hey allen, no problem. im glad we can share experiences. funny you are planning on building a double top tube bike, i own a couple of them and my original plan was actually to copy one for my first bamboo frame. i later abandonded this idea and built the two bikes you have seen (the first one stopped creacking after a couple hundred k's by the way, and has not made anoise since, the cargo cruiser does not creack at all!).
anyway, i look forward to seeing pics of your completed bike, and heres a pic of my favourite double top tube fixie:
http://img112.imageshack.us/img112/3...rketfixsl1.jpg

My bike now has about 20 miles on it and I had a few of my friends give it a spin around the farm.
There is some flex in the rear triangle, it's not too bad though you really only notice it climbing.

The wheels are still on it, and we gave it a bit of a thrashing today.

Forgot to charge my camera, too excited.

Sweet bike. That is exactly what I had in mind for the next one.

http://awcg.com/Allen/Bicycle/X1/Side.jpg
Done.
Almost, I'm going to change the cable guides out for a different kind, the white tape is there to bother me so I will change them out and not learn to live with the ones that are on there. They currently cause some friction on the shifter and brake cables.

Chapaneco,
Do y'all have induction loop traffic lights (metal detectors imbedded in the road that change the lights)?
My bike does not trip the ones we have around here. Curious if you ran into a similar thing.

My steel frame bike doesn't even trip trafic lights

flyingcadet

I started a thread about this thread over in CarFree Living. These bikes are beautiful and I also wonder if they would have an impact on societies where petroleum-derived materials are in short supply.

hmm, we have a traffic light downtown that works sometimes. there are a few more around the edges of town, i dont think any of them have metal detectors in 'em...
mostly speed bumps are used here to control traffic, sometimes installed by official government workers, but more often built by folks who organize in the neighbourhood after a child gets killed by a car or somesuch. I really like speedbumps, because they MAKE cars stop. A light has nothing but moral authority.

Wow!

Catalog Entry

http://www.auctionflex.com/auctionim..._2B70Y41H3.jpg

Even the seat.

Just wow!

you know the seattube and the seatstays and the fork and the handlebars are metal tubing, right? as is the rack, they are just wrapped in rattan.
i really like the fenders, though!

Yea, I think the only things that are bamboo in the frame are the down and top tubes. Still a good looking bike and it sold for only $150.00.
I couldn't do the rack for that.

I believe it is made by the Hangzhou Xinnan Rattan & Bamboo Works.

spring cleanup.
 

It is spring in chicagoland and all the trees have been or are being trimmed.IT makes me think after seeing some bamboo bikes here.There are Lots of frame tube sized branches available for a skilled woodworker to craft into bicycle frames.;)

oh, do you mean like these "bikes built in the worst possible way"?:
http://woodenbikes.com/

Well I ordered my bamboo today...1" and 1 3/4" nigra.

There are a few new bamboo frames on frameforum too.
The wave is building.

Sol cycles starting up...
http://www.velonews.com/article/72960
http://nfrey.blogspot.com/2008/02/so...oad-model.html

PRICING

ROAD - Standard: $1595; SL: $1995; Custom: $2695
CROSS - Standard: $1495; SL: $1895; Custom: $2595
SINGLE - Standard: $1395; SL: $1795; Custom: $2495

where did you find the price listings?

I signed up for their info and they sent me the prices.

Hey wakamole, did you order your bamboo locally, or from overseas?

Scott.

Well, I think I'm going to see if I can't make it happen here in CR. You guys will probably be getting a lot of PMs over the next couple months.

Wish me luck.

Luck.

Framefourm.org now has a bamboo section.
http://frameforum.org/forum3/index.php?board=15.0

Scott
Try Ned Skroza in Wanneroo on 9306 2673 or Peter Hicks in Balingup on 9764 1002
Pete and Wendy yarrisprings@westnet.com.au have nigra that's what I'm going for - I'll let you know how it turns out.
I haven't got it yet. I can order extra if you want to have a go too. email me at wakamole@hotmail.com
Scott

will you be getting fresh bamboo? I was there back in March and it looks like you have a lot of areas that you can get from. good luck. Make sure you dry it first;)

Fresh bamboo then fire-cured. Apparently the oils come through the fibres and make it super strong and create a natural varnish on the outside.

another BAMBOOCYCLE

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-...amboo-Bicycle/

http://awcg.com/Allen/Bicycle/X1/TheEnd.jpg

Wrecked today. It was not that horrible of a crash, however my frame is completely shot.
I think it's durability is the largest reason bamboo is not commonly seen as a frame material.


I will most likely not rebuild this frame.

BTW, I went down in some sand on the road. The front rack snapped off splitting the downtube to flinders.

photos
 

hey Allan
I hope you weren't hurt!
(just your feelings? he he he)

can you post a pic of your ex-frame?
could you have made it stronger in hindsight?
more hemp on lugs?
different curing method for culms?
thicker bamboo?

wow allen, sorry to hear that. i just completed my third frame, with mountain geometry, and i think it is the best ive made so far. i will post pics soon.
i hv heard from calfee that bamboo is actually very crash resistant, i wonder what happened with yours....
id be interested in seeing the pics of how it failed

It took me a day to get over it. It's a learning process, apply what you know to the next.

The frame failed because of the frame mounted rack.
1.) When the rack, which protrudes from either side of the frame by about five inches, hit the ground it put a lot of lateral stress on the downtube, splitting it.
2.) It could have been exacerbated by the way I cured the bamboo. When researching curing, one of the techniques I read about was smoking. I'm going to explore the differences in curing and strengthening methods.

I don't know if smoking is a poor curing method, I will however not use a frame mounted front rack on bamboo in the future. It does give me a frame that I won't feel squeamish about conducting some extensive destruction tests.

The lugs have held remarkably well. They show no signs of cracking or failing. When I formed them I did take into account fiber orientation. The frame did have some flex in the main triangle due to the geometry. Next time I build a similar frame I think creating a bracing structure at the headtube, tying the top and bottom tubes together, would be beneficial.

http://awcg.com/Allen/Bicycle/X1/LostRack.jpg
Where the rack mount came loose.

Sorry about the low res image, the only camera I have at hand is the laptop's. My real camera is at my studio, I'll grab it and post some better images later.

--A