C40 Carbon Frame Repair Recommendation- A Shoutout!!

[cd_davis]

Have a 2000 Colnago C40 bought new. Right rear dropout is showing signs of fatigue - "galvanic corrosion" or de-laminating both on the drop out itself and on the intersection of the chain stay and the drop out. Left side is OK.
The frame is in excellent condition but requires attention to the drop out.
Besides Calfee, who else can perform such a repair, replacing the drop outs on each side. Thinking the drop out material should be changed from AL? to titanium or stainless. Can post pics if required to highlight condition.

Thanks for your help.
Chris

[cadence90]

Given the various plus/minus reports I have read regarding many other carbon repair shops...for a mint and cherished C40 I would start with Calfee. And I would stop there.

There's a reason you mentioned them and no one else in your post.

[buckfifty]

Could try Kirklee. I had him repair a seat stay and he did a really good job

[SoCalSteve]

Ruckus is a DONT recommend. I believe there is a shop close to Calfee's place that does some of his overflow work...Joe's maybe??? Cheaper and just as good, from what I have heard.

I'm sure someone will weigh in on this.

[cadence90]

Ruckus is a DONT recommend. I believe there is a shop close to Calfee's place that does some of his overflow work...Joe's maybe??? Cheaper and just as good, from what I have heard.

I'm sure someone will weigh in on this.

I have never sent anything to Ruckus, and never would now because of the large number of negative comments.

Yes, the shop that apparently also does some of Calfee's overflow is Joe's Carbon Repair/Carbon Solutions (http://joescarbonrepair.com/), also in Watsonville. They do carbon repair and paint.

[CiclistiCliff]

Joe's is reportedly the original Kestrel carbon guy. We sent a coworkers frame for paint stripping and custom graffics and quality is fantastic.

[pdmtong]

I have never sent anything to Ruckus, and never would now because of the large number of negative comments.

Yes, the shop that apparently also does some of Calfee's overflow is Joe's Carbon Repair/Carbon Solutions (http://joescarbonrepair.com/), also in Watsonville. They do carbon repair and paint.

Joe's is reportedly the original Kestrel carbon guy. We sent a coworkers frame for paint stripping and custom graffics and quality is fantastic.

I've spoken to Joe's the past few years at sea otter. a viable option

Suggest to also make a call to Edgar at RRVelo http://rrvelo.com/repairs.html He used to run mfg for calfee.

Calfee is $$. there is the repair. then there is paint. then there is decal to match. my $400 repair would bloat to $800 for paint and decal match (downtube on a s-works tricross) no thanks. I put a sticker over the repair. it's my cx racer and rain beater.

[cadence90]

Yes, Joe's seems very legit, with a very good reputation. My correspondence with them (Jim Pyatt) was very good.

They have also developed an extremely durable clear coat, which they call Magna Clear (https://www.bikerumor.com/2013/05/15/soc13-carbon-solutions-offer-incredible-carbon-repair-and-paint/). It looks very interesting.

[cadence90]

I've spoken to Joe's the past few years at sea otter. a viable option

Suggest to also make a call to Edgar at RRVelo http://rrvelo.com/repairs.html He used to run mfg for calfee.

Calfee is $$. there is the repair. then there is paint. then there is decal to match. my $400 repair would bloat to $800 for paint and decal match (downtube on a s-works tricross) no thanks. I put a sticker over the repair. it's my cx racer and rain beater.
:eek:...:eek:...:eek:

[cd_davis]

Parlee Cycles in Beverly MA recommended Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes in Shirley MA. Known for his paintwork, Toby is an accomplished carbon repair guy.
Long story short - local, no shipping back and forth to the West Coast; perfect carbon repair and matching paint in one shop stop; repair completed in promised time AND price passed the CEO at house/spouse test. Toby is passionate too about cycling and sponsors the Hot Tubes Junior Team, internationally known.
A big thanks to Hot Tubes!

[Cicli]

Parlee Cycles in Beverly MA recommended Toby Stanton of Hot Tubes in Shirley MA. Known for his paintwork, Toby is an accomplished carbon repair guy.
Long story short - local, no shipping back and forth to the West Coast; perfect carbon repair and matching paint in one shop stop; repair completed in promised time AND price passed the CEO at house/spouse test. Toby is passionate too about cycling and sponsors the Hot Tubes Junior Team, internationally known.
A big thanks to Hot Tubes!

Awesome,
Any chances of some before and after photos?

[parris]

Although he's not an option due to location you may want to look at Luescher Teknik's website for general carbon info. He's also on YouTube on the cycling maven channel as well as his own channel. He shares some really great info. His name is Raoul Luescher.

[cmbicycles]

I had a repair done by Drew at cyclocarbon, and it was very good and very reasonable. Mine was the seat tube on a Lemond Victoire ti/carbon bike and had had no paint to match so that likely helped the price. Jack Kane is supposed to have good skills/reputation for carbon repair (and builds his own frames) so could probably easily handle making new dropouts if that is what was needed. His price quote for my repair was a tad higher than Calfee, but included a machined insert to reinforce the area.

[Johnnyg]

Second Toby at Hot Tubes. He did a repair to my Storck. Great guy and excellent work. Good luck. JG

[SpeedyChix]

Excellent news. Glad he was able to repair it and it turned out well too.

[chiasticon]

Ruckus is a DONT recommend.I missed this. what's wrong with them? I know of two people who have sent them work and been very satisfied with it.

[cd_davis]

Photos before and after:

[greengage]

I missed this. what's wrong with them? I know of two people who have sent them work and been very satisfied with it.

I second the query. I was unaware of their reputation on the forum.

[SoCalSteve]

I missed this. what's wrong with them? I know of two people who have sent them work and been very satisfied with it.

