Does this look like a crack?

[MeatBike]

I was looking at the photos I took of my bike earlier today and noticed a white line behind the headtube, which has me worried!

Some close ups...

It feels smooth to run my fingernail over it, but then it does have Ride Wrap on it.

Could it be a crack, just a crinkle in the protection film from fitting, or maybe a scratch/scrape to the film from a branch or something?

I've only done two rides on the bike and haven't crashed it yet!

 

[Brawwp]

Scratch

 

[MeatBike]

Scratch

I certainly hope so! It's my first wrapped frame, so I'm not actually sure what scratches to the film look like!

 

[Brawwp]

I certainly hope so! It's my first wrapped frame, so I'm not actually sure what scratches to the film look like!

Yea def scratch, but just peel the wrap up and find out for sure if you’re real worried. You may be able to just peel a little bit up to see if the scratch lifts off and potentially not have to re-do the wrap. Maybe lightly heat it up to peel. I’d go light heat like hair dryer instead of heat gun first.

 

[B-man]

Looks like a crack. Take that one piece of ride wrap off and get a better look. Pull the front brake and rock the bike back and forth and see if the crack changes or makes noise. Ive had many wrapped bikes and never had a scratch like that.

 

[Gila Man]

I was looking at the photos I took of my bike earlier today and noticed a white line behind the headtube, which has me worried!

View attachment 177377

Some close ups...

View attachment 177378
View attachment 177379
View attachment 177380

It feels smooth to run my fingernail over it, but then it does have Ride Wrap on it.

Could it be a crack, just a crinkle in the protection film from fitting, or maybe a scratch/scrape to the film from a branch or something?

I've only done two rides on the bike and haven't crashed it yet!

I’m no expert but, if you zoom in on the 3rd photo, it looks like whatever is causing the line is above the frame’s paint. It’s possible that it’s just a line of the wraps adhesive. What if you warmed it up with a hairdryer and ran your finger over it, the adhesive may move to show it’s not a crack.

 

[MINO]

Just picked mine up yesterday...loving it. Will be adding invisiframe wrap when it arrives next week...i was curious about ride wraps and whether they would potentially cover up frame cracks with the self healing do dads but to be honest i think those with legit frame cracks were just a bad batch from last year. Hope i'm wrong...only way to be sure is to peel back that section of wrap and see if its still there. Looks more like a scratch to me but it's your bike and mine is only a day old.

 

[bmwpowere36m3]

It doesn't look like a typical crack and more like the paint is "bubbled" in a line... which makes me think its something in the film.

Try the hairdryer trick and press down and see if it smooths out. Also putting a heavy load into the bars with the front brake engaged to see if the "crack" changes. Finally pulling the film would be telling.

 

[TG73]

Assuming it's a new bike looks like an adhesive line from where the ride wrap has been pulled back and then squeegeed down to remove a bubble or something. Might fade a bit with a heat gun or just time.

 

[Bear-uk]

I was looking at the photos I took of my bike earlier today and noticed a white line behind the headtube, which has me worried!

View attachment 177377

Some close ups...

View attachment 177378
View attachment 177379
View attachment 177380

It feels smooth to run my fingernail over it, but then it does have Ride Wrap on it.

Could it be a crack, just a crinkle in the protection film from fitting, or maybe a scratch/scrape to the film from a branch or something?

I've only done two rides on the bike and haven't crashed it yet!

As we used to say in the garage I worked in.
Kodak it.
IE keep an eye on it and let it develop

 

[MeatBike]

Thanks all! I'll try and hairdryer on it and see if it's the adhesive. Failing that I'll maybe remove that section of wrap to inspect further. I think you can order replacement single sections from Ride Wrap too.

 

[steve_sordy]

Looks like a crack to me. It is not continuous, as if whatevr it was that caused the scratch skipped over the surface.
However, I think, that the stress test is a good suggestion for any crack, as is the Kodak method.

 

[MeatBike]

Hairdryer plus some vigorous rubbing appears to have removed part of it near the top section...

I'll try more later as I've got things to do with the family today.

 

[Gila Man]

Hairdryer plus some vigorous rubbing appears to have removed part of it near the top section...

View attachment 177400

I'll try more later as I've got things to do with the family today.

I looks like micro-bubbles to me in the wrap's adhesive. You can see the bubbles in other areas of your photo as well. There may me a slight bend in the frame or just the way the wrap was installed that happen to create a line of bubbles. I think you're good to go but, let us know what you find. Good luck sir!

 

[skizzian]

oof! you must have had a sinking feeling seeing that.
if it was a crack it would be continuous I reckon - no little gaps

 

[MeatBike]

Cheers guys!

I'm not long back from a ride and was sending it, and it doesn't appear to have changed at all so I'm just going to assume it's the wrap and get on with enjoying the bike

 

[ragetty]

Whilst it does appear to be the wrap, if it was my bike and I had dependents, I would peel that piece of wrap (or cut out just that section) and ‚know for sure‘ as opposed to only ‚guessing‘.

 

[steve_sordy]

I find that a magnifying glass can often make decision making so much easier. x3 mag should be suffcient.
Yes, you could just magnify a pic, but there is something about the 3D appearance and your ability to move the view around and see the image from lots of different angles that brings a huge increase in clarity to the observation.

 

[Fangs2k]

I don’t want to make you worry unnecessarily, but the ‘micro bubbles’ under the wrap could be being caused by movement in a tiny crack or delamination.

You need to remove that section of wrap and see if the paint is undamaged, and at the least do a coin tap test to check for delamination.

Ultrasonic Non Destructive Testing would be a way to check for sure, and beyond DIY really but some bike shops will have kit like that, or even boat builders and/or automotive fabricators. Worth trying to find one if you’re not convinced after removing the wrap.

 

[irie]

Peel back the wrap and give it a really good check out. You can later put another bit of wrap to replace the stripped bit. Until you do this you won't be sure. No more pussyfooting over this issue, do it. YKIMS.

 

[MeatBike]

I've got Monday and Tuesday off work and need to clean the bike anyway so will remove that section of wrap and have a closer look.

We use a few NDT firms at work so I'll speak to our QA guy and see if he knows any that might be willing to check it out.

 

[MeatBike]

The frame is fine, thankfully!

You can see the mark on the peeled section of wrap...

I've managed to restick it but it looks a bit shit, however the peace of mind is worth it. I'll order the replacement section and get my LBS to fit it properly.