# Scratched my new bike



## Tick_Tock_Glock (Jul 6, 2010)

Had my 2013 Allez elite for 3 weeks, I put my bike against a pole in my garage thinking that it would not fall down. I was doing something and kinda of nudged the front wheel, and I saw the bike fall and slide down the pole in slow motion. 
Now I have 3 small scratch/gashes on my top tube.
Now I tend to stare at them when I get on the bike. I guess it is hard to have a scratch free bike when it is used.


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## tetter (Jun 28, 2008)

I understand that the first dings you put on a bike are hard but if you ride it as often as you should stuff is going to happen. I have a a couple a good nicks on the down tube from rock whacking the paint. i see dings on a bike as i do the scars on myself most are badges of honor, some are 'well that was dumb, don't do that again' and few 'well that wasn't my fault at all, oh well'.

also don't look down but look at the road ahead.


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## martinrjensen (Sep 23, 2007)

Touchup paint. Get a matching color from a hobby shop (testors enamel) if nothing else. Maybe your LBS can get the matching color. No big deal


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

Good. Now you can stop worrying about how it looks and just ride it.


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## siclmn (Feb 7, 2004)

I find it amazing how most cyclists don't know how to park their bikes. Everybody thinks you should lean it so the bars and seat touch something and that should hold it steady. 
Now you have a wear mark on the seat and bars and the bike can still roll away.
A bicycle shop owner taught me something over 30 years ago and I practice it to this day. 
Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
This rant is over.


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## Aikea Guinea (Aug 1, 2012)

An alternative to touch up paint is nail polish especially if you have women in the house with a large cache in assorted colors. I have always been able to find a close color or mix two for a close match. Follow up with a clear coat. Another tip is to use a tooth pick to apply to scratches. You can then easily wipe away any color applied outside the scratch without effected what was applied in the scratch. After adding the final clear coat you barely can tell the scratch exists.

If you happen to use the Kardashian line of nail polish for touch up, I hear your bike gains some vertical compliance.


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## Hooben (Aug 22, 2004)

Why don't you try to rub out the mark with some elbow grease. Maybe it's just the clear coat.


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## Erion929 (Jun 10, 2010)

siclmn said:


> Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
> This rant is over.



I do that....works great. Only needs 1" of the rubber tire touching the wall. :thumbsup:





Hooben said:


> Why don't you try to rub out the mark with some elbow grease. Maybe it's just the clear coat.


If you know what you're doing, it can work well. If you do it wrong, you trade a thin scratch for a wide blotch eyesore.


**


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## stanseven (Nov 9, 2011)

All paint for cars, bikes, etc., has a PDG code. That's the industry standard. Ask the manufactuere what the paint code is. Or take your bike to a body shop and ask to see their sample book to match the color. The last resort is find the color code online but the colors that show on your monitor are slightly off from the actual. You can order the paint online and it's very cheap.


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## looigi (Nov 24, 2010)

It's a tool, not a jewel. The only bike that will remain perfectly pristine is the one that's not ridden.


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## Tick_Tock_Glock (Jul 6, 2010)

looigi said:


> It's a tool, not a jewel. The only bike that will remain perfectly pristine is the one that's not ridden.


True, just gonna leave the scratches there, gonna get knicks from road rocks anyways later on.


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## Skinner222 (Aug 31, 2012)

The first scratch is always the hardest. But it's going to happen eventually, so I guess "eventually" finally arrived for you.

Cheers!


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## octobahn (May 30, 2012)

siclmn said:


> I find it amazing how most cyclists don't know how to park their bikes. Everybody thinks you should lean it so the bars and seat touch something and that should hold it steady.
> Now you have a wear mark on the seat and bars and the bike can still roll away.
> A bicycle shop owner taught me something over 30 years ago and I practice it to this day.
> Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
> This rant is over.


I do that too but it's been problematic at times. Seems that one of my front cable has too much tension (too short) and it always pulls the bar to the right. As a result I've had some close calls with nearly dropping the bike. And when I first started riding I dropped my bike 3-4 times in different scenarios, just part of the learning process. Now I'm more aware of how I prop up the bike with what works and doesn't, and it's got some war scars so I care less about it's overall looks and more about it's running condition.


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## 2wheelsrule (Sep 2, 2012)

siclmn said:


> i find it amazing how most cyclists don't know how to park their bikes. Everybody thinks you should lean it so the bars and seat touch something and that should hold it steady.
> Now you have a wear mark on the seat and bars and the bike can still roll away.
> A bicycle shop owner taught me something over 30 years ago and i practice it to this day.
> Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
> This rant is over.


your a genius! Thanks for the this!