Lots of broken promises with regards to time frame and quality of work. Really bad experience with them. I mean really bad.

I really felt like drugs and/or alcohol were at play with them and how they ran their business. Never felt confident that they were doing what they were supposed to do and in the end, they refunded me back my money. I would have much preferred that they would have done the work properly the first time and on time...would have happily paid the agreed amount.

I did get the bike back and it has issues that weren't there when I sent it to them. Yes, they did the work that was supposed to get done originally, but took much longer than promised and I had to send it back to them after I received it all messed up. Should have NEVER left their shop so messed up. Then they promise it back to me in days ( again ) that turned out to be months.

So, in all good conscience, I could never recommend them. It was a really bad experience all around and still not right to this day.

I'd be happy to go into details if needed. Let's just say it was sub par all around, to say the least!...:crap:

[cd_davis]

Lots of good back and forth on this thread. In my case regarding the C40 repairs, I sent a description of the corrosion and pics to 6 repair shops. After their receipt of the email I spoke with all and had different comfort levels. By chance, learned about Hot Tubes from Parlee. Talked to Toby, sent pics and finally visited to see his operation. Felt comfortable and left the frame. I was lucky and the outcome was perfect. Toby and Hot Tubes passed the sniff test and I had an excellent outcome. Lesson learned, due diligence and a slow go worked for me.

[SoCalSteve]

Lots of good back and forth on this thread. In my case regarding the C40 repairs, I sent a description of the corrosion and pics to 6 repair shops. After their receipt of the email I spoke with all and had different comfort levels. By chance, learned about Hot Tubes from Parlee. Talked to Toby, sent pics and finally visited to see his operation. Felt comfortable and left the frame. I was lucky and the outcome was perfect. Toby and Hot Tubes passed the sniff test and I had an excellent outcome. Lesson learned, due diligence and a slow go worked for me.

I got a referral to Ruckus from somebody I trusted. I sent them pictures, info, etc. I too got a good feeling originally from speaking to them and correspondence.

In hindsight...:crap:

[RobJ]

Lots of good back and forth on this thread. In my case regarding the C40 repairs, I sent a description of the corrosion and pics to 6 repair shops. After their receipt of the email I spoke with all and had different comfort levels. By chance, learned about Hot Tubes from Parlee. Talked to Toby, sent pics and finally visited to see his operation. Felt comfortable and left the frame. I was lucky and the outcome was perfect. Toby and Hot Tubes passed the sniff test and I had an excellent outcome. Lesson learned, due diligence and a slow go worked for me.

More importantly how about a picture of the full C40? :D

[sales guy]

I second the query. I was unaware of their reputation on the forum.


Well, let me tell you about my experiences with Ruckus.

So I have my VXRS that needs a new BB shell insert. I read tons of great stuff on BikeRumor. They sounded great. Never knew anyone who actually went to them.

So I called them up when a friends BB shell insert became loose in his Milani frame. They said sure, we can fix that. So I sent them the Milani and my VXRS. I told them the Milani needed to be first. And we'd do my VXRS second if everything went well.

So they said sure thing and started things up. I was told 4 weeks- it was winter and they weren't busy. I was like, cool! Do it up. 13 weeks later, many unanswered emails and phone calls/voicemails, I finally get an answer that the frame was done. They shipped it out to me. When I got it, it was so f'ed up.

So this frame was dead perfect. Not a single scratch on it. Only a mark from the front derailleur clamp.

What I got back was scratches, sanded down sections, a bunch of pain overspray and a bb shell insert that had epoxy in the threads. And mind you, there was a ton of damage in areas like the headtube, the top of the downtube, the top tube, dropouts. Areas they never needed to be near to fix the bottom bracket.

I called them up, told them what happened and sent them pictures- I still have the pictures by the way. They said it clearly didnt go thru QC. I was like, you think? So I sent it back to them. They said they'd take care of it and let me know when it was done.

6 more weeks later, I get the frame back. This time, it had overspray on the seat tube, down tube and top tube. It was like they tried to paint over the f'ups and made it worse. So I called them up and sent them pictures- yes, I still have the pictures. I told them what was wrong and they told me they will talk about everything and figure out what to do.

A week later, I get a call and they tell me that the frame has caused them so much heartache and stress that they don't want to work on it again.

So they sent the frame back messed up and then told me they won't repair their screw up. In the end, $1500 later for a repaint, it's fixed. It's a multi-color, all paint, no decals carbon frame.

I attached 5 of the some 3 dozen pictures I have. I can post more if you guys want. But needless to say, I got my VXRS back before they did anything to it.

[SoCalSteve]

Well, let me tell you about my experiences with Ruckus.

So I have my VXRS that needs a new BB shell insert. I read tons of great stuff on BikeRumor. They sounded great. Never knew anyone who actually went to them.

So I called them up when a friends BB shell insert became loose in his Milani frame. They said sure, we can fix that. So I sent them the Milani and my VXRS. I told them the Milani needed to be first. And we'd do my VXRS second if everything went well.

So they said sure thing and started things up. I was told 4 weeks- it was winter and they weren't busy. I was like, cool! Do it up. 13 weeks later, many unanswered emails and phone calls/voicemails, I finally get an answer that the frame was done. They shipped it out to me. When I got it, it was so f'ed up.

So this frame was dead perfect. Not a single scratch on it. Only a mark from the front derailleur clamp.

What I got back was scratches, sanded down sections, a bunch of pain overspray and a bb shell insert that had epoxy in the threads. And mind you, there was a ton of damage in areas like the headtube, the top of the downtube, the top tube, dropouts. Areas they never needed to be near to fix the bottom bracket.

