Carbon wrap -what's the point?

dombo6
dombo6 Posts: 582
edited April 2009 in Road buying advice
Can somebody please explain the point of alloy bars/seatposts etc that are then wrapped in carbon? I am looking at replacing my bars and a shop guy showed me some carbon-wrapped but could not adequately explain the benefits.
I can see the benefits of an all carbon or all alloy bar but surely wrapping it gives no benefit other than aesthetic? But then I'm not a materials scientist so perhaps am missing something.

Comments

  • singlespeedexplosif
    singlespeedexplosif Posts: 1,564
    it looks nice. That's it.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    Looks nice, but can also make them stiffer if done right and also, allegedly, absorb vibration. I have a full FSA carbon bar and a FSA alloy wrapped in carbon stem on my bestbike and they are nicer to hold on a long ride on than my all aluminium affair on my trainer bike.

    But generally, it's aesthetic.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    It's significantly easier / cheaper to wrap carbon round an aluminium former - this is a commonly used technique in aerospace to improve strength / fatigue life without big weight gains. Of course, there are some parts which are purely cosmetic.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    It allows the manufacturer to get away with charging more
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  • gtitim
    gtitim Posts: 225
    In my experience, all it does it add a little extra weight and a lot of extra cost. Looks nice though :?
  • magliaceleste
    magliaceleste Posts: 748
    I'm glad that people have seen through this one.
  • giant_man
    giant_man Posts: 6,878
    I can't see every dealer selling carbon wrapped products and letting the customer know it's not pure carbon fibre. I'm sure people have been fooled before now ....
  • kozzo
    kozzo Posts: 182
    edited March 2009
    I had ITM Forged Lite White Carbon

    Bar Stem Seatpost

    I changed for Ritchey WCS alu
    I didn't like the shape of ITM bar

    Ritchey WCS alu is lighter 580 g vs. 676 g measured weight.

    For me ITM was useless, just lost money.
  • acorn_user
    acorn_user Posts: 1,137
    Most carbon cranksets are carbon wrapped around an alloy skeleton. I'm glad we all agree that these carbon layers are cosmetic and useless, because I much prefer the look of polished alloy :D
  • magliaceleste
    magliaceleste Posts: 748
    Dombo6 wrote:
    Can somebody please explain the point of alloy bars/seatposts etc that are then wrapped in carbon?

    I think we're talking about bars, seatpost and stems? nevertheless, Campag Record and Super Record carbon cranks are hollow.
  • bryandeady
    bryandeady Posts: 4
    no benefit at all, pointless, look at some wieghts and you see the carbon wrap actually weighs more than the cheaper alu version.
  • on-yer-bike
    on-yer-bike Posts: 2,974
    bryandeady wrote:
    no benefit at all, pointless, look at some wieghts and you see the carbon wrap actually weighs more than the cheaper alu version.

    Is the Centaur chainset carbon wrap? It weighs about 130 grams less than the alloy one.
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  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    on-yer-bike wrote:
    bryandeady wrote:
    no benefit at all, pointless, look at some wieghts and you see the carbon wrap actually weighs more than the cheaper alu version.

    Is the Centaur chainset carbon wrap? It weighs about 130 grams less than the alloy one.

    It's solid carbon AFAIK
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  • robthehungrymonkey
    robthehungrymonkey Posts: 616
    http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/c ... yone-15422

    I bought a carbon wrap stem (because i liked the looks) the other day as I needed a stem. It's longer than my previous one (and quite a bit lighter) which might account for it, but I found it noticeably less harsh on my journey to work this morning.
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