The 4 most common bicycle frame materials infolific. While todays road bicycle market heavily favors carbon, bike frames can be built using a variety of metals and nonmetals each with their own set of pros and cons. The metal goes through a process similar to the one described earlier. A bicycle frame is the main component of a bicycle, onto which wheels and other components. The bicycle frame the bicycle frame is the main load bearing structure of the bicycle and in order to select materials for its construction or to make an efficient frame design the loads carried by the various components must be evaluated under realistic conditions. Specialized does have a takeback program in place, but recycling involves chopping the fibers into smaller pieces, so that reclaimed material wont find another life as a new bike frame. Cut 2 pieces of 78 tubing, with a 58 inside diameter, as shown in figure 5 weld to the 2 pieces of tubing you have just bent as shown in figure 6.
An introduction to lightweight composite materials and their use in transport structures. Research bicycle frame design principles and check component. Manufacturing processes and market trends continue to literally shape the bicycle frame. Introduced as a material for bicycle frames about 30 years ago, aluminum is now the most common material. Mechanical properties of common bike frame materials. A sketch of the draisienne velocipede from around 1818. This alloy is stronger than steel and thus less material can be used for a lighter bike. Materials for bicycle frame system a case study on the development of selection method. The substitution of standard materials with composite materials, together with the. Parametric finite element analysis of steel bicycle frames. Your bike frame and components is made from composite materials also known as carbon fiber. For other cycling related terms besides parts see glossary of cycling. But its mainstream use has waned in recent years, with carbon fiber and aluminum frames now far more prevalent on bike.
Solidworks 2016, rendering, may 19th, 2018 bicycle wheel. I have left many details out in an effort to keep the conversation focused and simple. The plans include diagrams and all the measurements. New design concept of a downhill mountain bike frame made of a. For instance, the vast majority of highquality racing bicycles are sold with campagnolo parts cranks, pedals, brakes, derailleurs, hubs, whether the frame has been built in england. Solidworks 2017, step iges, rendering, may 4th, 2018 dt. By the time the modern safety bicycle was developed in the late 1800s most frames were made with steel tubing instead of wood or cast iron. It covers aspects of the design process, including creativity, and bicycle geometry. What makes one frame material better than another ultimately comes down to budget and your individual needs as a cyclist. This paper presents a parametric finite element model of road bicycle frames using beam.
Pdf choosing the optimum material for making a bicycle frame. Campagnolo 1281 axle stop cool widgets for frames without dropout adjusters 2 of them. Steel frames at one time was the only frame material. Bicycles are used as a form of transportation, for fun and exercise and even in professions. Successfully designing innovative bicycle frames built from materials other than steel is. While the steel bicycles were quite strong they were also very heavy. As shown in figure 1, a bike is a surprisingly simple structure made of a frame built from a few tubes assembled to create two.
In this work, the design of a new downhill mountain bike frame, made with an innovative natural composite, is presented. Material and design optimization for an aluminum bike frame. The bicycle frame to be modeled is made of aluminum, whose properties are shown in table 6. Torch brazing is the common manual method, whereby a skilled worker manipulates a torch and. This is a simplified description of material as applied in a custom bicycle frame. Selecting ideal materials for bicycle frames using. Several million new bikes are sold each year, and this generates an important commercial activity. At seven we start with the best raw materials available to us, and then, through a deep understanding of the underlying metallurgy, we refine them to produce the best bike for the person who will ride it. Steel, aluminum and titanium are metals with an interesting relationship. Unlike most other products, however, the bicycle cannot be distinguished by its components alone. Material selection for a bicycle linkedin slideshare. Ah steel, the no fuss workhorse of bike frame materials. Frame materials for the touring cyclist sheldon brown.
This paper deals with the stress analysis of bicycle frame mild steel. This choice has a dramatic effect on the way a bicycle rides, its weight, durability, and, importantly, its cost. It was not uncommon for a bicycle of that era to weigh in at over 80 pounds 36. It is less dense than steel, so it results in lighter frames. Instead, the austenite phase transforms to a metastable. Cromoly is either a chromiummolybdenum or manganesemolybdenum steel alloy. Frame material is just one factor of the overall frame design. The book describes how to build frames for 26 wheels, 27 wheels, 700c wheels, 650c wheels, and 650b wheels. Creative bicycle design and framebuilding is for the experienced craftsman interested in making steel bicycle frames and forks in a small shop, or wellequipped home studio. Tools and equipment are discussed, and the process of building bicycle frames is. Steel was the universal choice of racing bike frames until aluminium appeared in the 1970s and 1980s and carbon fibre took over in the 1990s.
