Pinarello Dogma F10
We had a Pinarello Dogma F10 come into the shop today where the bike and rider had an unfortunate accident with a dog. Luckily the rider AND pup are okay, but the bike needs a quick stay at the Ruckus repair spa and the bike will be good as new! Each silver marked tube shows the extent of the damages to the bike. The damaged carbon radiated out underneath the paint, compromising each layer.
The Dogma F10 is known for its Carbon Toray 1K Dream Carbon with Nano alloy Technology and adhering to Pinarello’s carbon; we also have this Toray 1K carbon fiber to repair the frame. Because of the extent of the damages, we had to use two different proprietary repair plans: first we strengthen the damaged areas. Then, we used a prepreg 1k weave to build up the affected area, increasing the structural integrity of the tube. Then the bike moved to paint where we smoothed out the area and matched the original black lava base coat and the saturated, vibrant red accents. We finished the bike with a glossy topcoat that will protect the bike in the hot Texas sun for hundreds of thousands of miles to come.
One thing to look for when you’re inspecting your bike is the paint fractures seen above. The flaking is an indicator that carbon below the paint is damaged.
Repair Process
Inspection
First, we visually inspect the bike and then use our ultrasound technology the whole bike and mapped out the extent of the damaged area. Ultrasound removes the guesswork and pinpoints the damage to .001 inch in the layers of carbon. It clearly shows how far the damaged carbon radiated into the frame and how many layers were affected. The grey markings in the picture above highlight how far the damage extends into the frame.
Repair
Each repair has its difficulty level, and this bike is an 8 out of 10. Seat tubes can be hard to repair because of how thin the tube is. In this case, the tube at it’s thinnest is .08 of an inch. Additionally, the bike has two damages. This increases the difficulty because the repair could skew the alignment. We use a jig to keep the rear hub spacing precise and aligned.
This is a cross-section of a seat stay; the different tube thicknesses allow the bike to absorb the shock of the road but remain stiff and responsive.
Damage Removal
The technician is gently hand-sanding the tube to make sure to not cause more damage. Any hard pressure could cause the whole section to rip off.
The dry looking carbon in the center of the seat tube is a clear indication of being damaged. Here we will use a proprietary resin that will repair the area and make the structure stronger than it was before.
Repair Plan
The repair plan consists of measuring and modeling the precise repair layers, cutting out each carbon layer profile. Then, we put the frame in a frame jig to ensure alignment. Next, we begin the layup process using Toray 1K carbon fiber to repair the frame.
Then sealing a pressure bag over the tube and putting it into our heat chamber. You can see leftover white fibers, which will be removed in the next step, from a fabric we use to help reach 100% compaction. You can also see two repaired layers of 1k Toray Carbon.
Paint
Full Restoration
Once the repair is completed we send the bike to paint. The owner wanted to keep the bike looking as striking as it was with its Black Lava look so our painter began mixing paint to give it a full restoration paint scheme. This is all capped off with the graphics being replaced and a final coat of clear coat. We recommend a layer of the clear coat because it protects the frame from unwanted contaminants and UV rays.