So, I've got a situation with a Felt of mine that's very new (4 months old and used for <250 miles) and looking for a bit of input from a non-local (to me) Felt dealer in the US. I noticed that looks like a crack... Can feel it if I run my nail over the top of it so the clearcoat is raised. I thought maybe the clearcoat was scratched so I used some polishing compound to see if that helped it. Afterwards, seems like no, or very little difference. Dealership reckons it's just s surface scratch and not a crack, and not in a critical location on the frame, and to just keep riding it and keep an eye on it. Alternatively, they said I could have them send it to Felt for a 2nd opinion and risk having to pay shipping costs (about $220 from my location). Not sure what Felt's policy is... Felt told me that shipping wouldn't be charged within the first 2yrs. If Felt get a frame, then determine it to be OK, they charge shipping?

Note, I don't have plans to ride this bike so it's going to be hard to ride it and see if gets worse.

What would you guys do?

Look up the user "SuperDave" - the dude, Dave, works at Felt.

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Exp001

You should ask your dealer to send pictures of it to Felt, then have them show you the response from Felt. If your dealer doesn't want to do that, tell them they just lost a customer who is now going to spend his hard earned money at another shop.

(is it an online or brick-and-mortar store?)

Your shop is not entirely wrong. In this type of situation, where its not clear one way or another, the company will want to determine the state of the crack themselves. Rarely, an outside sales rep could make the determination, but that is not common. You should expect to pay shipping for the frame there but not back. Your shop may be able to negotiate shipping both ways, but dont count on it. Are you in the US? I've never shipped a frame in the lower 48 for more then $60 or so, with insurance. $220 seems insanely high unless you are shipping internationally.

Could you give more info on the crack? where is it on the bike? Can you feel the tube "push in" when you push around it?

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"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction."

I can't push in the frame in the area, but here's a photo... If I run my nail over it, I can feel that the crack or whatever is raised. I tried some polishing compound on the area to see if it was just something on the surface but that made no difference. I'll see if the dealer is willing to send pics to Felt.

That looks just like a crack in the paint, unfortunately very common on heavily painted carbon frames. I wouldn't be worried about it at all. I've been racing and training on a frame with about 4-5 of those cracks for over a year without any issues.

Paint crack. Do not sweat it. Just ride it, but keep an eye on it. I have dealt with this on 2 bikes that were white. A buddy of mine had another one with this. He sanded the spot down to the carbon to see if it was carbon or just paint. It was just paint. I think the paint cracks are a reason a lot of manufacturers moved away from white paint in high stress areas. The lighter colors seem to show them a lot easier.

Paint crack.

Sometimes warranty-able if your shop is on very very good terms with Felt, but completely unnecessary. Usually it would not even be warrantied.

The DuPont paint Felt usually uses is very thick and not particularly soft, so it can sometimes crack in areas of high frame movement like the BB.

I would just ride it, personally.