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## arai_speed (Aug 19, 2003)

I use this - no scratches on my bike (yet)


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## nordy643 (Aug 3, 2012)

arai_speed said:


> I use this - no scratches on my bike (yet)


You need to ride more!


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## homebrewevolver (Jul 21, 2012)

JCavilia said:


> Good. Now you can stop worrying about how it looks and just ride it.


this x999 :thumbsup:


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## qatarbhoy (Aug 17, 2009)

My wife picked up some weird white paste that can be applied and rubbed into superficial marks and hey presto, they're gone, or at least dramatically minimised. 

I've used the occasional sticker to cover scratches that went through the clear coat. 

Scratches are annoying at the time but you soon get over it.


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## Tick_Tock_Glock (Jul 6, 2010)

qatarbhoy said:


> My wife picked up some weird white paste that can be applied and rubbed into superficial marks and hey presto, they're gone, or at least dramatically minimised.
> 
> I've used the occasional sticker to cover scratches that went through the clear coat.
> 
> Scratches are annoying at the time but you soon get over it.


true, dont care about scratches now, just as long as its not a dent.


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## joda (Sep 13, 2012)

siclmn said:


> I find it amazing how most cyclists don't know how to park their bikes. Everybody thinks you should lean it so the bars and seat touch something and that should hold it steady.
> Now you have a wear mark on the seat and bars and the bike can still roll away.
> A bicycle shop owner taught me something over 30 years ago and I practice it to this day.
> Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
> This rant is over.


Thanks!

That's not in the manual ;-)


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## joda (Sep 13, 2012)

Tick_Tock_Glock said:


> Had my 2013 Allez elite for 3 weeks, I put my bike against a pole in my garage thinking that it would not fall down. I was doing something and kinda of nudged the front wheel, and I saw the bike fall and slide down the pole in slow motion.
> Now I have 3 small scratch/gashes on my top tube.
> Now I tend to stare at them when I get on the bike. I guess it is hard to have a scratch free bike when it is used.


That sucks. There is only one option now: You have to sell your bike for scrap metal and go buy a new one. Sorry...


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## Rekless1 (Aug 23, 2012)

The bike can still fall even when leaned by the back tire.

This idea is something I've used since I was a kid. Your bike can not fall with this on there without being literally tipped over. This is just a piece of velcro, always works. The only downside is you have to actually use it.


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## Tick_Tock_Glock (Jul 6, 2010)

joda said:


> That sucks. There is only one option now: You have to sell your bike for scrap metal and go buy a new one. Sorry...


:yikes::


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## JCavilia (Sep 12, 2005)

Rekless1 said:


> The bike can still fall even when leaned by the back tire.
> 
> This idea is something I've used since I was a kid. Your bike can not fall with this on there without being literally tipped over. This is just a piece of velcro, always works. The only downside is you have to actually use it.


Yeah, that works. Someone (Rhode Gear?) used to make a nifty thing called the "FlickStand." Little bracket that mounted under the downtube, with a wire loop that could be flipped down to hold the front tire. Quckly and easily did what your strap does.


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## quikrick1 (Sep 28, 2011)

That's too bad TickTock. But it is kind of an initiation thing. 
Here's my stupid story:
I wanted to get some pics of my bike with new bar tape and all black tires. So I leanded the crank arm on a big low rock and held her steady... I let go and backed up to get the shot. Just as I snapped the first pic, a gust of wind came up and tipped the bike onto that rock hiding in the grass. It left a very minor mark on the paint of the top tube. You think I would have stopped there...BUT NOoo, I propped the bike up again, snapped the second shot... another gust of wind... down she goes. This time it left a bigger mark in a more visable area of the top tube. I can't even call those Battle Scars! I felt sick after that.


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## Rekless1 (Aug 23, 2012)

JCavilia said:


> Yeah, that works. Someone (Rhode Gear?) used to make a nifty thing called the "FlickStand." Little bracket that mounted under the downtube, with a wire loop that could be flipped down to hold the front tire. Quckly and easily did what your strap does.


Yea, I've seen those too.

I "think" they go back before rhode gear even. But obviously most of are not going to mount anything to our pretty frames we don't even want to scratch.


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## Mr. Versatile (Nov 24, 2005)

Your bike is now broken in. It's possible that a bike with 10,000 miles on it will not be broken in. Breaking in has nothing to do with mileage. It's when you get your 1st scratch/dent/mar/or damage from assplosion that it's broken in. Congrats.