I called them up, told them what happened and sent them pictures- I still have the pictures by the way. They said it clearly didnt go thru QC. I was like, you think? So I sent it back to them. They said they'd take care of it and let me know when it was done.

6 more weeks later, I get the frame back. This time, it had overspray on the seat tube, down tube and top tube. It was like they tried to paint over the f'ups and made it worse. So I called them up and sent them pictures- yes, I still have the pictures. I told them what was wrong and they told me they will talk about everything and figure out what to do.

A week later, I get a call and they tell me that the frame has caused them so much heartache and stress that they don't want to work on it again.

So they sent the frame back messed up and then told me they won't repair their screw up. In the end, $1500 later for a repaint, it's fixed. It's a multi-color, all paint, no decals carbon frame.

I attached 5 of the some 3 dozen pictures I have. I can post more if you guys want. But needless to say, I got my VXRS back before they did anything to it.

I pretty much got the same answer in the end. But they were too chicken***** to call me, they sent me a text saying the frame was headed back to me un-repaired as they could " no longer deal with it ".

As you could well imagine, after weeks of delays and broken promises, they washed their hands of their screw ups leaving me to deal with it. I don't do this very often, but I threatened to sic my wife on them ( she is a lawyer ). They refunded me back my money. Again, I would have happily paid the agreed upon amount in full had they finished the job properly and on time.

I still don't understand how a company like this can stay in business...:confused:

[sales guy]

I pretty much got the same answer in the end. But they were too chicken***** to call me, they sent me a text saying the frame was headed back to me un-repaired as they could " no longer deal with it ".

As you could well imagine, after weeks of delays and broken promises, they washed their hands of their screw ups leaving me to deal with it. I don't do this very often, but I threatened to sic my wife on them ( she is a lawyer ). They refunded me back my money. Again, I would have happily paid the agreed upon amount in full had they finished the job properly and on time.

I still don't understand how a company like this can stay in business...:confused:


I got a call cause I had been pestering them like mad and I was actually trying to call them and was dialing out while their call was incoming. After that, they stopped communicating with me. It was wild and stupid all at the same time. I don't get how they are in business. Seriously. There has to be more people out there like us.

Needless to say, don't use them.

[jumphigher]

Ruckus replaced the top tube decals about a month ago on my carbon bike. They did a great job in the promised time. I'm very happy with the work.

[SoCalSteve]

Ruckus replaced the top tube decals about a month ago on my carbon bike. They did a great job in the promised time. I'm very happy with the work.

Happy you had a good experience with them.

Replacing a decal is a pretty simple task. The work they attempted to do for me was much more complicated. Much, much more.

Proceed with caution, seriously.

[jumphigher]

Happy you had a good experience with them.

Replacing a decal is a pretty simple task. The work they attempted to do for me was much more complicated. Much, much more.

Proceed with caution, seriously.

I think the work they did for me was actually fairly complex, though of course not as much as what you had done. FWIW I would use them again.

[buckfifty]

Could try Kirklee. I had him repair a seat stay and he did a really good job

I've also used Kirklee for a seat stay repair. Great job and is barely noticeable. Quick turn around time and I live in Houston so it was easy to drop it off in Austin

[SoCalSteve]

I think the work they did for me was actually fairly complex, though of course not as much as what you had done. FWIW I would use them again.

Out of curiosity how is replacing a decal fairly complex?

Do you know what they did and didn't do on my Ottrott? What they should have done and what they didn't do and how long it took them to mess things up? And, the mistakes they made that couldn't be fixed?

[sales guy]

I think the work they did for me was actually fairly complex, though of course not as much as what you had done. FWIW I would use them again.


I am not slamming them based on the work they did for you. Just on everything that happened for me. I'm glad you had a good experience. But as you can see by the pictures I posted, my buddies frame is trashed. It cost me $1500- ME!, I had to pay for it cause I sure as hell wasn't gonna make my friend pay for it as I sent it off for him on things I had read off bike rumor.

And after talking to a couple other people, it would've cost about $350-450 to have it done somewhere else like Calfee or Phoenix.

What i've been told, it was a relatively easy fix. The mill out the bb shel insert and treat the frame and shell and press in/epoxy a new one in.

My problems, why were things like the downtube and headtube even touched??? It was the bottom bracket that needed fixed. Why was the downtube sanded down to the bare carbon? Why was the headtube painted or touched or anything? The frame was brand new. I have the pictures of it before it left. I have the pictures after it came back both times. Massive differences.

Like I said, glad they helped you out. But they screwed me sideways without lube!

[Calnago]

I don't normally post to this forum, but I echo the experience shared by @SoCalSteve and @SalesGuy as far as Ruckus Composites is concerned... here's my experience crossreferenced to the WeightWeenies forum...
http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=137980&p=1320136#p1320136

[sales guy]

I don't normally post to this forum, but I echo the experience shared by @SoCalSteve and @SalesGuy as far as Ruckus Composites is concerned... here's my experience crossreferenced to the WeightWeenies forum...
http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=137980&p=1320136#p1320136


WOW! Sorry you had such a S!!T job from them.

I just want to point out, the chainstay was damaged, right? Only the non-drive chainstay?

HOW THE F DID THEY GET GARBAGE ON THE TOPTUBE???????

Seriously! I don't get how they do that. And they did it to my buddies too. Messed up the toptube, downtube, headtube and stays. When all they needed to touch was the BB. I don't get it with them.

And I can't comment on their page on Rumor anymore. They blocked me. But seriously, how many other people need to get scammed or their stuff ruined before someone calls them out?

Sorry you got screwed.

