today or tomorrow

First, let's get first things straight: NO, it's not a warranty issue; it's a negligence issue.

With that out of the way, I personally would not stress over it. Keep riding it but check it periodically just to be sure no hairline cracks start forming.

I had a shallow tire-rub vee on a Yeti AS-X that I flogged mercilessly with no ill effect.

First, let's get first things straight: NO, it's not a warranty issue; it's a negligence issue.



Doug - are you sure, I mean it wasn't his fault the wheel was knocked out of true.......OK maybe it was, BUT - it wasn't his fault that he kept riding it after it was knocked out ........ oh never mind.

I'd keep riding it. If you're on a Pan Zee 29'er, you're probably not going to ride hard enough to finish the job.:lol:



If it breaks on you Matt...it's going to be up to you and your character as to whether or not you choose to have Jamis replace it. IMO...it's not their fault if it breaks. 29'er frames can be pretty inexpensive if you need a replacement. (OnOne for ex...) I know I wouldn't feel right about getting a free one unless I told Jamis the "whole" story prior to a warranty.


That said...it probably won't break, so ride the crap outta the thang.

Thanks for the feedback folks! My main concern is the safety and rideability of the bike, which in retrospect, I should have made more clear in the initial post. So it sounds like I'm good to go there. With regard to the warranty stuff, I feel I should mention that it was not my intention to hoodwink Jamis. The only reason I wondered aloud whether it was a warranty issue was that I was really surprised at how easily and quickly the frame was notched by the tire (though I did get a C in Physics, so these things tend to surprise me I guess). Of course it was my decision to continue to ride but I thought that worst-case-scenario, I'd wear the side knobbies down slightly rather than wear a divot into the chainstay. That being said, it is moot at this point as I will take D and Ed's advice continue to ride on it.