Need advise about new bike frame defect

[iafomin]

Dear bikers!

I ordered a new AL bike from Cube and noticed a strange defect on the bike frame during the delivery.
It looks like a small holes/voids on the frame, covered by varnish and polished. The pictures in the attachment.
Overall it seems safe, but want to double check with experts - maybe you know what it could be and if it could make any problems during the future bike use? Should I request bike exchange (it could take up to 3-4 months due to the stock shortage) or it is fine?

Thank you!

 

[classic33]

Paint hasn't adhered to the surface properly. The darker area is where it has already patrted company from the frame.

 

[ianrauk]

Its a brand new frame so I wouldn't be happy with a defect no matter how small.

 

[Spiderweb]

I would email the retailer, tell them you are not happy with the frame and ask ‘what are my options?’
They may offer to exchange, some money back or maybe vouchers?
I wouldn’t be happy with the frame, it would certainly ruin the ‘new bike’ experience for me.

 

[Drago]

Its a new bike. It is not unreasonable to expect it to be cosmetically perfect. Take it back.

 

[iafomin]

Thank you all for the comments!
I have just checked it again carefully, and it seems like it is not the holes in the frame, but rather some problems with the paint - maybe it hasn't adhered to the surface properly or maybe stains of the black paint. Anyway - if it is the paint problem is it still can somehow influence the bike frame longevity?
Return seems logical, but it was last in the stock and it is a pain in the ass to find an alternative ((

 

[iafomin]

View attachment 626186

 

[Arrowfoot]

That surface needs to be treated. Send the photo to the retailer and tell them that you want a replacement. If they say no stock I would seek a refund.

 

[bonzobanana]

Cube are pretty low end at least for their lower end bikes. I've seen saddle posts slightly scratched because the inner surface of the seat tube was a bit rough and not properly finished. Like most European and US brands they rely on factories in Asia and Cube use some pretty low end factories. I remember seeing a report that they were using Bangladesh for production of some bikes and Bangladesh have a reputation for being a overall poor country for bike quality although I'm sure it varies. I could be wrong but I think Cube has lower weight limits for their bikes than many brands and a shorter frame warranty which is typical of a brand using cheaper factories. I suspect though at the top end of pricing they probably use decent factories in Taiwan but probably middle to low end pricing its very cheap factories. The sort of factories Halford's Apollo bikes would come from. Saying that it says on this news report that Cube are even using Bangladesh for their high end bikes but maybe that is just mountain bikes not road. Of course the marketing spiel will probably sell them on the virtue of their German engineering but they are pretty much a brand slap on Asian products. I've seen some bikes from Indonesia, Cambodia and Vietnam that despite their low price point seemed well made with good finishing. I've got an old Carrera Subway made in Vietnam and the frame is really nicely made and finished. I think one of the issues here is Cube are a brand sold in bike shops and this means their logistics are far more complicated and adds a lot of costs and they probably try to aggressively reduce their pricing by using the very cheapest factories. You'll get more for your money with direct sellers or factory to retailer direct business models like Halfords and Decathlon. I think many of the higher end Argos bikes come from Meghna in Bangladesh, they used to use them for their Challenge road bikes that were popular a couple of years ago but the CF forks with a aluminium steerer tube always worried me on the most expensive model as bonding between the CF blades and the steerer is tricky and is probably the most common recall on bikes of recent years for bonding failure. Anyway to cut a long story short if you see poor quality like that on the paintwork its probably best to get it returned and refunded, there maybe other quality issues that aren't obvious but could lead to safety issues later. Clearly not a high quality factory with much in the way of QC checks.

https://www.thedailystar.net/business/news/germanys-cube-teams-meghna-make-high-end-bicycles-1632277

 

[PaulSB]

I would reject it outright and request a 14 day replacement or full refund. No compromises as I could never be happy with this bike.

 

[IanSmithCSE]

Good morning,

You have said a small holes/voids on the frame, it is not clear from the photos if you are showing us actual holes or just a dark area where the paint is pealing off.

A hole would say to me don't ride, whereas a paint fault would say either return or accept a partial refund for a minor defect depending upon your view of the world and how much you need the bike.

Cube frame warranties are; For all frames and rigid forks from model year 2012 we guarantee from the date of sale from the dealer:
Aluminium 6 Years Guarantee
Carbon, Alu-Carbon 3 Years Guarantee
https://www.cube.eu/en/cubeworld/ne...do-i-have-guarantee-warranty-on-my-cube-bike/

Although other makers do offer lifetime warranties in practice they are frequently no different to 6/3 years, very few frames fail after these time periods from defects in materials and manufacture, failure will nearly always be wear & tear or accident.