[ultraman6970]

Well... the good news is that it can be fixed at home... the white bubbles is a problem with humidity and pressure in the paint gun, my best guess?? they are running air straight from the compressor and as you might know a lot of water gets stuck inside of the tanks just waiting to come out. Rookie mistake. And add maybe a problem in the mix of clear/hardener aswell... rookie mistake.

The over spray well that's another rookie mistake, just put some paper around and use a big aribrush or a tiny 10 bucks detail gun and good to go, just paint what is needed and blend the best you can...

I havent touch that but the fix is not as bad as you might thing... if the overspray is little you can :

- car paint thinner, just wet a towel and pass it over the over spray should go away...
- A second way to fix that is to use paint polisher but the good stuff... heavy diamond cut. if you go with the polisher it will remove the over spray but you might end with a polisher clear... in that case you might have to sand the surface...

- 3rd way... 2000 grit wet sand paper and just scuff the whole frame that will even the surface and you might end up with a more even matte color. Since I dont know what exactly what they did to finish the frame I would play safe with the sand paper if that frame was mine.

I would call them and ask them what they used because there's at least two ways to get a satin clear... use a satin agent in the clear or just sand the clear on top, I was ruckus I would have sand over just because is cheaper and faster.

Hope this helps.

[Calnago]

Ok, here's the damage before I sent it in...
Left chainstay with impact area circled in chalk, likely from the edge of the curb on the side of the road.
https://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8325/28422794451_b0fba764b5_c.jpg

Closeup...
https://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8749/28468744156_6cdc5bb64c_c.jpg

____________________-

And the following is what I posted today over on Weight Weenies. May as well post it here properly as opposed to just a link...
Ok... so time to update the repair status of my C59. I am sorry to say I cannot recommend Ruckus Composites. I didn't send it off to them until February 23rd. After talking to them on the phone and specifically asking if they knew what matte clear finish that Colnago uses, they said no, but once they had it in hand they were sure they could match it. They also sent this in an email after I sent them pics of the damage..."this is something we can completely repair for you and have it look great! We match the weave and graphics and can nail the matte."

Plus, I spoke with Colnago America and they said they had good results with Ruckus as well. So, rather than stick with tried and true Calfee, I decided to give them a chance. I sent it off. They received it the next day and sent an email saying "We will be able to get this done in no time".

Once they had checked it all out on the following Monday, they informed me that the chainstay was indeed the only damage sustained which was good to hear. I did not hear from them again until March 30, when I got an email saying it was done. I paid them and they shipped it out and I got it the next day.

The packing was horrific. I had taken great pains to ensure that the frame was solidly embedded in the box upon shipping with paper, foam, etc. all around. They seemed to just jam it in the box without making sure the seat tube was well below the plane of the top of the box, a spot that can be very prone to damage during the shipping process.

Here's a short video of how I received it... top of seat tube above the plane of the top of the box... not good...
https://vimeo.com/219397535

So, once I was relieved that the seat tube hadn't been damaged, I proceeded to pull it out of the box. I immediately felt the roughness of the top tube which I know was very smooth when I sent it away. ***.... I thought. Overspray??... are you kidding me. Nope, definitely overspray. Not only that, they hadn't even removed the Project Number of the job that was still on masking tape on the top tube. Not only was there a fine overspray on the top tube and headtube, there was some not so fine junk on the top tube as well... very visible globules of something...
While you can't really see the fine overspray in the pics, trust me, it was rough and noticeable to the touch. But you can definitely see the globules of crap on the top tube...
First, the project number still on the top tube... really?...
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2888/33780931776_8d6d762720_c.jpg

Then, the globules of crap on the top tube.... not to mention the roughness from overspray on the top tube and headtube which you can't see, but can feel...
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2922/33780932926_9b675f0792_c.jpg

https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2855/33780926876_893d7578c2_c.jpg


Well, after receiving it on the Friday, I decided to wait until Monday to call them as I was pretty disgusted at that point and thought a cool down period would be wise. So, I sent them some pics on Monday morning and got an email back saying he was "out running errands" but once he got back to the office he'd pull up the pics and get back to me with guidance etc. I fully expected a return phone call that afternoon. I received nothing until Friday afternoon, and it was an email. What followed was a series of emails that was professionally quite unnerving really, and they wanted me to send the frame back, but my confidence level was so low at this point I decided to leave well enough alone.

Now, remember that I had specifically asked up front about the matte finish etc., at which time they were brimming with confidence that they could match it. Well... what do you think... is this a close match?...
https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2906/33780923846_1977e03702_c.jpg

https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3844/33780925556_b1d1c91e42_c.jpg

It's shiny, and super smooth... like a semi-gloss matte if I had to describe it. In any case, it does not resemble the original finish at all. I wasn't expecting perfection, but after talking to them, I was expecting better than this. Plus the overspray on the top tube and the headtube. Do they not know how to mask properly. Really quite unbelievable.

Also, I mentioned that the packing job is as much a reflection on their quality of work as the repair itself, since even if the repair was perfect if the frame comes back damaged as a result of a very poor packing job (which it very well could have in this case), then that is on them. I said I certainly hope the guy who packed it is made aware of it etc., as it really does raise the question as to the kinds of people they are hiring and the training they get. The first response was "I don't know who packed it". I said "What?... you have like 6 employees there... can't you just poke your head out and say 'Who packed the C59 on Thursday, come over here, I've got a video to go over with you'." Basically the level of customer service and professionalism at this point was completely out the window.

Now, up front I had mentioned that this particular bike had garnered a fair amount of attention online and that I would be showing off their work when all was said and done if that was ok, hoping this might lead to perhaps some extra attention to achieve perfection. If this was it, then that's the last piece of work Ruckus will ever receive from me. Stick with Calfee.

