Good or Bad Carbon?

Matt Wimberger in the U.S. wants to know about the quality of carbon frames from Asia, we have mentioned this subject before, but here we discuss the subject with a bit more depth. What are the problems with carbon frames?

Question:

Is there a difference in the quality of carbon frames made in Asia and those made elsewhere (France, Italy and The U.S.)?

Hi Matt,

This is a tricky subject because much of the worlds carbon comes from the Far East, but then it’s very important what is done with the carbon after it’s has been exported. The way the tubes or the monocoque is set up is very important, how they layer the carbon and what other materials they layer it with. Monocoque is (as its name refers) one piece, this doesn’t mean that it is any stronger than connected tubes, it’s just a different way of doing the same job, and both methods look different. The tube method looks more like the old fashioned steel or alloy frames with tubes and lugs connecting the tubes, where as the mono should look like a smooth one piece construction, but tends to be more chunkier at the head set and bottom bracket areas.

Made in U.S.

You want to compare the carbon frames made in Asia and France, Italy and the U.S. well; do you know for sure that is where they are made? In France, I’ve seen the manufacture of Time and Look and they are in house, in Italy the more expensive carbon frames are also manufactured there, the cheaper ones come from either Taiwan or China, this is also the same for some well know U.S. frames. There is a lot of production in the Far East at a low price, as I’m sure you know with nearly every thing you buy these days, this (in most cases) doesn’t mean it is of bad quality, you maybe buying something the same as a branded item, but with out the famous name.

Made in Italy

Now to the warning! If you see a carbon frame at 100 U.S. Dollars and you like the look of it and don’t mind taking a chance, then buy it. It may last you a life time, look great and ride well. On the other hand; it may break threatening your life and safety, this could happen with any bike or car or household item, the difference could be that you have some form of redress against the manufacturer, which should be fairly straight forward with a well known company with a public liability insurance scheme. When you have bough a “No Name” frame from a non-descript seller, or possibly a private seller then who are you going to call when something goes wrong?

Made in Taiwan

I hope this helps?