# madone fork failures



## mbershaw (Nov 16, 2005)

anyone have any info on madone fork failures either 5.9 or 5.2


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## zac (Aug 5, 2005)

mbershaw said:


> anyone have any info on madone fork failures either 5.9 or 5.2



No, but I received my carbon frame failure stickers from Trek last week. They were stuck to the instruction sheet and therefore not usable.

zac


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## t1m4d (Dec 31, 2005)

*Dirty little secret*

The fork on my 5500 broke. It was a 96 with alot of miles on it. Thank God I had a helmet on. The letter I got from Trek last week made me think that I settled too soon.


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## wow (Nov 1, 2005)

*Race X Lite or Race XXX Lite*

I took delivery of a 2006 5.2 SL yesterday. When I went to the LBS to look it over the dealer and I noticed it had a Race XXX Lite fork. The specs on the web page shows a Race X Lite fork. Has there been a problem with the XXX Lite fork that prompted Trek to quit using this fork? Whats the deal?

Rode about 30 miles today and this bike met or exceeded all of my expectations. Not a blemish anywhere in the paint or clearcoat.


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

My '05 5.2SL came with an XXX lite fork. I had problems with the paint cracking at the joint where the crown meets the fork arms. Trek and LBS said that this is normal (paint chipping near joints on both frame and fork) and will get worse the more you use it. Completely unacceptable for a high end frame and fork.


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## mbershaw (Nov 16, 2005)

t1m4d said:


> The fork on my 5500 broke. It was a 96 with alot of miles on it. Thank God I had a helmet on. The letter I got from Trek last week made me think that I settled too soon.



Please give me more detail about your accident. conditions, speed, terrain, exactly where
the fork was broken, how many pieces, Injuries sustained etc. Any thing willl be helpful. I have a madone 5.2. I am trying to find out as much as possible and will explain more after reading your reply. Yours is not the only failure that has occured.!


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## zac (Aug 5, 2005)

mbershaw said:


> Please give me more detail about your accident. conditions, speed, terrain, exactly where
> the fork was broken, how many pieces, Injuries sustained etc. Any thing willl be helpful. I have a madone 5.2. I am trying to find out as much as possible and will explain more after reading your reply. Yours is not the only failure that has occured.!



Tell me this won't be going through the back of my mind everytime I ride. Me, an '05 Madone 5.2 SL with Bonty Race XXX Lite fork.

Is it time to replace with a Reynolds fork?

And I agree with the comment: that a high end frame/fork like this should not be having paint-clear coat issues.

peace
zac


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## cmatcan (Oct 6, 2005)

guys guys guys, don't be lame. i work at a trek dealer, we've sold tons of madones, i am waiting for a 5.2 sl myself, and i have never heard of or seen any problems with the fork. any given fork CAN snap-it has more to do with the owner doing stupid things in most cases, and sometimes (very, very rarely) you get a lemon. this is no more likely in a trek fork.


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

cmatcan said:


> guys guys guys, don't be lame. i work at a trek dealer, we've sold tons of madones, i am waiting for a 5.2 sl myself, and i have never heard of or seen any problems with the fork. any given fork CAN snap-it has more to do with the owner doing stupid things in most cases, and sometimes (very, very rarely) you get a lemon. this is no more likely in a trek fork.


Why would Trek say that it was normal (paint cracking near joints)? And the LBS also said that I was the second customer who's had that issue. The first one was a 5200 frame and was having problems with paint near the headtube/toptube area. This LBS is one of the largest Trek dealers in my area: www.jaxbicycles.com
I personally called Trek customer service and I was told that this is a normal occurence. A Trek rep came to check out my fork at the LBS and also said that it was normal. I have never crashed this frame and I have never done any stupid things either  So they lied to me?


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## cmatcan (Oct 6, 2005)

i'm not seeing how they lied to you. they told you it was normal-guess what, it's normal! thats honesty if anything.


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

cmatcan said:


> i'm not seeing how they lied to you. they told you it was normal-guess what, it's normal! thats honesty if anything.


That is not the point. You said that problems with forks most of time are caused by owners doing stupid things..It sounded like you have never heard of paint issues with OCLV's (forks/frames) although you have stated that you are currently working for a Trek dealer. Your post sounded like you don't think that these issues are normal. So I responded to your post and I shared my experience with Trek saying that these issues are normal and obviously not caused by stupid owners doing stupid things to their forks.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

I think the thread is getting murky. The discussion started with the word "failure," which I take to mean shatter, come apart, snap - throwing the rider to the ground with potentially serious consequences.

