I got this sweet litespeed bike a little while ago but I’m a bit nervous about the fork being 26 years old and carbon. Doesn’t carbon fiber get more brittle and more susceptible to breakage over time? I’m 220lb, not exactly lightweight, definitely putting some stress on it. Should I replace it with cromo? I’m not racing or a weight weenie. Or am I just worrying over nothing?
by bikinibottomrealest8
4 Comments
I have a similar age bike and replaced the fork. If you don’t have the full history, maybe don’t leave it to chance. Depends on your comfort level.
Any used carbon is a crap shoot in the sense that, without NDT, you really don’t know what’s going on in the substrate. That is, if there is internal delamination or cracking.
No one here on this forum can guarantee that the fork has or hasn’t been compromised. That’s the bottom line.
I personally ride a lot of 25~35 year old carbon, even stuff I’ve refurbished myself, and have never had any issues. Definitely a “mileage will vary” situation, but usually signs of bad things happening or beginning to happen are *fairly* obvious. That said, no one can make any guarantees for you on any of that stuff without expensive NDT.
Hell i have trust issues even with new carbon….