I can't find it now but one manufacturer actually stated in their blurb something like this frame won't last as long as our other frames because we made it light.

Understandably no maker want to commit to a miles/age limit for their frames, so even frames that the makers expect to have a limited lifespan, say 5-10 years of normal usage are often bought with the belief that they could last 60-70 years.

When they fail within the expected life time the customer is unhappy, but the truth about frame life is like politicians who tell the truth we say we want them, until we get them. The market isn't ready for an honest maker saying we can cut 500g off the frame weight at the cost of reducing the frame life down to 3 year/50,000 miles

Cube seems to have gone for 115kg for their road range and if you look at the Specialized Allez, it has weight limits of 125kg for all but the top of the range model which has 109kg, so Specialised are sort of acknowledging a weight/lifespan trade off for the Comp model.

https://media.specialized.com/support/collateral/0000093943.pdf (this is a 2018 list)
https://www.cube.eu/fileadmin/2022/Service/Helpdesk/Classic_weight_limits_MY22_Stand_04.11.21.pdf

Bye

Ian

 

[bonzobanana]

Good morning,

You have said a small holes/voids on the frame, it is not clear from the photos if you are showing us actual holes or just a dark area where the paint is pealing off.

A hole would say to me don't ride, whereas a paint fault would say either return or accept a partial refund for a minor defect depending upon your view of the world and how much you need the bike.

Cube frame warranties are; For all frames and rigid forks from model year 2012 we guarantee from the date of sale from the dealer:
Aluminium 6 Years Guarantee
Carbon, Alu-Carbon 3 Years Guarantee
https://www.cube.eu/en/cubeworld/ne...do-i-have-guarantee-warranty-on-my-cube-bike/

Although other makers do offer lifetime warranties in practice they are frequently no different to 6/3 years, very few frames fail after these time periods from defects in materials and manufacture, failure will nearly always be wear & tear or accident.

I can't find it now but one manufacturer actually stated in their blurb something like this frame won't last as long as our other frames because we made it light.

Understandably no maker want to commit to a miles/age limit for their frames, so even frames that the makers expect to have a limited lifespan, say 5-10 years of normal usage are often bought with the belief that they could last 60-70 years.

When they fail within the expected life time the customer is unhappy, but the truth about frame life is like politicians who tell the truth we say we want them, until we get them. The market isn't ready for an honest maker saying we can cut 500g off the frame weight at the cost of reducing the frame life down to 3 year/50,000 miles

Cube seems to have gone for 115kg for their road range and if you look at the Specialized Allez, it has weight limits of 125kg for all but the top of the range model which has 109kg, so Specialised are sort of acknowledging a weight/lifespan trade off for the Comp model.

https://media.specialized.com/support/collateral/0000093943.pdf (this is a 2018 list)
https://www.cube.eu/fileadmin/2022/Service/Helpdesk/Classic_weight_limits_MY22_Stand_04.11.21.pdf

Bye

Ian

3 years is shockingly low for a CF or aluminium frame with CF forks. I only know of one worse than that which is Planet X which offers 2 years but they are pretty much a box shifter with a questionable customer service reputation. I have heard of people getting warranty replacements quite late in life, 10-15 years. CF can have internal voids, cracks and de-laminations and other issues that take years to cause a failure but were there from day one. Aluminium frames can fail at the welds over time and some frames have design weaknesses that cause early failures. Also when I was involved in certification many products were designed for a working life of 7-10 years and pretty sure that applies to bicycle frames and forks too.

I think Giant who are an actual manufacturer offer 25 years warranty on frames and forks even for performance models but obviously fair wear and tear also applies the older the frame and forks get. A heavily fatigued aluminium tube away from the welds is not going to be warrantied when 15 years has passed. I've been surprised how often they will warranty a frame though. Also Giant are very honest about performance road bikes in their manual, compromised strength and lifespan etc.

The issue as ever with a factoryless brand is as consumers we don't know what factory was used so cannot make an informed choice regarding quality but based on that paintwork and the fact it wasn't caught at the factory in QC we can safely assume its a pretty low end factory.

 

[fossyant]

Scratches/chips happen, if not happy, ask for a discount or take it back. I got a heafty discount on an MTB I bought which had a fair sized scratch/paint chip on the down tube. Wasn't bothered as MTB's get scuffed up very quickly.

Had it been a road bike, then nope, I'd not be happy.