Oh, here's a thread from the Paceline forum which I was directed to by someone after I had already sent my frame off. I wish I had seen this thread before, because the comments made in it by @SoCalSteve and @Salesguy pretty much echo my experience as well...
https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=197262

[Calnago]

Well... the good news is that it can be fixed at home... the white bubbles is a problem with humidity and pressure in the paint gun, my best guess?? they are running air straight from the compressor and as you might know a lot of water gets stuck inside of the tanks just waiting to come out. Rookie mistake. And add maybe a problem in the mix of clear/hardener aswell... rookie mistake.

The over spray well that's another rookie mistake, just put some paper around and use a big aribrush or a tiny 10 bucks detail gun and good to go, just paint what is needed and blend the best you can...

I havent touch that but the fix is not as bad as you might thing... if the overspray is little you can :

- car paint thinner, just wet a towel and pass it over the over spray should go away...
- A second way to fix that is to use paint polisher but the good stuff... heavy diamond cut. if you go with the polisher it will remove the over spray but you might end with a polisher clear... in that case you might have to sand the surface...

- 3rd way... 2000 grit wet sand paper and just scuff the whole frame that will even the surface and you might end up with a more even matte color. Since I dont know what exactly what they did to finish the frame I would play safe with the sand paper if that frame was mine.

I would call them and ask them what they used because there's at least two ways to get a satin clear... use a satin agent in the clear or just sand the clear on top, I was ruckus I would have sand over just because is cheaper and faster.

Hope this helps.
Thanks, but "rookie mistakes"?.... uh, that doesn't cut it. I paid top dollar for what I was expecting top workmanship and handling of my frame. I actually used a clay bar myself for most of the overspray, and had to work at those bubbles quite a bit beforehand to get most of it off. I sure has heck wasn't going to let them touch it any further. But as @SalesGuy mentioned earlier, the repair was limited to a spot on the left chainstay. Haven't these guys learned to mask off the rest of the frame properly. Had I attempted the repair myself, or let a friend do it, I'd say... sure, rookie mistake. But not when you pay top dollar for a professional job.

Next time... Calfee gets my business back.

[ultraman6970]

Oh the clay... totally forgot about it... good you figure it out a fast fix, yeah man... even if they did not mask, at least do not over spray the whole thing and that makes me think.... probably your frame was somewhere in the booth when they were clearing other frame? Either way... I do get what you are saying, I would be disappointed aswell.

Hope everything goes better from now on.

ps: those bubbles you have to sand them. No other way to fix that.

[sales guy]

My issue is pretty simple....THE SCREWED UP! Not just in the messing up the mismatching of the clearcoat style on the chainstay, but in the packing, the communication and of course in added clear or whatever on the TT.

HOW!?!?!?

How can they do that? I mean, I just don't get it.

And it makes me worry for people who had something really bad damage wise repaired. How are we to know the repair is sound? That's my biggest worry and reason why I don't point them to Ruckus anymore. I mean, how could one given all the negatives?

The clearcoat issues you have are fixable and it sounds like you did. But the point is you shouldn't have had too! You paid them for a job and they didn't do the job. Not even close to what you asked and they said they could.

I read your post over at the WW forum. So I knew what you went thru when I commented. And it still shocks me they get any business. I mean, do people not check things out? But then again, I believed the hype on Bikerumor as well so I was an idiot too I guess.

[Calnago]

@SalesGuy... yes, I did a pretty good check around before sending it anywhere and in hindsight should have stuck with the tried and true Calfee. But I had heard a couple good things about Ruckus, or at least not anything bad, and wanted to give them a try. By the time this thread was in progress my bike was already in their hands. So be it.

@Ultraman6970... yes, the bubbles were a bit of work to get out, but I did the best I could and I think it's ok now.

To be fair, I think the actual structural repair is sound and in talking to them they layered it back and built the chainstay back up far from where the actual crack was visible, which was quite a small area in retrospect. At least I have my frame back, and I'm not really concerned about the repair itself as I think it looks ok. But man... sloppy processes overall, including customer service.

[SoCalSteve]

@SalesGuy... yes, I did a pretty good check around before sending it anywhere and in hindsight should have stuck with the tried and true Calfee. But I had heard a couple good things about Ruckus, or at least not anything bad, and wanted to give them a try. By the time this thread was in progress my bike was already in their hands. So be it.

@Ultraman6970... yes, the bubbles were a bit of work to get out, but I did the best I could and I think it's ok now.

To be fair, I think the actual structural repair is sound and in talking to them they layered it back and built the chainstay back up far from where the actual crack was visible, which was quite a small area in retrospect. At least I have my frame back, and I'm not really concerned about the repair itself as I think it looks ok. But man... sloppy processes overall, including customer service.

This is how I felt in the end. I was so relieved just to get my frame back, I didn't even care how badly they messed up. In the whole process with them, I truly lost all confidence in their ability to do a good job or even a halfway decent job. I just wanted my frame back!!!

I'll say it again, I think drugs or alcohol fuel their sloppiness and lack of follow through. Not sure what else it could be.

And again, they did refund all my money, but I would have happily paid the agreed amount had the job been done properly and in the time frame they promised. Neither of these happened.

I cannot imagine how they stay in business. I don't wish ill will upon anyone, but maybe they need to try their hand in a different business venture.

[Imaking20]

Out of curiosity how is replacing a decal fairly complex?

Do you know what they did and didn't do on my Ottrott? What they should have done and what they didn't do and how long it took them to mess things up? And, the mistakes they made that couldn't be fixed?

All due respect, you've now spent 2+ months turning this into a Ruckus defamation thread without any detail about what did or didn't happen to your bike. I've had work done by Ruckus, they're a local company to me, and the overall experience wasn't what is give 5 stars - but if I was going to spend the energy to bash them, and expect people to take it seriously, I'd at least share specifics. Otherwise it's just gossip.

