Beware of the FOAM SPRAY

[210061741]

A couple of months ago i filled my bike frame with that spray in foam insulastion.

To help with vibration.
Which it dose.
Also i'm sure it helps strengthen the tubing as well.

The problem is is will do what it's supposed to and seep into all the cracks and anywhere it can go.

So my mistake was doing this with my bike assembled.
#1 it oozed out all over for like days.
Including oozing out of my bottom bracket.

So my bottom bracket got pretty much wrecked and started unscrewing itself.
I went to get it replaced at the bike shop cause i didn't have the tools i needed and they said 10 bucks to do it.

Well once he pulled the cranks off it turned into a nightmare.
The spindle and everything was stuck in the frame cause of the foam.
I had to sit there for 2 hrs to carve it all out with a little screwdriver.

What a pain.
Good thing they had this Tap Set to clean up the threads.
They got pretty messed up on the chainwheel side.

So in the end we got it fixed.
New bottom bracket in there.
The guy was a little irritated cause the 10 min job was much more difficult.
Thats why they dont like to work on the motorized bikes.

Finally i'm on my way home and my chain came off the motor side.
What luck.
Wasn't too bad to get it back on but busted one of my spokes.
The spoke is what kicked the chain off.
Musta got in there when it broke.

I do like the foam in the bike.
But if your gonna do it take it apart first.
And make sure you wear gloves.

I got that foam all over my hands and nothing would take it off.
It is worse than superglue.

And i used everything, Gas, Acetone, Laqure Thinner, Paint thinner, ect....
Nothing even helped.
My hands were greasy and dirty when i did it.
That foam sealed all that dirt to my hands.

It took at least a month of peeling and scraping to get it off.

Go buy some and have a blast.

 

[motorpsycho]

I don't want to sound like a smart a$$, but i can not beleive that you did this AND that you are posting about it. The foam is called EXPANDING foam for a reason. As you already found out, it will get EVERYWHERE.
The reason why it won't come off of your skin is because it is a poly-resin material, and it will bond to EVERYTHING.

 

[fetor56]

Handy heads-up about the foam.
I wouldn't have realized the full consequences of my actions either,but i would have tested it beforehand to see how well it worked(very well by the sounds of it)

 

[outrunner2]

Are you aware of non-expanding foam insulation spray? That would seem to be an
excellent choice for filling your frame. It sounds like a good idea,I might try it myself.
It's sold at Lowe's or Home Depot

 

[oldsalt]

Is the foam hearlded because it make the frame 'stronger'? Probably changes the natural frequency of the various tubes, but increase rigidity or heighten the frame's strength? I'm having some trouble with that claim.

 

[DougC]

I would think that no kind of aerosol-spray foam is going to do good for what you want, because it has to undergo out-gassing to cure. If you spray it into a closed area (like a bicycle tube) it's not going to be able to cure properly. It may cure eventually, but I'd bet it's not going to be filling the entire inside of the tube.

My experience with the stuff (both the urethane and latex types) is that it is not that great because I have found that if you try to spread it really thick, the tiny bubbles tend to break down until they coalesce into a few huge bubbles. You don't get an even fill at all.

I could be wrong though.

Maybe try filling a 2-foot-long piece of clear silicone hose with it and see what happens? You could cut the hose open lengthwise to really see how it filled out....
~

 

[210061741]

The main purpose is for the vibration dampening effect.
The extent that i used it to it was pretty solid.
Had to use a hammer and a screwdriver to chip it out.
It was solid like plastic.
It did take forever to cure.

I don't think i would use it again.

But i read on one of these forums that it helped alot with vibration.
Seems to have done that but i'm not sure it was worth my trouble.