Tips on protecting your frame

January 19th, 2007 by Tim Grahl

Your frame is likely the most expensive and least expendable part of your bike, what steps can you take to protect it?

Chainstay - Your chain beats the chainstay pretty good and I’ve had it take chunks out of the metal before. Lizard skin has a bunch of chainstay guards for sale but I’m sure you can find some kind of scrap material laying around you can duct tape

Cable rub - Causes less damage than your chain smacking around, but where the cables contact the frame, especially around your headtube, can eventually cause damage. Try putting a sticker in the sensitive areas for protection.

Fork drop outs - I cart my bikes around a lot without the front wheel on them. This means standing them up on the fork dropouts a lot and the potential of getting them bent out of wack. I’ve started using one of those plastic protectors that come on your bike when it’s first out of the box. If it’s good enough for being shipped cross country, it’s probably good enough to survive my trunk.

What other things do you do to protect your frame?

6 Responses to “Tips on protecting your frame”

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1 fixedgear on Jan 20th, 2007 at 11:34 am

Spray the inside of steel frames with J.P. Wiegles Frame Saver, or use linseed oil.
2 Aaron on Jan 20th, 2007 at 4:16 pm

I use a scrap of spare tube to protect from chain slap on my mtn bikes. I wrap it really tight like a road handle bar tape and then clamp the ends with zip ties. I highly recommend this trick because its easy and provides a very good cushion for chain and rear der. slap.

I am also concerned about the down tube of carbon frames because of all the little bits that get kicked up by the front wheel. To make myself feel better I lay a thick layer of spongy tape along the bottom. (several layers of electrical tape or a product called helicopter tape if you’re lucky enough to find it) Electrical tape actually works very well for a variety of things. It has a little bit of give to it and the adhesive works well but wont damage anything. So I use it to stop cable rub, cover up ugly manufacturer’s markings (contact paper works great here too), prevent damage from seat bags or strap on pumps, etc.
3 Paul on Jan 21st, 2007 at 1:42 am

When I bought my first mountain bike in 1988 the shop asked me if I wanted a chainstay protector like Aaron described. A neatly wrapped piece of tube finished with zip ties, and it lasted for years. The tube finally rotted off after a decade of daily use. It’s pretty easy to redo and costs zip, well zip ties.

I’ve also seen bikes where the owner has taken a piece of tube roughly the length of the chainstay, slit it open, and then zip tied that to the chainstay. IMO the prior method ads more protection and looks better. The BOBs of the world can wrap twine and shellac it.
4 Chuck on Jan 23rd, 2007 at 8:21 pm

Bonk! protective film is the bomb. It’s 3M automotive protective film in bike sized shapes and sizes.

Disclaimer: I’m not connected with the company, I just use the product, love it and recommend it.

http://www.bonkprotection.com/
5 Teamfubar on Jan 23rd, 2007 at 10:37 pm

Protective film is nice, but why not just go to a place like Staples or Office Max and get yourself a roll of Duck brand or 3M packing tape. (The Duck brand is a bit thicker). It is almost the perfect width for an aluminum frame’s down tube. Plus, you can do about 6 bikes for less than 5 bucks. What is even nicer is if you can get your hands on some is mat tape. It is the clear tape that wrestlers (real colligiate style) use to tape the 3 pieces of mat together. It is nice and thick and really sticky. It would hold up to some serious abuse.
6 Dirtpedaler on Jan 24th, 2007 at 11:03 am

I’m a fan of either cloth handlebar tape or hockeystick tape. Self adhesive, super cheap, and looks really clean.

Tips on protecting your frame

6 Responses to “Tips on protecting your frame”

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