If this IS going to be a Ruckus thrashing thread, let's at least do it properly like Calnago and Salesguy have demonstrated.

[SoCalSteve]

All due respect, you've now spent 2+ months turning this into a Ruckus defamation thread without any detail about what did or didn't happen to your bike. I've had work done by Ruckus, they're a local company to me, and the overall experience wasn't what is give 5 stars - but if I was going to spend the energy to bash them, and expect people to take it seriously, I'd at least share specifics. Otherwise it's just gossip.

If this IS going to be a Ruckus thrashing thread, let's at least do it properly like Calnago and Salesguy have demonstrated.

If you feel the other 2 gentlemen haven't trashed Ruckus enough, I'd be happy to add another nail...

I crashed my Ottrott, broke both the top tube and down tube. Sent pictures to Ruckus, they said they could fix it in 4 weeks. I specced the OEM tubes from Mike Lopez and had them sent to Portland.

I asked Ruckus in a very detailed email to remove the broken tubes and reinstall the new tubes. To refinish the Ti, to refinish the carbon ST rear end, to add a DI2 hole on the non drive side down tube ( I even put a mark where I wanted the hole to be drilled ), to re-decal and refinish the new tubes. They said no problem, all will be done to your satisfaction in the time promised.

Great!!!

First issue, they never measured the existing tubes, tossed them and asked me for the Serotta build sheet to recreate the same geometry. I didn't have this any longer. They never asked me if I knew the geometry, they said they would do it to a " general standard " their wording. When they wrote this, I called them up LIVID!!! How could they throw away the tubes without measuring them first and why didn't they ask me if I knew the geometry!!! Of course I knew the geometry! Every last centimeter and angle. How could they just guess???

After that, things devolved. My confidence in them shaken. I won't even go into the fact that they had to send the tubing and lugs back down to Mike Lopez in San Diego because they couldn't figure out if the diameters were correct or not. Yeah, it was bad!!!

So, a couple months passed, I took a trip to Asia and on return expected my bike frame back. No, it was weeks later that it finally showed up. And when it did, oh boy!!!

1.) the Serotta logo on the down tube was crooked on both sides
2.) there was pooling of clear coat around all the lugs, very visible and very ugly
3.) they did not refinish the carbon rear end at all as promised
4.) they drilled the DI2 hole on the wrong side and in the wrong place from where I had marked it.
5.) they deformed the lugs when they removed the old carbon tubing

I could not believe that they let the frame leave their shop without going over it with a fine tooth comb, especially after they had it for many months. The obviously didn't. If they had bothered to look over their work, they wouldn't have let it leave their shop.

I sent it back to them. They promised to fix all the problems. They said 4 days. It was 5 weeks. It came back with most of the issues fixed. But, they didn't fill up the hole they drilled on the wrong side of the frame and in the wrong place. And, they wouldn't even tell me they didn't do this on the phone. They told me via text after they shipped the frame back. Oh, and the lugs are still deformed. Guess it's hard to fix Ti after you mess it up ( so don't mess it up in the first place )!!!

So, all in all, a very bad experience with horrible customer service and a hole left in my bike frame in the wrong place and them not wanting to deal with it any longer.

So, there you have it. No gossip, no innuendo, just facts. I have pictures of some of the screw ups, but I have documentation for all of it in the form of many, many emails.

[sales guy]

All due respect, you've now spent 2+ months turning this into a Ruckus defamation thread without any detail about what did or didn't happen to your bike. I've had work done by Ruckus, they're a local company to me, and the overall experience wasn't what is give 5 stars - but if I was going to spend the energy to bash them, and expect people to take it seriously, I'd at least share specifics. Otherwise it's just gossip.

If this IS going to be a Ruckus thrashing thread, let's at least do it properly like Calnago and Salesguy have demonstrated.


I don't like the defamation thread comment but I do get your take on it. And even more so given they are local to you. And I get it. I take a ton of exception when someone slams my guys.

I don't think I was trying to defame them. I mean, i am a customer who had a problem. The problem didn't get fixed the first, second or third time they had the frame.

So I don't think my being a customer is defaming them. I am just a disgruntled customer. And I am warning other people on here about my experiences with them. I don't think I am defaming them. If I had no experience with them, then yes I would be.

My reason for posting it, mind you after someone else mentioned them, was to warn fellow forum members about my experience. And given the people on this forum REALLY LOVE their bikes, I figured they would want to know.

Thank you for mentioning me and Calnago in the comment of doing it right tho.

[sales guy]

If you feel the other 2 gentlemen haven't trashed Ruckus enough, I'd be happy to add another nail...

I crashed my Ottrott, broke both the top tube and down tube. Sent pictures to Ruckus, they said they could fix it in 4 weeks. I specced the OEM tubes from Mike Lopez and had them sent to Portland.

I asked Ruckus in a very detailed email to remove the broken tubes and reinstall the new tubes. To refinish the Ti, to refinish the carbon ST rear end, to add a DI2 hole on the non drive side down tube ( I even put a mark where I wanted the hole to be drilled ), to re-decal and refinish the new tubes. They said no problem, all will be done to your satisfaction in the time promised.

Great!!!

First issue, they never measured the existing tubes, tossed them and asked me for the Serotta build sheet to recreate the same geometry. I didn't have this any longer. They never asked me if I knew the geometry, they said they would do it to a " general standard " their wording. When they wrote this, I called them up LIVID!!! How could they throw away the tubes without measuring them first and why didn't they ask me if I knew the geometry!!! Of course I knew the geometry! Every last centimeter and angle. How could they just guess???

