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Bamboo Bike A Reality
markjugg writes "The American Bamboo Society has a page describing a working bamboo bike. This is a strong step towards making bicycling more sustainable, expecially in contrast to aluminum, one of the most resource demanding materials that exist."
i've seen this before on a show called gilligans island...
fact: microsoft > linux
They're probably just trying to bamboozle us...
This is all good until someone gets attacked by a Panda. Yet another version of "meals on wheels!"
Next week we can all read about the follow up stories from the America Plastic Association, the American Balsa Wood Collective, and the Society for the Reuse of Aluminum Foil...
Davak
Before you say that bamboo is weak and easily dismembered, here's a quote from the article:
"But Flavio makes me see things differently: Bamboo is a resource of immense potential. And it is strong too. What makes it possible to build bicycles from it is that it is stronger than steel when strained in the longitudinal direction, 17% to be exact."
While resistence to longitudinal stress is a good thing, many of the strains on the frame of a bike are not longitudinal - there is a lot of lateral flexing as you pedal. Bamboo is prone to splitting and fracturing when under lateral strain. I would really hate to have one of those collapse under me due to lateral stress fractures. All those sharp slivers of bamboo right under my crotch? No thanks...
Sailing over the event horizon
Yes, but steel/aluminum won't rot, won't get eaten by bugs
Hmmm yes, what we really need is an environmentally friendly biodegradable substance that won't rot or get eaten by bugs. Best of both worlds.
Bamboo canes are hollow, right? So just use aluminium rods with bamboo cladding round the outside. You get a strong and stable bike, and still get all the eco-friendly posing opportunities. It's not as if anyone will try to cut the bamboo open to see if you're cheating.
-- Ed Avis ed@membled.com
Sweet!
Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them? --Abraham Lincoln
Bamboo is also flamable...which leaves out common activities like jumping through flaming hoops, or over a burning tar pit. Being made of wood, I really wouldn't want to ride a bamboo bike while juggling chainsaws. There are lots of arguments against bamboo bikes.
Personally, I would love to see more natural fibers in bikes. Rather than making the whole bike from bamboo, making just a few pieces helps reduce the consumption from the titanium mines.
Sig: Flamable materials are dangerous, which is why I always make sure the products I buy are clearly marked as "inflamable."
hmm. no, most environmentalists aren't level headed enough to wait to leap out at you. They're usually leaping out before you even get there.
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