Originally Posted by
dabac
I've repeatedly toyed with the idea of using pipe fitting hardware as used in plumbing to make a bike that can be disassembled. Those parts are fairly cheap so one could pick up a pair of those and a beater bike for some real-life experimenting w/o breaking the budget. They'd be a lot less slick, and probably heavier than the real deal though.
If I ever get around to doing it, I'd probably get quite a kick out of the reaction from those who recognize the source of the parts...
If you ever do this and they break... send us a note how you are doing in hospital. Seriously! I do not think you really know what the stresses faced at such a joint are all about. It would be interesting (and expensive) to do a stress study of such joints. A Mech Engineering M.Sc. would be helpful..