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I've got a Park PCS-10 repair stand, and just acquired my first carbon bike. Is there anything I should know about clamping either the frame or seatpost in the stand?

Being a few years old, the frame and seatpost are perfectly round and non-aero. Is it safe to clamp them in the stand? Do I need an adaptor? Or should I avoid clamping it in a stand entirely?

Thanks.

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3 Answers 3

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Park Tool suggests contacting the frame manufacturer for advise,apparently different makers designate different clamping points.

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  • Sometimes, manufacturers aren't too helpful either. For example, the Specialized Tarmac 08 booklet recommends using the Park Extreme Range Clamp, but does not specify a clamp point. Park warns against using the clamp against some thin-walled carbon fiber frames.
    – James Schek
    Commented Jan 11, 2012 at 17:28
  • Giant does provide a clamp. I'm not sure it's for the bike I own, but it's the best lead so far. Thanks.
    – Stephen Touset
    Commented Jan 18, 2012 at 21:32
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I clamp my bikes by the seat post (they are aluminium seat posts on my bkes) for maintaince tasks that dont involve a lot of force (like removing bottom brakets) If I need to apply a lot of force then I put my bike on the ground and support it with my body. If you have a carbon seat post you need to be carefull that you do not clamp it too tight because the usual advice is that clamping forces are the most likly to cause damage to carbon components. You could always swap out the carbon post for an aluminum one.

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The recommendation I got from abike shop was to clamp to the seatpost (it is carbon). However, they said the safest thing to do would be to keep an aluminum seatpost around and swap it out whenever I want to use the repair stand.

That said, I observed the same bike mechanics work on my bike and they simply clamped the bike by its carbon fiber seatpost without swapping it out.

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