After that, things devolved. My confidence in them shaken. I won't even go into the fact that they had to send the tubing and lugs back down to Mike Lopez in San Diego because they couldn't figure out if the diameters were correct or not. Yeah, it was bad!!!

So, a couple months passed, I took a trip to Asia and on return expected my bike frame back. No, it was weeks later that it finally showed up. And when it did, oh boy!!!

1.) the Serotta logo on the down tube was crooked on both sides
2.) there was pooling of clear coat around all the lugs, very visible and very ugly
3.) they did not refinish the carbon rear end at all as promised
4.) they drilled the DI2 hole on the wrong side and in the wrong place from where I had marked it.
5.) they deformed the lugs when they removed the old carbon tubing

I could not believe that they let the frame leave their shop without going over it with a fine tooth comb, especially after they had it for many months. The obviously didn't. If they had bothered to look over their work, they wouldn't have let it leave their shop.

I sent it back to them. They promised to fix all the problems. They said 4 days. It was 5 weeks. It came back with most of the issues fixed. But, they didn't fill up the hole they drilled on the wrong side of the frame and in the wrong place. And, they wouldn't even tell me they didn't do this on the phone. They told me via text after they shipped the frame back. Oh, and the lugs are still deformed. Guess it's hard to fix Ti after you mess it up ( so don't mess it up in the first place )!!!

So, all in all, a very bad experience with horrible customer service and a hole left in my bike frame in the wrong place and them not wanting to deal with it any longer.

So, there you have it. No gossip, no innuendo, just facts. I have pictures of some of the screw ups, but I have documentation for all of it in the form of many, many emails.


WOW!

just wow.

[Imaking20]

Now we're talking.

I can only imagine how livid I would be had my experience been nearly what you 3 dealt with. My process took a lot longer than quoted, but the ultimate product was one my wife is super pleased with. I'm starting to wonder if the difference here is the ability to speak face-to-face.

My real point with the last comment was that forums like this should serve as a resource to folks and hints aren't as helpful (I'm a very pragmatic person ;) ). Specifics, and pictures, like you guys have now laid out - should absolutely serve as a resource to folks when they're looking to have their baby repaired and - maybe - give Ruckus a wake up call (though I'm not sure I'd hold my breath on that one).

Sorry again that you all went through such a shyt show. Thanks for taking the time to share. :beer:

[sales guy]

Now we're talking.

I can only imagine how livid I would be had my experience been nearly what you 3 dealt with. My process took a lot longer than quoted, but the ultimate product was one my wife is super pleased with. I'm starting to wonder if the difference here is the ability to speak face-to-face.

My real point with the last comment was that forums like this should serve as a resource to folks and hints aren't as helpful (I'm a very pragmatic person ;) ). Specifics, and pictures, like you guys have now laid out - should absolutely serve as a resource to folks when they're looking to have their baby repaired and - maybe - give Ruckus a wake up call (though I'm not sure I'd hold my breath on that one).

Sorry again that you all went through such a shyt show. Thanks for taking the time to share. :beer:


I absolutely agree that face to face makes a massive difference than 2000+ miles away in my case. If you had a customer that could literally hassle you daily if it weren't done or done right, that will make a HUGE difference to anyone working on whatever.

And I agree, I doubt things will change. I hope it does. Cause I don't want people to close up shop. But you also can't have these kinds of screw ups.

[SoCalSteve]

I absolutely agree that face to face makes a massive difference than 2000+ miles away in my case. If you had a customer that could literally hassle you daily if it weren't done or done right, that will make a HUGE difference to anyone working on whatever.

And I agree, I doubt things will change. I hope it does. Cause I don't want people to close up shop. But you also can't have these kinds of screw ups.

I don't agree that face to face makes a difference if you are detailed oriented in your needs and wants and are able to communicate this via email. Actually, this is probably a better way to do business as you have written documentation of everything that has transpired.

Sending detailed photos of the work being done and completed would help as well. In remembering more of the experience, I was told time and again that pictures would be sent. They weren't and when they were, they were horribly shot.

In hindsight, I was way too nice with them. Gave them lots of leeway, told them to take their time, didn't press for picture updates and in the end, I paid the price.

Oh well, I too hope things change with them. I cannot imagine how they stayed in business this long. I also cannot imagine how they do such terrible work. Again, I think drugs and or alcohol are at play here. Just a hunch, but everything felt so sloppy and disoriented, what else could it be?

You have to remember that this is not an inexpensive, off the rack bike. It was custom built for me, was well north of $7k and can never be duplicated again. They stated time and again that they understood this, but the work they did didn't show this.

Lastly, I do have to give them credit in refunding me back my money. But, as I've said before, I would have gladly paid the agreed upon amount had the experience been different.

[Imaking20]

Again, I think drugs and or alcohol are at play here. Just a hunch, but everything felt so sloppy and disoriented, what else could it be?

Dissasociative Identity Disorder. There's really no other explanation. :rolleyes:

Obviously, the majority of their work isn't like this or they wouldn't be in business. The guy who owns Ruckus is quite involved in the local cycling community, they support a lot of teams/races/fundraisers, and I've never heard someone raise an issue with the quality of their carbon repair.

The head paint guy... is another story. Which gets back to the face-to-face thing. All of our "requirements" were in email and included pictures for reference - but we delivered the bike in person. When I came back to pick up the "finished" product, the decals and colors were all correct - but the finish was gloss instead of clear. So we entered round 2 - no packing, no shipping, no other delays. The paint guy never really admitted an error - but the owner made it right and several years later my wife still wouldn't dream of letting this bike go.

