Mister1437

Hey guys. Not the best picture but I found a little chip on my bike today. It seems like just a thin piece fell off, but I am not sure. How much does paint chips affect a bike or are they cosmetic issues.

CliffordK

Uhhh.... Ohhh...
If I lost a dollar for every paint chip on my Colnago...
I'd be in a pretty deep hole.

Steel, paint protects from rust.
Aluminum, paint may help protect from corrosion.
CF? Mostly cosmetic? UV protection?

It never hurts to touch up a paint chip, but you don't need to obsess over it either.

Mister1437

It's a steel frame should I obsess?

andr0id

You're going to get chips from rocks and bumping stuff.

I put leading edge tape on the chain stays, bottom bracket, back of the seat tube, inside top of the fork and other areas where contact damage can happen and it helps reduce chips.

It is invisible when applied correctly.
4 ft is enough to do a lot of bikes and give some to your friends.

Amazon.com: 3M Scotchgard Clear Bra Paint Protection Bulk Film Roll 6-by-48-inches: Automotive

Little Darwin

That Scotchgard stuff looks nice, maybe if I ever get a new bike I will buy some. But I have 2 conflicting questions.

1) How well does it stick? i.e. does it stay on for years?

2) How easy is it to take off when you want to remove it?

Little Darwin

It is basically cosmetic unless you ride or store it in harsh conditions. For touch-up I have heard 3 suggestions. Touch-up paint from an auto parts store, fingernail polish, or model paint (you could mix colors to get the right shade if you want the best possible match).

Mister1437

I heard it might increase the rate of rust on steel frames

andr0id

yes, it's a 3m product, it will stay on as long as you want it to stay on. It was invented to protect the leading edge of helicopter blades and wings on jet airplanes.

You can peel off from the edge, but it might pull up paint if the paint job is not good.

You don't just stick it on, you use soapy water underneath in case you need to slide it a bit to adjust the location then squeegee it out.

There's really no reason to take it off though. It doesn't fade or haze and hold up really well.

I will tape up a new bike and ride it for years. It's a do it and forget it type of thing. I also do kind of a wrap around the BB where the chain goes if you drop it off the inner ring to keep that area from getting chewed up.

Little Darwin

I have steel bikes with chips in the paint that range from 40 to 60 years old, and some have a bit of surface rust, but all of them are able to be ridden. So, I guess corrosion is an issue at some level.

I actually have been cautious on a couple of bikes and had the frame treated with frame saver in case any moisture got inside the tubes, then I realized how many bikes I have that have never been treated, and still ride as well as when they were new. Admittedly most of my old bikes haven't seen much use, either by me, or the previous owners.

I have replaced bolts that have become rusty from being on my bike in the rain, and used stainless steel replacements when I've had them... but the frames seem to do pretty well.

If you ride in adverse conditions, you are probably open to more corrosion than I am, and should probably do things like touch-up any chips to help preserve the bike, and clean/dry the bike as well as possible... But unless you ride in the rain, snow, or salted roads, you probably don't need to be concerned about a few small chips.

JanMM

OK.
Bare steel can rust. --> Put a bit of paint on it.

The pic is blurred everything. ---> Why bother?

Novakane 

Steel frame tubes generally have decently thick walls. You'd need an awful lot of corrosion in the chipped spots to weaken it in any significant manner, and it would have to be a pretty large area of the metal that had corroded, really. More of a worry would be it leading to getting moisture under the paint in the surrounding area, but a decent bike usually has a paint job that's tougher than that as well.

If it's a fresh chip, just touch it up with a closely matched nail polish / automobile touch-up paint, or if it's a hard to match colour, maybe some clear nail polish just to protect the metal.

On my 30+ year old bikes they have usually come to me with lots of chips and scratches that had rusted in the first place and I've removed the oxidization on the metal with WD-40 and/or vinegar. Not at the same time, naturally. I stripped the paint from the frame of an old Grand Prix that was more rust than it's original finish and underneath was plenty of good strong steel. I wouldn't worry about a chip too much.

I typically use some car wax at the beginning of the season to protect the exposed metal and leave it as is, but my bikes only really see rain when they're being ridden in it. Maybe if you park it outdoors in all seasons you might want to put something more resilient than wax over it.

All in all - don't be afraid of some chips and scratches, they add character to the bike.

Grand Bois

Only the cheap ones. The tube walls on double butted frames can be almost paper thin away from the butted ends.