Carbon fiber bike Inspection
You may be wondering whether your bike is safe to ride after an accident or years of heavy use. Perhaps you’re considering selling your bike or you’re in the process of buying a second hand frame. In any case, we can help. Our carbon inspection and assessment services will give you peace of mind, leaving you with the assurance that your bike is in good riding condition or that there are areas of concern that need addressing.
Some damage can be easy to spot. A crack may be obvious but delaminating carbon layers below the surface aren’t as easy to see with your eyes. Our carbon inspection services can go beyond the visual to review the full structural integrity of your bike frame and highlight any areas of concern.
Depending on your budget, your specific situation, and the amount of detail you’d like, we offer three inspection levels for you to choose from. Starting at as little as $150, a range of investigative techniques from exterior and interior inspection to acoustic and ultrasound testing will be used as needed to give your bike a wellness assessment.
Spot Check - one area inspected for damage
$150 (excluding tax)
We’ll do a 6-8 inch (15-20 cm) inspection around a single spot of concern to identify whether there is damage and the extent. This is ideal when you know where a potential impact happened, like a dropped chain or a handlebar strike against the top tube.
*The spot check doesn’t include a formal report, but we’ll put our findings into writing via email once we’ve finished our inspection.
If your bike has more than one area of concern or you’re not sure what might’ve been damaged we’d recommend opting for a Health Check instead.
Depending on the inspection location, some component removal may be required at our discretion and can be done by VéloColour at an additional cost.
Health Check - multiple key areas inspected for damage
$275 (excluding tax)
We’ll do an multi-area spot inspection as well as a 6-8 inch (15-20 cm) inspection around any obvious areas of concern, using a variety of methods from visual and internal borescopic to acoustic and ultrasound - depending on the nature of the concern and at our professional discretion.
This is ideal if you’re unsure whether there is damage or if there are multiple areas of concern that a single spot inspection would not cover.
*The health check doesn’t include a formal report, but we’ll put our findings into writing via email once we’ve finished our inspection.
If you want the most thorough inspection, including a formal report that’d be good for insurance purposes, we’d recommend our Full Inspection option.
Depending on the inspection location, some component removal may be required at our discretion and can be done by VéloColour at an additional cost.
Full Inspection - all areas inspected for damage plus report
$425 (excluding tax)
We’ll do a detailed inspection of the entire frame and fork, as well as a 6-8 inch (15-20 cm) inspection around any obvious spots of concern using the full range of techniques to check for damage.
This is the most thorough inspection we offer. This level of inspection may require full frame and fork access and related parts may have to be removed accordingly including: the full drivetrain and internally routed handlebars and headsets. Parts removal and rebuild as needed can by done by VéloColour at an additional cost if it hasn’t been done prior to drop-off.
The full inspection price includes a formal written PDF report and related images. This is beneficial when the findings of a carbon inspection are required for insurance purposes or as an aid in sales within the secondary retail market.
The Fine Print
Inspection lead times range from 2-5 working days from drop-off.
Mechanical services may be required. This can be done prior to drop-off at VéloColour or VéloColour can do the required additional work at our standard hourly rate. For more information, check out our Mechanical Services.
Properly packing and shipping your frame takes time. We charge $75 on top of listed prices for this service. Shipping within North America typically ranges between CDN $120-$300.
Drop-off, pick-up and/or delivery are the responsibility of the customer.
Official reports for insurance purposes can be applied to inspection levels one and two for and additional $75.