Originally Posted by
WestPablo
Thus far, the whole gist of this thread has been that carbon is basically a PITA to commute with, due to elemental climate concerns, theft, and abuse on the part of others. No bicycle commuter has quite the profound concerns as a CF bicycle commuter.
Many CF bicycle owners like to claim that carbon fiber is tough, strong, and doesn't need to be coddled. This may partially be true. However, there's no doubt that a carbon fiber bicycle seems to require just a tad more care and protection than its aluminum and steel siblings. IMHO, this is coddling...
I'm actually less concerned with the elements on my CF bike. What's going to happen? Is it going to rust? Get over it. Now for it attracting the attention of thieves, well yes I would worry. Abuse? Nah, again they are just as resilient as any other. If Boeing and Airbus can use it, I think we're OK on our bikes with it.
I've been looking at carbon MTB frames to build my commuter on, but I haven't found many that are suitable. The main problem is that almost all carbon mtb frames are made for disc brakes but my bike has v-brakes with all the associated parts like my brand new dynamo wheels. This bike would be the donor as I'm not buying all new again.