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

You broke in your bike. Bikes cannot be ridden forever and expect to remain in pristine condition. Like another poster said, now you can't stop worrying about it's looks and just ride it and enjoy it.


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## Ranger9701 (Mar 4, 2012)

I tried using the "battle scar" train of thought but those damn scratches just keep staring at me. :mad2:


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

Ranger9701 said:


> I tried using the "battle scar" train of thought but those damn scratches just keep staring at me. :mad2:



How major are the scratches? It's possible you could use Mothers California Gold Scratch Remover, just follow the directions real well. Afterwords follow up with Mothers California Gold Synthetic wax; personally on the wax side I prefer Meguiars Ultimate Liquid Wax over the Mothers, but Mothers scratch removal is a the better product for scratches. Make sure you clean the bike thoroughly before you do the Scratch removal process, when done using the scratch product then wax the entire bike, the bike as a whole will look better then just waxing the area you fixed. 

If the results of the scratch removal doesn't make you happy then you have to take a more extreme measure, and instead of me writing forever just look at this site: How to Repair Your Car Scratch - Popular Mechanics After the repair is done then use the Meguairs Ultimate Liquid Wax to bring back the gloss.

Do not use rubbing compounds because you could remove too much of the paint. And make sure if you end up taking the extreme measure is that you go easy on the sanding and in the smallest area possible to limit possible damage to surround paint.

If you're not confident of doing the extreme measure you can always get touch up paint or fingernail polish and lightly using thin coats of paint to cover the scratch using a fine point brush. Some people air brush the repair which turns out far better then a brush. If you know someone that's into RC stuff or modeling they can probably help you with the air brushing. Make sure though that you test the paint for color accuracy on a scrap piece of steel to see how it will look. If you really want to go nuts into this you can take the bike down to a auto painter that has a paint matching computer, or to a wholesale automotive paint supply place that has one, and they can mix up an exact replica of your paint color and sell you a pint...be prepared for the cost of the pint is about $45! Sometimes the automotive paint match computer will come up with a color code and you take that info to a hobby store and they may carry that color or can get it if matches a hobby paint.


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## benqbeiza (Sep 16, 2012)

Ah, that sucks.


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## benqbeiza (Sep 16, 2012)

siclmn said:


> I find it amazing how most cyclists don't know how to park their bikes. Everybody thinks you should lean it so the bars and seat touch something and that should hold it steady.
> Now you have a wear mark on the seat and bars and the bike can still roll away.
> A bicycle shop owner taught me something over 30 years ago and I practice it to this day.
> Always lean the rear wheel against something and your bike will not move an inch if you do it right. The only thing touching the wall will be the rear wheel. Try it sometime. It will be solid like a rock.
> This rant is over.


That's genius.


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## Staxed (Sep 14, 2012)

Scratches and gashes just make the bike lighter...right?


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## Aikea Guinea (Aug 1, 2012)

Staxed said:


> Scratches and gashes just make the bike lighter...right?


Lol. Now all the manufacturers will follow Lynksey and offer variations of a raw finish, saving crucial grams of paint weight. Now where was it I put my unpainted, springless skewers..?


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

Aikea Guinea said:


> Lol. Now all the manufacturers will follow Lynksey and offer variations of a raw finish, saving crucial grams of paint weight. Now where was it I put my unpainted, springless skewers..?


Most TI bikes are not painted. Lynskey offers different finishes, the dull raw look is their cheapest and heaviest finish, the best finish is a high luster finish which weighs less because you have to remove micro amounts of the titanium to get to the polish look.


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## qatarbhoy (Aug 17, 2009)

froze said:


> Most TI bikes are not painted. Lynskey offers different finishes, the dull raw look is their cheapest and heaviest finish, the best finish is a high luster finish which weighs less because you have to remove micro amounts of the titanium to get to the polish look.


Don't all Ti bikes end up with an all-over fingerprint finish?


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## froze (Sep 15, 2002)

qatarbhoy said:


> Don't all Ti bikes end up with an all-over fingerprint finish?




The duller finishes don't show fingerprints well at all, the others of course would, but using Pledge cleans it up fast. I don't recommend using Pledge on painted surfaces though only because it's not as hardy of a wax as car wax, but for TI it works great since your not after protecting the finish just getting finger prints, sweat etc smudges off the frame and give it a bit of a luster. You can use car wax too on TI, some of the spray and wipe stuff the market like Meguiars would probably be better then Pledge especially in the luster department.


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