Stains on new bike frame

Petermather497

Hi I just received my bike today it’s a cube attai gtc sl the frame is a matt like smooth finish and I’ve noticed loads of weird stains in places they some of them look like sticker marks and some look like cable rub marks but there’s no cable there it’s all internal routed my last cube was painted and I couldn’t see any marks on it any advice appreciated

jimbohorizontal

My betting is that it's the unidirectional carbon fibre showing through the clearcoat and there's nothing to worry about.

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Maybe someone sent that 56cm back after trying it and found it didn't fit right? Hard to say.

Petermather497

No the bikes brand new never been ridden

MattFalle

If you're not happy send it back. If you're not happy with it straight out of the box you never will be and it'll just put you off riding it and make you sad and life is too short to be sad.

Ben6899

N0bodyOfTheGoat said:

Maybe someone sent that 56cm back after trying it and found it didn't fit right? Hard to say.

Is this a dig because he found the 58 too big? Bit of a weird response, tbh.

Ben6899

@Petermather497 got photos to share?

Petermather497

Yes it was a dig because he’s riding a bike that’s far to big for him and I’m not sure how to put photos on this forum I’ve got no laptop at the minute

Petermather497

I’ve emailed some photos to bike shop but they’ll probably try and fob me of saying it’s normal on a matt carbon frame

N0bodyOfTheGoat

Ben6899 said:

N0bodyOfTheGoat said:

Maybe someone sent that 56cm back after trying it and found it didn't fit right? Hard to say.

Is this a dig because he found the 58 too big? Bit of a weird response, tbh.

No it wasn't a dig.

I imagine there's plenty of people that send bikes back after a little go and not everyone will send them back in "as new" condition and given how cycling businesss is booming, staff examining the returns may miss minor issues during inspection.

diamonddog

My matt black frame has them and had them from new, I think most do but it is not a fault afaik.

Petermather497

Petermather497

The last pic was the head tube mark held up to the light it looks worse like that the pic before was looking at bike normal

Ben6899

Looks to me like the carbon fibre layup under the clearcoat.

Petermather497

This is going to be my summer bike so I wanted it to be perfect. But perhaps they’ve all got imperfections in them I’ve just had it in my kitchen again and you can’t really see the marks that bad they seem to be worse in natural daylight

MattFalle

Exactly as Ben says from those pictures

#beniscorrect

Petermather497

Also the seat clamp area doesn’t look right it’s as though they’ve not gone far enough up with the paint this pic is with the clamp level with top of seat tube should there be a few mm of bare carbon showing

Petermather497

Cheers matt what you think about the seat clamp area and will I have to just put up with frame like it is

Ben6899

This is all normal, Peter. Including the seat clamp area.

Another frame will have the carbon weave showing in different places.

Petermather497

Cheers Ben but the 58 I sent back didn’t have the unpainted ridge below the stem it was paint right up to the bottom of the clamp the pic I’ve posted is with the clamp as it should be level with top of seat tube I wonder why the 58 wasn’t like that

Petermather497

It’s like they’ve made the seat tube to long if you know what I mean

darkhairedlord

That's why they invented pigment for the paint. Hides all the imperfections. If you don't like it buy one with paint on it.

diamonddog

^ As above or get a shiny lacquered one, mine doesn’t show any marks on the shiny carbon one.

MattFalle

The seat clamp bit looks weird tbh. Can you get to have a see at any other frames to learn if they are the same?

The other bits, no problems though.

Petermather497

Shop says they’ve checked the other 56cm they’ve got in and there all the same but yet the 58 I sent back was my like that it was normal the shop tried to say perhaps it’s like that just in the 56 cm bikes any way to cut a long long story short I’m sending it back and cancelling my order the shop has agreed to pay for collection

Petermather497

Looking at other bikes now in the 2k budget but all seem to be out of stock unless you want xl or xs

navrig2

I'd avoid matt finish if you want the perfect summer bike. It may come out the box nice and "clean" but after you've handled it, ridden it and washed it the matt finish will no longer be "clean".

Never understood the attraction of matt finish on bikes and cars. I've seen two matt finish Lambos and for supercars they both just looked unfinished.

Just my opinion of course.

That said I have a matt finish Triban from Decathlon. It was the best value bike I could get here in Vietnam and I'll only be here for a year so can live with it.

MattFalle

where abouts in Vietnam are you dude?

navrig2

Saigon. Arrived in August.

MattFalle

Cool. Coolcoolcool. Well jel.

I used to live in Nha Trang - there for about a year first time round, left, went back, left again. Regret leaving loads.

Vietnam is, as you've discovered, utterly wonderful.

Enjoy lots and have a bia hoi or two for me.

Ben6899

MattFalle said:

The seat clamp bit looks weird tbh. Can you get to have a see at any other frames to learn if they are the same?

The other bits, no problems though.

I honestly think the seat clamp area is fine. If the actual seat clamp was chunkier/deeper you wouldn't see it. And if that bit of the bike was finished/lacquered like the rest of the bike then a clamp might not actually fit.

It's a functional part of the frame, at the end of the day.

Agree re: matt finish, needs to be polished regularly to keep it looking nice (that's why I went for Audi grey, but gloss, on my new frame).