Bcycle frames there are different kind of bcycle frame. Once upon a time, steel was the bike building material of choice. Soon after came steel, then aluminum alloy, spaceage carbon fiber, and now titanium. Jigging in this manual is rudimentary, and only inexpensive mappair torches are described. This encompasses common frame materials such as aluminium and titanium alloys. There are even frame materials consisting of cardboard and plastic. Structural analysis and optimization of bicycle frame designs chien. Advancements in materials used in bicycle frames school of. Lugged bicycle frame and fork construction, manuals for. The diagram shows the frame geometry of a conventional bicycle. Common materials for frame there are a wide variety of materials used in bicycle frames. Content of lugged bicycle frame construction includes. Bike frames were originally made from wood, but modern frames are made. This paper presents the results obtained following the finite element method fem simulations on a bike frame made of 3 different materials.
Beginner buying a bike, whether for the road, trails or track, can be a confusing business and one of the most fundamental decisions to make is which frame material to opt for quiz any three cyclists on this topic and youre likely to get three different replies and, like groupset brands and mountain bike wheel sizes, can lead to heated debate. We can use for a frame carbon fiber,aleminium alloys or pure steel. Make 2 pieces as shown in figure 7 out of 18 plate steel. Pdf materials selection of a bicycle frame using cost. Aluminum is the material of choice for most bicycle companies when it comes to mountain bicycle frames, with other common materials being steel.
Further work is required to validate this model using a frame stiffness jig and to characterise the influence of material choice on the stiffness and. Deformation of the different materials bicycle frame in the present simulation compared with those in. There is an amazing amount of folkloric conventional wisdom about bicycle frames and materials that is widely disseminated, but has no basis in fact. With the abusive conditions of mountain biking, bicycle riders require frames that can withstand significant forces, and have high fatigue lives. Place order with suppliers for frame materials, parts. A look at how to approach a frame build and why youd want to tackle a build in the first place. Specialized uses dyneema in some of their highend road bike shoes and they have plans to incorporate the material into frames and components. Seven cycles building your bike materials technology. Please use the format ive used in my answers to make it easy to compare materials.
This item is only available as the following downloads. Although over the years there have been such oddities as bamboo and plastic frames, current road bikes are made of one or blends of these four materials. However, after the hydroforming process is complete, the tubes resemble the rim of a bike s wheel rather than parts of a bike s frame. The reality is that you can make a good bike frame out of any of these metals, with any desired riding qualities, by selecting appropriate tubing diameters, wall thicknesses and frame geometry. There other materials on the fringe, but they are beyond the scope of this discussion. Historically, the most common material for the tubes of a bicycle frame has been steel.
Titanium has 12 the density of steel and 12 the tensile. Giant warrants the frame and rigid fork of each new giant brand bicycle and giant brand frameset to be free from defects in material and workmanship for as long as the original purchaser owns the bicycle. Because of its decreased density, it requires larger tube diameters to achieve enough strength for a bike frame. Bicycle frame design university of florida digital collections. Aurb428201a design and build a bicycle frame training.
Bicycle frames and forks are made of four different materials. While not as common as it used to be, the process of butting is still used in the manufacture of bicycle frames. Firewood shed plans include a free pdf download, material list, and stepbystep instructions with drawings. Pdf structural analysis and optimization of bicycle frame designs. Solidworks 2016, rendering, may 6th, 2018 dt swiss champion spoke. There are two distinct types of steel used in the bicycle industry. According to cycling historians, the first bike was constructed in 1817 completely of wood. New materials have advantages over carbon fiber for bike. Steel was the universal choice of racing bike frames until aluminium appeared in the 1970s and 1980s and carbon fiber took over in the 1990s. Here, we will focus on the bicycle frames and what material they are made of. Meanwhile, steel, the longrunning workhorse, is being replaced more and more by aluminum. Pdf this paper presents the use of a hybrid stress analysis method for the prediction of fatigue life of bicycle frames.
The bicycle frame the heart of the modern bicycle is the frame. Other exotic frame materials include titanium and advanced alloys. This is why a constraint of density is to be limited at 5000 kgm3. Spokes, gears, seat post, frame, handlebars, brakes and tires.
Selecting ideal materials for bicycle frames using material selection charts. How a material flexes is determined by its youngs modulus, and how something like a bicycle frame or fork flexes is determined by its material and physical dimensions. A strong and durable touring frame can be constructed out of aluminium, steel or titanium. In this article, we used the lightweight and new materials to improve the structural rigidity and energysaving of riding. One answer per material please, with an example of a bicycle frame using that material. If you want a more technical and detailed description of materials, you can read scot nicols metallurgy for cyclists here. A lightweight material is vital to create the ideal bicycle frame to improve manoeuvrability, braking and acceleration performance. Materials selection of a bicycle frame using cost per unit property and digital logic methods article pdf available in international journal of mechanical and materials engineering 51. The first major breakthrough in frame materials was known in the industry as cromoly. It is sturdy and can withstand quite a bit of abuse.
Bicycle frame materials explained bikeexchange blog. Pdf design of aluminum bicycle frames researchgate. Pdf materials for bicycle frame system a case study on. Free shed plans with drawings material list free pdf. However, there are also frames made of wood, bamboo, thermoplastic, and magnesium.