3D Woven, Braided Carbon Fiber Concept Road Bike by Jacob Haim
Braided carbon fiber tubes aren’t completely new, BMC’s doing it with their Impec, but they’re still rare. Rarer still is seeing it done to maximum effect using silicone mandrels to shape the finished tubes like design student Jacob Haim’s RaceBRAID road bike shown here.
Developed as a graduate project with the help of Munich Composites, the bike’s main tubes are woven around silicone mandrels to provide shape. The benefit to such construction methods is that it minimizes wasted materials and man hours spent on layup. The material layup and density in each section of each tube can be precisely controlled, then resin is injected and it’s cured. The inside of the tube looks as good as the outside, and minimal finishing work is necessary.
For his thesis project, Haim used a lugged construction, which allowed him to use the same tubes for all frame sizes from 50 to 60 cm while still allowing it to be customized to the riders. That’s part of the reason the seatstays meet the seat tube so low on this bike.
Click through for more pics and details…
Haim originally envisioned the bike with titanium lugs, but costs for such things are a bit much for a student project. He told BicycleDesign they’re a “secret” layup that’ll get refined should the bike make it into production.
Want to see the braiding in action? Check the video on Munich Composite’s website.
Design blog Core77 also has an interview with Jacob and noted that the ridiculously lightweight BlackBraid “commuter” bike we spotted at Eurobike was also constructed using this method.
Comments
Weird how in some of the photos the bike appears to have direct-mount style brakes and in other photos, no brakes.
I think the last picture is a digital model.
I hope he calls this model “The Corey”
Get the wheels lined up for the main photo =(
Super Mario, I think it’ll be named Corky. Oh-Blah-Dee, Oh-Blah-Dah
That is one ugly bike.
“the bike’s main tubes are woven around silicone mandrels to provide shape. ..The inside of the tube looks as good as the outside, and minimal finishing work is necessary.”
- some carbon factories in the far east are already doing this for ‘traditional’ lay-up manufacturing, using removable 3d-print blocks.
BMC credit for “3d braids”? the cannondale six13 had 3d braided top and down tubes man many years ago. as did the early time fames before time was braiding in house.
the shapes remind me of the early kuotas. back when they were actually interesting and unique… before you kids noticed the brand.
My favorite touch is the “3T” in reverse on the fork. That thing is hideous.
Keep in mind that it is a project by a design student, and probably not a finished product.
But indeed, it’s absolutely hideous. And this student needs to work on his photoshop skills.
I like those chainstays.
U-G-L-Y you ain’t got no alibi, you’re just ugly
U-G-L-Y but you never wonder why you’re so ugly
U-G-L-Y you ain’t got no alibi, you’re just ugly
U-G-L-Y you ain’t got no alibi, you’re just ug, ugly ugly
Not to pleasing to my eye…
The chain in the first image must be photoshopped in because it is certainly not able to be routed through the rear derailleur as shown.
Hmm, if you think the bike is ugly, post which road race bike you currently own/ride.
Damn. Tough crowd. I think it looks pretty cool. I wish I had the design expertise to make something even remotely as cool as that.
I’ll take it up one notch; All you (deleted) hatin’ on it post a link to some of your design work.
And here comes the Hater Brigade. Keep pointing out flaws in photoshopped photos. You are all doing such great work.
I think the bike looks good, even for a student project. I especially like the front on shot, with the oversized lugs sticking out.
Surely the point of this is the (almost) unique carbon weave process, which looks gorgeous and might actually reduce production costs without compromising performance. The final design, and geometry might need to be re-worked if it ever went into production, but as a concept this is great work, and I’ve seen some much uglier bikes around anyway