Carbon Damage. Thoughts? (pics)
 

So my chain dropped and i was just trying to shift it back on, which usually works fine, but this time it got stuck and chewed up my frame. I put some clear nail polish on it to keep water out and have been riding it around but i was just wondering what everyones thoughts on this were. Luckily all of my riding is uphill, so if it does fail i wont be flying down a mountain at top speed.

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Holy crap, that chain was angry.

How can you only ride uphill? Do you walk down? What goes up must come down!

You're doomed.

Repairable. Talk to one of the composite repair shops. Shouldn't be an expensive fix. Especially if you're not concerned about matching the paint.

Someone who knows how to do a proper composite repair would be able to fix it, but I doubt it would be cheap. Cheaper than a new frame though. That chain sure did a number on it though.

That looks very nasty. The worse thing about riding something your unsure of is it holds you back.

Hard to tell from the pics but it looks like to went through the carbon-resin layer. Safety is always paramount I say have it inspected by your LBS to be sure. Glad your ok. Prolly the best reason to buy a chain catcher

I'd get it looked at, it does look as though you gouged the clear coat/paint layer, but I've no idea if you've got any structural damage - I'd be surprised unless you've introduced a crack in the carbon at that point, but it would seem hard to know how chain suck could do that

Looking at the pictures my first thought was "chaincatcher"

i'm pretty much a glass half full guy as far as potential frame failure is concerned, but in this case it looks like a hefty chunk of carbon has been chewed off. i would consider a new frame. and this is from a guy whose steel beater bike has had a dime sized hole in the seatstay for about three years now...

+1.
I'm getting one tomorrow. Could happen to anyone.

Good job on the nail polish. A little duct tape and you'll be fine.

Does the CF at the damaged spot feel soft, does it give when you push on it? If so there is damage to its structural strength. If it is still firm you may be okay. My son cracked a seat tube on his CF frame and the
fiber was flexible at the site. I fixed it by filling the seat tube with epoxy above and below the damaged site.
He has been riding it for several months and no problems.

That's repairable at home if you know what are you doing. Why shimano guys always get crap like that ? :/

Depending on the size and bike model i give you 200 bucks for the frame so now I'm the one that might have the accident and not you. Win win situation, you get money for a frame destroyed and i'm the one that might have the accident :D

I certainly wouldn't get a new frame. Carbon can be repaired to be stronger than it was before if you go to the right place. Major metro areas have shops that repair carbon. You could also sent it out to Calfee or somewhere similar. A repair would be much ​cheaper than a frame.

I got one of these on ebay for $20.
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@ Creatre. Yeah, I do have to come down hill eventually. Haha. But most of my riding down is going to be streets that I can't go very fast.

@ a77impala. The carbon doesn't feel soft at all when I push on it.

Most of the damage does seem to be to the paint/clear coat layer. I know I do need to get it fixed eventually, I just don't have the funds for that ATM.

I guess the lesson here is get a chain catcher......or Di2 :rolleyes:

video on how to identify damage and repair shop
http://predatorcycling.com/carbon-fiber-repair/

(no affiliation- they are in my area, that's all)

Yeah, I think Calfee quoted me about $200. I'll just have to learn how to strip down and reassemble the bike.

Cervelo said the would replace it for $1000. Maybe if the ship me back an S5 frame instead....

thanks for that. I'll check em out.

check out these guys: http://www.ruckuscomp.com/

nail polish? on what? those gaping great white shark bites?

Ouch :(

Di2 drops chains too. Chain catcher is a no brainer.

You can't just take off the wheels, seat post, bars/stem, pedals etc and ship it to them? That would be a lot easier than stripping the whole Ultegra group and reinstalling it after the repair. Your LBS can probably give you a box to ship the frame in.