can i use a carbon frame in a trainer?

landscapingsam

i am approx 34 hours 41 mins and 6 seconds from picking up my first carbon steed however l have to sacrifice my alu one to make way for it. I have heard that you should not put a carbon frame in a turbo trainer,is this true?

ivancarlos

Don't see why you cant although there is a fair amount of flex and I wouldn't want to risk what is bound to be an expensive bike.

paulieb2006

Not 100% but you see the pros using them all the time before timetrials and stuff.

cougie

I've never heard of anyone breaking one in a turbo. As Paulie says - the pros do their warm ups on turbos on them, and they will put a lot more power into their bikes than we can.

landscapingsam

Granted, but if they were to break a frame they would just get given a replacement. I wish i was this lucky.

Maybe I will air on the side of caution and switch to rollers. But then that may be just as dangerous!

dttlincs

I don't know the make of your new bike but I recently got and Spesh Tarmac and contacted them about this. They said an "A" from turbo would make any frame warranty void if it were to suffer damage. They said non "A" frame types are OK. Something to do with forces on the chainstays if I remember correctly. I do not know how they could prove what type of turbo you have used though.

dennisn

I have had all sorts of bikes on trainers(although not carbon) from high end ones to department store junkers. Never had one fail in any way(well, that old department store one kind of rusted away). In any case I would sure be p*ssed off if a frame and fork, any frame and fork, that I had paid big dollars was to fail simply because I used it on a trainer. If it failed on a trainer, which has no road shock at all, I doubt it would get you
to the end of your street without falling apart(so to speak). Anyway that's MHO.

Dennis Noward

sicrow

cougie wrote:

I've never heard of anyone breaking one in a turbo. As Paulie says - the pros do their warm ups on turbos on them, and they will put a lot more power into their bikes than we can.

this has been posted a number of times before - personally I don't put mine in the Turbo -(my winter hack only) - not because of any definitive view on it but sods law mine would break so why risk it

cougie

Someone wrote off their Colnago when taking a pic of it in the garden - leant it up against a bush - went to take the pic, and the bike fell over and whacked on the rockery. Written off.

Everything has risks - but turbo is a lot safer than road cycling I reckon for your frame.