Then someone attached to that the issue of paint cracking - an entirely separate thing. That's not a fork "failure" in my book. Annoying, frustrating, cause for complaint, yes. But nothing's shattering or snapping, and no one gets hurt from a paint crack.

The two issues should be separated, IMHO.


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

Yes, I agree. I just thought that sharing my experience would be helpful in some way since someone pointed out Trek's notice on paint/clearcoat cracks on their website. Sorry for the hijack..


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## 3465mike (Dec 7, 2004)

*can happen, rare.*

I manage a TREK dealership that is top 20 in the country in OCLV sales. The bottom line is it is possible for cosmetic issues to occur where the carbon fork meets the aluminum dropout, or any area where the carbon and aluminum are joined. Key word here is cosmetic. I think what the dealer and TREK rep were trying to do is ease your concerns about potential failure, and assure that the cracks or chips are merely cosmetic. That being said, your bike finish is covered for 1 year, therefore if you want it repainted, you should be entitled. 







wim said:


> I think the thread is getting murky. The discussion started with the word "failure," which I take to mean shatter, come apart, snap - throwing the rider to the ground with potentially serious consequences.
> 
> Then someone attached to that the issue of paint cracking - an entirely separate thing. That's not a fork "failure" in my book. Annoying, frustrating, cause for complaint, yes. But nothing's shattering or snapping, and no one gets hurt from a paint crack.
> 
> The two issues should be separated, IMHO.


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## 3465mike (Dec 7, 2004)

*your missing the point of the letter*



t1m4d said:


> The fork on my 5500 broke. It was a 96 with alot of miles on it. Thank God I had a helmet on. The letter I got from Trek last week made me think that I settled too soon.


TREK sent those letters out not because there are issues with their products, but because people need to be aware of the nature of carbon fiber. It doesn't bend when it fails, it fails catastrophically. They simply want people to inspect there bicycles after a crash or occasionally after to a ride to ensure the bike doesn't have any damage. This goes for ALL carbon fiber not just TREK and quite frankly is common sense. But we often see people who expect to their chains to last forever, simply because they aren't educated about drivetrains....I think TREK is just trying to educate people on the nature of the material the bike is made with in general......


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

3465mike said:


> TREK sent those letters out not because there are issues with their products, but because people need to be aware of the nature of carbon fiber. It doesn't bend when it fails, it fails catastrophically. They simply want people to inspect there bicycles after a crash or occasionally after to a ride to ensure the bike doesn't have any damage. This goes for ALL carbon fiber not just TREK and quite frankly is common sense. But we often see people who expect to their chains to last forever, simply because they aren't educated about drivetrains....I think TREK is just trying to educate people on the nature of the material the bike is made with in general......


Yes, Trek sent that notice to remind people to check their frames periodically for visible cracks especially after a crash. I didn't miss the point. I simply said that my 8 month old fork (never crashed) and some other guys OCLV frame (less than a year old) in my area mysteriously had cracks in the paint near joints. I believe that this is unacceptable for "normal wear and tear". So I was told by Trek that this is normal wear and tear. I am not whining about it, I'm simply sharing my experience. I doesn't mean it will happen to all OCLV's although this is normal according to Trek. 
If I knew this beforehand, I wouldn't have gotten an OCLV.


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## 3465mike (Dec 7, 2004)

stihl said:


> Yes, Trek sent that notice to remind people to check their frames periodically for visible cracks especially after a crash. I didn't miss the point. I simply said that my 8 month old fork (never crashed) and some other guys OCLV frame (less than a year old) in my area mysteriously had cracks in the paint near joints. I believe that this is unacceptable for "normal wear and tear". So I was told by Trek that this is normal wear and tear. I am not whining about it, I'm simply sharing my experience. I doesn't mean it will happen to all OCLV's although this is normal according to Trek.
> If I knew this beforehand, I wouldn't have gotten an OCLV.


