Trucker Dan

If you ask stupid questions, you get stupid answers.

rbart4506

^^^Exactly and then he get his panties in a bunch...BTW OP, with that attitude you ain't gonna last long in this sport, you need some thick skin

And to answer you original question...Don't worry about it, the bike will be fine...Routinely ride my CF bikes in temps below 0C and there have been no issues...Even raced in those temps and the bike has come through unscathed...

roadiejorge 

Nope, all will be well. Others have posted why it won't be affected by the cold and as someone who rides his carbon bike in below freezing temperatures during the winter I can confidently say it works just fine.

Grumpy McTrumpy

https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/st...ere-d_604.html

nippy.

Sixty Fiver

I have come close to riding at temps where my steel bike might shatter from the cold.

surgeonstone

I have a CF/ Ti Merlin which I ride throughout winter in temps down to 10 F. I also store my bike outdoors in our garage which is whatever it is here in northern IN. No problems that I can detect yet. I do not think there is much to be concerned about, it is a tough material.

surgeonstone

I had a professor in med school who would tell us " the only stupid question is the one you already know the answer to". You could learn a thing or two from him.

Essex

Finally we're getting some anecdotal info. related to CF bike frames used in the cold. Additionally, comparing commercial CF airplane wings to CF bike frames may not be the best apples-to-apples comparison. I would hazard a guess that airplane wings are designed to very different standards, as well as a undergoing rigorous / professional maintenance protocols.

On a operational note - I like my CF frame in the cold because the frame doesn't care too much about salt on the road, nor does it transmit the cold to my bare fingertips. I haven't thought twice about taking any bike out in the cold other than thinking I'm going to freeze my cahones off.

Machka 

From the Winter Cycling Forum ...

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ghlight=carbon

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ghlight=carbon

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ghlight=carbon

Machka 

Where's your proof? What happens at -51C?

I ask because I've ridden steel in temperatures as cold as -40C without a problem.

Snydermann

From what I have read, carbon fiber on aircraft is used in conjunction with other structural components. It's a skin, glued and fastened to a framework of other materials. Like siding on your house, more a covering than a primary structural component.

One component of the article mentions that carbon fiber is less expensive than other materials. Doesn't seem that way to me in the bicycle industry. I wonder how much of the marketing push for carbon is based the possible 2000% markup?

https://www.dlr.de/fa/Portaldata/17/R...kolesnikov.pdf

UCIMBZ

Huh?

vettracer

Here is an example of the impact strength of CroMo steel at low temperatures. These steels are susceptable to low temperature embrittlement though the exact shape of the curve will vary by alloy composition. Other steel alloys with nickle alloy like some stainless grades do not show the embrittlement phenomena.

banerjek

Since you're new around here, you should know a few things about how things work. There are only so many things that can be said about bikes, and the same things get rehashed over and over. Since that's boring and leaves no incentive to hang out, people screw around. But just as a thousand monkeys randomly typing eventually come up with Hamlet, thousands of idiots on BF will eventually come up with something useful. But patience and skin thicker than tissue is necessary if you're looking for useful info.

The reason the guys are having a bit of fun is your question is like asking if you'll get flat spots on the rims/tires while it's in the garage -- and yes, people have seriously asked that here before.

Think about this logically. First of all, you live in a temperate area where it really doesn't get that cold. Huge numbers of riders live in much colder places, and bikes simply can't disintegrate that easily -- otherwise the manufacturers would be sued out of existence. Cold may make things more brittle, but bikes are not nearly as fragile as some people think. They're designed to be ridden hard and far by strong people.

UCIMBZ

So if enough wind blows through Boeing plant eventually a 777 will be made?

banerjek

He obviously had never heard of BF.

pbd

Another real, live materials scientist/engineer on this thread, cool.

DBTT, ductile-brittle transition temperature...this is bringing back memories from my undergrad classes.

For others on this thread, the sudden-onset ductile-brittle transition is an interesting property of some metals/alloys. Essentially, the material undergoes a sudden transition from ductile to brittle at a certain temperature. This change from ductile to brittle also means there is a sudden, large drop in the toughness of the material.

It was largely an unknown phenomenon up until about the 1940s. It was actually a major problem with the so-called "Liberty ships" that sailed in the northern Atlantic Ocean during WWII. The metal alloys behaved perfectly at ambient temperatures when tested during construction, but would undergo a sudden, substantial transition from ductile to brittle at a certain temperature, the DBTT. The problem in those days was that the DBTT was higher than the temperatures of north-Atlantic waters, so these ships suddenly became very brittle when they sailed out into cold water, leading to catastrophic failures. This is one of the issues that lead to much of the study of metallurgy (and later materials science) as we know it today.

Nowadays, we know and understand a lot more about the behavior of materials, so to a competent engineer, things like service temperature are well accounted for.

Sixty Fiver

[QUOTE=Machka;13239089]Where's your proof? What happens at -51C?

Hydrogen embrittlment / failures can occur at room temperature.

You would not believe how much testing the equipment we used to build had to go through before it was passed... this is of most concern in the oil industry where you are dealing with high loads and pressures and where failure of a part could cause catastrophe.

Embrittlement can occur throughout the process of alloying steels and casting where hydrogen is introduced and can also be introduced during manufacturing and final fabrication.

I am not a materials engineer... just a guy who works with a torch.

Sixty Fiver

Folks knew that embrittlement was an issue back in the 1800's but it was only in the 20th century that people started figuring out what was causing it and how to address it.

Titanium alloys are also susceptible to this.

vettracer

Dang! you found me out. Yep, a materials engineer.

For me, metals date back to school as well, my work experience is all composites and polymer systems. Somethings you don't forget though. Metal fatigue and fracture mechanics was another significant result of the study of metalurgy. It's good to not have planes falling out of the sky like the DeHavilland Comet.

Now for all you guys riding around when it is 40 below;

1) How do you breathe, I have only experienced it once, but it was painful

2) What do you use for grease, most lubricants are useless at that temperature? I would expect it to be brutal on wheelbearings and bottom brackets.

Sixty Fiver

It is a mix of old and new... wool for the body and synthetic lubricants for the bike.

Usually run an IGH in the winter that is filled with synthetic oil and things will tick along smoothly at -40C and have experienced a few problems at -46C although I was riding a derailleur equipped bike with a cassette that had also been overhauled with synthetic.

Most bikes will operate quite well as exceeding low temperatures and the biggest issue is moisture contamination that happens when things thaw and then freeze.

threemonkeys

I'm a newb and wanted to read this post as it seems like a good question. And I'm amazed at some of the snotty, 'humerous' responses. Maybe some of you all-knowing folks should try and remember a time when you didn't have all the answers to every question.

Sarcastic humor often does not translate well to text. So I'm guessing most of you aren't intentionally trying to look like such arrogant jerks. Right?

Just saying.

Sixty Fiver

No... most of us are arrogant jerks who actually do have the answer to every question.

ahsposo 

Oh, no. Arrogant jerk is easy for roadies.

Just answering.

vuduchyld5

Damn right! Then reply back with a little sarcasm and we " have our panties in a bunch" or we need to grow a thicker skin. B-tch Please!...hahaha!