I broke my Ruby's seat stay! (repair advice please)

[aicabsolut]

Well, I would never try to sell a repaired carbon frame, just because I wouldn't want to make anyone take that risk. Any bike shop or manufacturer will advise you against repairing carbon, but at the same time, I've seen Calfee repairs and have heard plenty of good reviews from others about them. Some say that the place where Calfee does the patch will be stronger than the original (but who can tell, really). So it is up to you what you want to do.

Did you have it thoroughly inspected by your mechanic for stress fractures elsewhere? Have you been over it with a quarter (the tap test) and a flashlight?

I don't know if I'll do any mass start races on my Roubaix frame when I get it fixed. It may not be worth it as a TT bike either, because I'd probably want a lighter, aero frame. So I think it could just be a spare. I'm leaning towards putting better climbing gears on it. Even though it's heavier and not as stiff, it'd still be good to practice on for some climbing.

That's weird about the sending in the frame. I know they do that for warranty, but I didn't think they cared about crash replacement. When I asked about mine, they recommended against repair, but I thought I could do that and get a replacement. The problem wound up being I could do neither w/in a month, and I needed a bike in 2 weeks tops, so I just said F* it and bought an S-works frame for a good deal from the local Concept Store.

[Tokie]

As others have said, Specialized is probably just covering their A**** by getting a broken frame off the road. My bike is with an experienced mechanic getting stripped. He said one repair option would be to heat the frame and remove and replace the entire rear triangle. Now that sounds pretty pricey. Calfee does have a good reputation, but this is my everything bike - I tour on it, do crits, road races and TT's on it. I'm leaning more towards the replacement option tonight. Looking at the bright side - if it's something I can fix with money, I've been very lucky. I'll let you all know what the final decision is! Thanks everyone for your 2 cents and personal experiences, and taking the time to help me out! You guys are the best! Tokie

[Aggie_Ama]

I also wonder if it isn't a r&D thing? I would think it would help a company to see how the bike broke under a crash but most likely it is liability.

[Tokie]

I bet they do learn alot from looking at how their frames do break under real life conditions...Once I started asking around here at home, it's surprising how many people have cracked up a frame or two. (Or maybe not so surprising!) The thousands of comfortable miles I rode on my Ruby make it an easy decision to stay with carbon though - so comfortable! tokie

[aicabsolut]

Looking at the bright side - if it's something I can fix with money, I've been very lucky. Tokie

So true.

Let us know what you decide to do. And post pictures! (of the new ride or the repair)

[Tokie]

I will! I hope to get answers from 2 bike stores tomorrow about what they can do for me, then get things in motion. Thanks again for bringing up the crash replacement option! tokie

[Tokie]

Well after a weeks worth of consideration, I have a plan: 1. send Ruby to Calfee for repair seat stay, so far no other damage has been noted, sell Rolf SL wheelset that was on the Ruby( I get high-speed shimmy with them)2. strip wheels and combination of shimano and campy off of my ill-fitting Colnago ( it was "turning Japanese" because the Campy shifters killed my thumbs). Sell colnago frame, give campy group to DH, have mechanic put in campy hub part that lets campy wheel accept Shimano 3.Buy Trek Madone 4.7 - put shimano ultegra group on repaired Ruby, put shimano dura-ace group from Ruby on Trek Madone 4.7, put shimano compatible campy wheelset on Trek Madone,put bontager wheelset on Ruby. Kind of confusing, but it makes perfect sense to me. I love my Ruby, but when I got on the Madone I was amazed - the frame was much stiffer, the stand over is lower, and in a slow speed turn, it is incredibly stable. The stiff frame will be great for racing. And the Ruby will probably be my favorite for touring and some of our pot holey mountain climbs we have here. And it will be good to have a "back up" bike(Ruby) that I love. My friends convinced me that economically, it was a better deal to buy the Trek with everything on it(my dealer was willing to sell me only the frame) I will get the Trek on Thurs and give it to my mechanic to do the group transplant and get the Ruby mailed off. I'll send in photos when it's all done! The Trek is pretty nice looking, kind of pearly white with silver and aqua accents (I think!). I'm lucky I don't have any children to send to college! Tokie