dismantiling carbon -alloy frame

The allen bolts at the drop out may make the frame look "demountable" but I can assure you the manufacturer did NOT intend for this to be done at all.

The glue used to hold these parts together is very strong and, if you don't know what you're doing you can easily break the wishbone before you break the glue bond.

Certainly removing the wishbone is NOT a task for the home repairer. If it must be done, take it to a frame builder. They will most likely tell you whether or not it can be done (and whether it is worth it) before starting work.

But why do you need to remove the wishbone in the first place? Surely I would have thought that it could withstand bead blasting. If not, or if you don't want to remove the lacquer, why not just cover the wishbone in some sort of protective mask?

You don't specify Fahrenheit or Celsius temperatures but if its Fahrenheit you're not talking about a huge temperature. I'd be very disappointed if carbon fibre couldn't cope with 180F (it is heated much higher than that in manufacture).

Tafi, maybe that should have been my first question, could the carbon wishbone withstand 180 degrees in the bead blasting-repainting process? ! I will take your advice, leave it in one piece,and give it a go. Many thanks, gaz

Don't just take my advice. Get your satisfaction from the bead blaster and the painter first. Surely they should have more understanding of the limitations of the process than I do.

But certainly, even if the integrity of the wishbone is a concern, I'd be thinking about masking/protecting it in-situ before I would try removing it.