[Calnago]

...The paint guy never really admitted an error - but the owner made it right and several years later my wife still wouldn't dream of letting this bike go.
That statement in itself tells something about the "company". They need to take responsibility as a company, not point fingers at employees or allow one employee to deny wrongdoing and reluctantly do it over for the company. That just makes the customer feel bad for even asking if it could be done over, but correctly as was asked for initially.
It's like when I sent them the video of the packing job and the initial response I got was "I didn't pack it". I was incredulous. I don't care who packed it, all I know is Ruckus Composites sent it back to me this way. And I said all you have to do is turn around and ask your handful of employees which one did pack it and have him come over to watch the video and learn from it. But it would seem to me that the very first thing anyone who is responsible for packing a high end just repaired frame for shipment back to its owner would have to learn is how important a proper packing job is. First day, first hour.

Oh well, I almost didn't post anything further, since it's been two months since I've got the frame back, but damnit... when I contracted with Ruckus Composites to repair my frame I specifically told them I'd be posting their work on the internet. That alone should have been good incentive to do a good job at every level of the experience. It could have been great exposure for them but instead they get this. I totally get that mistakes happen and this is really the first time I've ever felt compelled to do something like this online, but the stuff that happened just shouldn't have, period. Overspray at the furtherest end of the frame from where the repair was... really?... didn't they even mask the rest of the frame. It makes me wonder. A good structurally sound repair is only one part of the whole process.
Anyway, I'm happy to have my repaired frame and can ride it again as opposed to throwing it away, so there is that. And I actually think this thread was very productive. If there was bashing being done, it most certainly wasn't done without any hard evidence. It started out as a simple request for sources to get a repair done on the OP's C40. There was discussion of several vendors throughout the thread. I would have been happy with the responses if I was the thread starter. I only wish I had seen it before I sent my frame off to them.
Cheers guys!

[SoCalSteve]

That statement in itself tells something about the "company". They need to take responsibility as a company, not point fingers at employees or allow one employee to deny wrongdoing and reluctantly do it over for the company. That just makes the customer feel bad for even asking if it could be done over, but correctly as was asked for initially.
It's like when I sent them the video of the packing job and the initial response I got was "I didn't pack it". I was incredulous. I don't care who packed it, all I know is Ruckus Composites sent it back to me this way. And I said all you have to do is turn around and ask your handful of employees which one did pack it and have him come over to watch the video and learn from it. But it would seem to me that the very first thing anyone who is responsible for packing a high end just repaired frame for shipment back to its owner would have to learn is how important a proper packing job is. First day, first hour.

Oh well, I almost didn't post anything further, since it's been two months since I've got the frame back, but damnit... when I contracted with Ruckus Composites to repair my frame I specifically told them I'd be posting their work on the internet. That alone should have been good incentive to do a good job at every level of the experience. It could have been great exposure for them but instead they get this. I totally get that mistakes happen and this is really the first time I've ever felt compelled to do something like this online, but the stuff that happened just shouldn't have, period. Overspray at the furtherest end of the frame from where the repair was... really?... didn't they even mask the rest of the frame. It makes me wonder. A good structurally sound repair is only one part of the whole process.
Anyway, I'm happy to have my repaired frame and can ride it again as opposed to throwing it away, so there is that. And I actually think this thread was very productive. If there was bashing being done, it most certainly wasn't done without any hard evidence. It started out as a simple request for sources to get a repair done on the OP's C40. There was discussion of several vendors throughout the thread. I would have been happy with the responses if I was the thread starter. I only wish I had seen it before I sent my frame off to them.
Cheers guys!

I said the exact same thing to them knowing that it would make an interesting thread on here...going from my beloved Ottrott which has gone through a ton of iterations and documented here to...

Broken Ottrott...

To having them document the repairs in pictures and me posting them. Well, they decided that taking pictures was not something they wanted to do and obviously didn't care to get good press on here.

Oh well, what could have been great business PR devolved to this...:crap:

[sales guy]

I said the exact same thing to them knowing that it would make an interesting thread on here...going from my beloved Ottrott which has gone through a ton of iterations and documented here to...

Broken Ottrott...

To having them document the repairs in pictures and me posting them. Well, they decided that taking pictures was not something they wanted to do and obviously didn't care to get good press on here.

Oh well, what could have been great business PR devolved to this...:crap:


Well, I told them the same thing about posting and comments and what not. They didn't care. At least, they didn't till I posted about them on bike rumor. They made Tyler pull the comments. They did fight back a bit with regards to my comments. But when I told anyone on there I would send them pictures to prove things they shut up and had the comments pulled.

I am an industry person. Usually, we get the super hook up. Whether it's better products or better service. Not saying I pushed for anything. I was fine paying. I told them that. I told them I just wanted it done right and in the end they said the repair was too much stress for them and they sent it back.

[beeatnik]

Their Instagram feed is Professional AF

[SoCalSteve]

Their Instagram feed is Professional AF

What does this even mean?

Do they show pictures of how badly they messed up my Ottrott?

[Drmojo]

Only half kidding
I once considered buying a Calfee tandem
Until I discovered it had been repaired twice.
Neither break was from a crash, either.
I passed.
When I was struck by a car in march of 2015, my Ibis Silk Road broke in 4 places.
I guess I am not a fan, no disrespect to any one here
Be safe out there!

[sales guy]

Only half kidding
I once considered buying a Calfee tandem
Until I discovered it had been repaired twice.
Neither break was from a crash, either.
I passed.
When I was struck by a car in march of 2015, my Ibis Silk Road broke in 4 places.
I guess I am not a fan, no disrespect to any one here
Be safe out there!


No disrespect taken. For me and for SoCal and Calnago, our's were all items that weren't replaceable. So if there is something like that, I am not opposed to getting it repaired. Which I would guess is the case with the others in this tread.

But I get you're take on things.