# Look 595 paint cracking?



## locomotive1 (Jan 26, 2007)

The paint on my four year old 595 has recently started to crack at the junction of the bottom bracket lug to non-drive side chain stay. It runs vertical from the outside of the chainstay to where the hole is for the front derailleur cable. I have tried to muscle the frame around to look for movement, but there doesn't seem to be any and there isnt any noise when I do so. How might I determine if this is structural or if the paint is just cracking from four years of stress?


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## pennstater (Aug 20, 2007)

I took a picture of a crack in my seat post mast and emailed it to Look USA. They initiated a warranty replacement. But, that was within the 1st year. Still couldn't hurt to ask them.


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## twiggy73 (Jan 19, 2010)

it may be worth a more detailed inspection by a carbon frame repairer as i have seen paint cracks end up being a crack in the carbon. There doesnt need to be movement for it to be cracked 
Good Luck and Let us know how you go 

Twiggy


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## jasjas (Dec 16, 2009)

If you are the original owner, then it should be covered by the 5yr waranty, if its paint, then thats only a 1 yr deal.
Without sending it to LOOK there isnt really anyway you could be certain of the cause.


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## twiggy73 (Jan 19, 2010)

jasjas said:


> If you are the original owner, then it should be covered by the 5yr waranty, if its paint, then thats only a 2 yr deal.
> Without sending it to LOOK there isnt really anyway you could be certain of the cause.



I was under the understanding that the paint was only covered by a 12month warrenty if it is 2 years then that is even better 

There are ways to find out if it is a paint or carbon crack. In Austrailia we have a carbon bike repairer who does ultrasonic testing classed as non destructive testing on the effected area. 
He repaired my paint work after my bottle holder incident (under warrenty) and has seen a 20 fold increase in buisness since he started advertising he skills. including alot of insurance work for paint, cracks and crash work . When i was there he showed me a look frame with cracks in the bottom bracket that looked like hairline cracks in the paint and he said that the pinnerello frames were his number one repair job. 
as we begin to spend countless thousands of dollars on our frames this sort of buisness will boom 
Have a look or talk to your lbs to see if there is some one who can assist you with a quick inspection of your frame. As the option of sending it to look could be a long and drawn out process and may take months. where as something as small as this may have a much quicker turn around time. 
And even better there is no damage what so ever to the frame and it can then be sent to look with the problem already identified. 



Twiggy


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## jasjas (Dec 16, 2009)

I never said 2 years! whatever next :blush2: your right its 1 yr only.

Good idea with the ultra sonic testing.


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## WindMachine (Mar 17, 2009)

I had a somewhat similar issue with paint cracking on a 2008 Look 595. It cracked and peeled around where the rear brake cable enters and exits the frame. It was caused by corrosion from sweat despite my best attempts to wipe it down with a damp cloth after most every ride. It's possible they used a similar paint around the lugs.

When my issue first manifested itself, it was within the 1 year paint/finish warranty window. I checked with my LBS to make sure it was nothing structural - which it's not. Simply caused by weak paint and epoxy sealing up the internal cable routing (along with particularly corrosive sweat, in profuse volumes). I "solved" the problem with two somewhat-properly-colored swaths of electrical tape. This covers it up to prevent the issue from getting any worse. So far that has worked for about 5000 miles. The only time it affects anything is when cables get replaced once per season.

Where did you get your Look 595? As stated above, the frames carry a 5 year warranty. IMO, bring it to your LBS, have them check it out, and if it's just cosmetic - keep riding. The consolation is that the only time someone else will notice the damaged paint is when they're desperately hanging onto your wheel


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## Genshammer (Mar 24, 2011)

*We can help*

Most times when paint cracks it cracks along a lug line because there's a tiny amount of flexure between the two joined tubes. The carbon can flex without issue, but paint/clearcoat is not flexible, so in time, it cracks. Cracked paint does not necessarily mean frame damage. If you've never damaged your bike in the area where the paint is cracking, and if it's along a lug line, you are most likely okay. 

If you'd like to have your frame inspected just to be sure, we can help. We're a full-service carbon fiber bike frame repair facility in North County San Diego. 

Feel free to check out our website for samples of our work and more information on our experience with repairing composites.

Sincerely,


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## locomotive1 (Jan 26, 2007)

The effected area was painted six weeks ago and so far there has been no additiional cracking. At this point it seems like it was only the paint. GOOD NEWS!


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## danielc (Oct 24, 2002)

locomotive1 said:


> The effected area was painted six weeks ago and so far there has been no additiional cracking. At this point it seems like it was only the paint. GOOD NEWS!


Where did you get it painted?


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## locomotive1 (Jan 26, 2007)

I had had a friend who does automotive paint work match the color and dab the area with a brush. Nothing complicated, but it seems to have done the trick.


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