Carbon fork lifetime

[Bron]

Does anyone know how long a carbon fork usually lasts?
I was talking about the materials bikes are made out of with some colleagues and it got me wondering.

It seems quite rare to find steel bikes over here - most of them are aluminium which seems a shame especially when you look at how long some steel bikes last.

[7rider]

Until it breaks???

Honestly, there are just so many variables, that it would be difficult to say.

[Andrea]

Yes, the nice thing about carbon is that there's no metal fatigue, so it lasts and lasts... unless you hit something, and then it breaks. Carbon fork breaks aren't uncommon if you wreck into something very hard head-on, like a high speed run-in with a curb, other cyclist, or car.

Otherwise, they'll last as long as you do!

[alpinerabbit]

Google says Trek gives a lifetime warranty on its bikes with carbon forks.

Re: Steel frames: they are very much available in Europe.
Google in German for suppliers...
here's 2 I came up with:
http://www.germans-cycles.de

this guy is right by my commute:
http://www.fahrradbaustolz.ch

[Bron]

Yes, the nice thing about carbon is that there's no metal fatigue, so it lasts and lasts... unless you hit something, and then it breaks. Carbon fork breaks aren't uncommon if you wreck into something very hard head-on, like a high speed run-in with a curb, other cyclist, or car.

Otherwise, they'll last as long as you do!

Thanks, that was what I was wondering. I knew that they break if you hit something hard enough (but then steel will bend or break too). It was more day-to-day fatigue that I was wondering about.

Google says Trek gives a lifetime warranty on its bikes with carbon forks.

Re: Steel frames: they are very much available in Europe.
Google in German for suppliers...
here's 2 I came up with:
http://www.germans-cycles.de

this guy is right by my commute:
http://www.fahrradbaustolz.ch

Oooh, thanks for those links. Not that I am looking for a new bike, but it's good to know. I know steel is available, it just seems far less common here e.g. the bianchi steel bikes which quite a few ladies here on the forum have are just not sold over here and the only steel racing bikes I have seen recently have been older ones (like my peugeot, which is still going strong).

[alpinerabbit]

I know steel is available, it just seems far less common here

True - Alu and then Carbon are all the rage. But they are around. Mostly from smaller foundries.

e.g. the bianchi steel bikes which quite a few ladies here on the forum have are just not sold over here

why not - ?
http://www.bianchi.com/en/products20...mes_X7B12.aspx
should be available for ordering at a local dealer.

Maybe they are not widely seen because no one can stand celeste? (it's got the Ullrich touch/taint and anyway... eek. I hate celeste)

[Aggie_Ama]

Carbon fork breaks aren't uncommon if you wreck into something very hard head-on, like a high speed run-in with a curb, other cyclist, or car.

Or Kamikaze squirrels that run into/in front you. That happened either to someone on here or one of my husband's old teammates. Snapped the fork, tacoed the wheel and the poor squirrel died too.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Or Kamikaze squirrels that run into/in front you. That happened either to someone on here or one of my husband's old teammates. Snapped the fork, tacoed the wheel and the poor squirrel died too.

That is happening more and more frequently now that people have fewer and fewer spokes on their wheels. It's not easy for a squirrel to get caught in a moving wheel with 32 spokes- they tend to just bounce off. Not so with wheels with fewer spokes- they can get partway through the wheel gaps and then spun up and crushed in the fork. My DH and I refer to the modern few-spoke racing type wheels as "squirrel catchers".

We have 32 spokes on all our wheels.
I had a squirrel run smack into my front wheel spokes from the side last year...the spinning wheel flung him up and over my head, but he didn't get caught in my wheel. I stopped my bike and looked back where the squirrel was lying in the middle of the road behind me. Then he got up, looked real confused, and then ran off! close call!

[smilingcat]

Aluminum definitly suffers from fatigue. But I'm not sure how to tell if an aluminum frame/fork is fatigued.

And carbon, I worry about UV light from the sun and how it affects the hardner in the resin matrix between the carbon fiber. Plastics made with hardner will cause the plastic to become hard and brittle over time. Sometimes its accelerated by exposure to UV. And there is the problem with oxidation even on plastics.

I honestly don't know about how long a carbon fork will last. If I see a hairline crack in the resin, it's time to replace. you might want to pour dye, with different color than the fork, on it so you can see the crack.

Food for thought: I've seen aluminum frames fail. My steel frame using tange #1 tubing failed at the bottom bracket, Then again I had about 15,000 hard miles on it. And just about two weeks ago, I saw my first cracked Ti frame with 3/2.5 composition. It cracked on the downtube right where the cable guides attach near the head tube, a Lemond bike. I think it had over 20,000 hard miles on it. male cat 4 rider.
And yes I've also seen carbon frames fail too but it was one of the earlier(older) frames.

smilingcat

[Aggie_Ama]

We have 32 spokes on all our wheels.
I had a squirrel run smack into my front wheel spokes from the side last year...the spinning wheel flung him up and over my head, but he didn't get caught in my wheel. I stopped my bike and looked back where the squirrel was lying in the middle of the road behind me. Then he got up, looked real confused, and then ran off! close call!

Your stories never cease to amaze me!

Here in Texas I am also worried about startling cows on the open range ranches. There is no fear like a terrified baby calf is running confused on the road with you. I don't even want to think about the bike/cyclist vs. cow scenario!