Drilling Carbon Fiber Frames
 

Can you drill through carbon fiber frames? I get my new Gavin Linea tomorrow and want to add a cage (such as the Specialized Rib Cage Pro Road.

Here's a link to the bike: http://www.roadbikeoutlet.com/0featu...1p7lq5v38qhhn6

What? You want a third bottle?

No, don't drill your carbon frame. You'll tear the fibers and weaken it.

And your bike will have two places already drilled for bottle bosses, no need to drill yourself. They already took care of it.

Can CF be drilled? Yes, that's how they got the bottle bosses in there. Can YOU do it? Only if you have the same equipment and knowledge as they did at the factory. What was it? Beats me, but I'm sure I don't have it. :-)

I work in a machine shop, have milled parts from CF before - don't drill it unless you have a brand new carbide endmill, a milling machine, and experience with carbon fiber.
Don't do it - if done wrong, you will ruin the frame.

Oh really? Excellent, this is my first time with a road bike so I wouldn't know.

Do you speak from experience from owning a Gavin, flatballer?

No. I can see them in the picture on the site you linked. I've never even heard of Gavin. The two little dots on the downtube is one set, the two dots on the saet tube are the other.

http://www.roadbikeoutlet.com/media/...a_main_1_1.jpg

Gotchya, thanks for helpin' the newb :P

You can drill through just about anything.

Really.

yup yup... with the right bit...

drill away...

poke some lightening holes in her too...

Why don't you use one of these ?
http://www.cambriabike.com/shopexd.a...OUNTING+SYSTEM

Not nearly as sexy as dual Specialized Ribs would be ;)

You already have 2 spots for the bottle cages, where are you going to put a third bottle cage?:eek:

To be honest, those cages suck. The old ones with the rubber band were good but the newer ones are not so good.

i agree! Right bit is critical for drilling through any composite woven matrix. My friend tried to add in air vents to his motorcycle helmet once and we were surprised how his already fancy looking titanium bits with the centering point and the cutting points at the outer edges still caught badly into the weave and made a mess of the edges of the new holes on his fiberglass/carbon/kevlar composite hemet shell. Not sure what kind of special bit you need for carbon, but I would try to find out exactly what is it and get if if you are still considering to drill into your frame.

I made my own CF outer cages for the really crappy Shimano SIS derailers a while ago (for friends), and drilled through it fine with HSS bits.

But no, don't drill your frame.

See the bolt heads.....?


http://www.roadbikeoutlet.com/media/..._crank_1_1.jpg

I switched to the Rib Cage Pro a few weeks and unless they weaken over time I rather like them. Easy to to get the bottles in and out and so far no dropped bottles over some rather rough road's and they don't look bad either.

get a camelbak or ruin your frame. It's up to you.

Can you: sure.

Should you: no, unless you have the proper equipment and skill set. Be aware that doing so will certainly void your warranty.

Tsk. Those would be SPEED holes dawg, not lightening holes.

I guess you haven't worked there long. You don't drill with an end mill. I worked in the machining industry for over 20 years.

Drilling CF can be done with any ordinary electric hand drill and any high speed steel drill bit that works on metal. Of course you can't drill a huge number of holes with a high speed steel drill bit before it dulls, but it will work for quite awhile. I've drilled plenty of holes in CF and even tapped threads into it. I have two pairs of carbon soled shoes with the Speedplay cleats screwed directly to the sole with M4 threads that I drilled and tapped myself.

Those who commented about fraying and flaking either used a dull drill, too little speed or tried to feed the drill too fast. Drilling large holes in thin material can have that type of poor result. Breakout on the back side is quite common is the back can't be supported.

Funny deal! I have those cages, for about a year now, and really like them. I ride 30-50 miles almost every day, sometimes over some pretty rough areas.

I have had other cages, and always lost bottles out of them, unless I bungeed them in.

Not once with these Specialized cages, not once.

They don't rattle, they don't mark up your water bottles, clean up nice, and look nice (you even have a choice of colors,) and I don't have to bungee bottles in any longer.

I'd buy them again, in a heart beat.

Looks like OP is flying under the Trolldar.