ok, ok....i got ya...But.......like I said in a previous post, these cracks are rare, however if you get them your paint is covered by a 1 year warranty. Regarding not buying the oclv....my friend, _TRUST_ me.....incidental paint cracks are no reason to not (and I'm sure there will be many posts about this comment) ride or own the best made and riding carbon bike in the world...the attention to detail that goes into the manufacturing process is insane! I've had the the chance to tour the OCLV facility in Wisconsin...trust me when I say these bike are meticulously made..I understand your point that the finish should be flawless for the price...A few facts.all non Trek carbon bikes..from Ridley to Calnago are made in one of 3 asian factories.....and none of them use the OCLV process....Don't believe me?? email manufacturers and ask them where there carbon bikes are made...the only exception I know of is Calfee. which up to now hasn't even been patented to prevent others from seeing how it's done.....you made a wise choice.....do yourself a favor, and have them repaint your frame.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

> _A few facts.all non Trek carbon bikes..from Ridley to Calnago are made in one of 3 asian factories.....and none of them use the OCLV process_


In all fairness, it should also be said that Trek now advertises a road bike built with a so-called TCT carbon frame (5000), and other road bikes with TCT carbon seat stays (2200, 2100). I'm not sure where these TCT frames and stays will be made, but I don't believe it'll be the OCLV facility in Wisconsin.

I don't know if any TCT bikes have shown up in bike stores, or if they ever will. One inquiry on this forum about TCT netted the response "mistake on the Trek website" from someone who seemed closer to the inner workings of Trek than I am. 

This is no slam on TCT carbon. It just seems that the equation Trek carbon = OCLV might have to be reformulated a bit. Then again, perhaps TCT is all just a "mistake on the Trek website."


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## cmatcan (Oct 6, 2005)

cosmetic scratches aren't failures
trek carbon is most likely just as safe as any other company's road offerings
fork failures are rare and require ALOT of bad luck
Thread hi-jacking is troll behavior
If you don't have the details or exact facts about supposed problems, it is best to deal with your dealer or trek rep. Starting threads complaining about rumors is a waste of everybody's time. This will be my last post for this thread.


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## stihl (Oct 27, 2005)

cmatcan said:


> cosmetic scratches aren't failures
> trek carbon is most likely just as safe as any other company's road offerings
> fork failures are rare and require ALOT of bad luck
> Thread hi-jacking is troll behavior
> If you don't have the details or exact facts about supposed problems, it is best to deal with your dealer or trek rep. Starting threads complaining about rumors is a waste of everybody's time. This will be my last post for this thread.


Rumors? I just shared my own experience.  
I never said that paint chips result in fork failures.
I said that what happened to my fork is unacceptable, that's it.
I do have details and facts regarding the problem with my fork. Trek said that it was normal with the forks and frames. LBS and Trek checked out the fork, shipped it to Trek for repaint.
Yes, you are wasting my time arguing about your nonsense BS. I don't have time for this.


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## wim (Feb 28, 2005)

*Clarification, and a thought.*

Just for the record: when writing my earlier post about keeping the " fork failure" and the "paint crack" issues separate, I didn't mean to imply that anyone was hijacking the thread. Both issues are interesting to me and I think there's room for both in this thread. I just thought they should be addressed as separate issues a little more than they were.

It did occur to me that a paint crack could possibly indicate movement. If a paint crack travels along the exact path of an underlying joint, it's possible that the joint movement came first, with the paint crack being the visible marker of such movement. I can easily imagine how the different thermal expansion rates of aluminum and carbon fiber cause some unavoidable and normal movement at the steerer/crown joint of the Madone fork, stressing the paint along that interface.


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## 3465mike (Dec 7, 2004)

wim said:


> In all fairness, it should also be said that Trek now advertises a road bike built with a so-called TCT carbon frame (5000), and other road bikes with TCT carbon seat stays (2200, 2100). I'm not sure where these TCT frames and stays will be made, but I don't believe it'll be the OCLV facility in Wisconsin.
> 
> I don't know if any TCT bikes have shown up in bike stores, or if they ever will. One inquiry on this forum about TCT netted the response "mistake on the Trek website" from someone who seemed closer to the inner workings of Trek than I am.
> 
> This is no slam on TCT carbon. It just seems that the equation Trek carbon = OCLV might have to be reformulated a bit. Then again, perhaps TCT is all just a "mistake on the Trek website."


correct. TCT is new for 06 in an effort to compete with less expense asian carbon fiber. Sold as the 5000.......not a race rig, but a comfortalbe affordalble carbon road bike, built over seas and not in the US or OCLV,.......but since we're discussing OCLV and 5.2's, not the 5000's/ I'll digress..


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