Hello All
I'm being slightly facetious in my opening, but not sure how else to contextualise why/how I "ended"  up here.
I've been racing bikes for the best part of 40 years, some of these years as a professional.
I've watched the integration and advancement of carbon fiber into the sport of cycling, and have now decided to do my own "manufacturing" (honestly, I'm a long way from being a manufacturer, currently at the humble beginnings, closer to "tinkering").
I've used just about every piece of carbon made for a bicycle, good, bad and ugly!
I recently had an epiphany and now realise, we're actually in the early days of carbon innovation.
The rate of change is breath taking, and the convergence of chemistry, manufacturing, and the digital  3D world, makes for an interesting time.
Its especially inspiring to see guys in their garages, making better products than big companies with unlimited resources.
Anyway, I'm here to learn, with a view to developing some functional design ideas, with biomechanics as a focus, rather than the typical engineering centric view of bikes /components and bike design.
In Ireland BTW

John

alright John good to have you on board!

I actually spent two years out in Germany developing a range of carbon and steel framed bikes for caterham, we used a few companies to help us out in the production of the frames and it was a real eye opener to the industry. Unfortunately we didn't get the funding to take it to market, although my old colleague in cologne still has all the tooling and I have two development frames.

The one thing i learned from speaking to the professional riders is that each one like a different type of frame underneath them and a lot of it is to do with compliance. Some like a really stiff frame and some like a softer frame which  gives them a smoother feel on the road.

I look forward to seeing some of your designs and if you need a bit of advice let me know, although its been a couple of years since i even looked at a bike

Welcome to the forum!  There are a few people on here with interest in bike frame manufacture so hopefully you will be able to share some information and learn from each others experience.


Warren Penalver
Easy Composites / Carbon Mods - Technical Support Assistant

Hi Scott
Thanks for the welcome and offer of advice. I will surely need it!
You are right, each bike racer has a different set of ideas, needs and wants from their bike. Current manufacturers can't meet all the design variables, in fact, Giant has taking us the opposite direction, to eliminate some the molds needed to make a range of bikes.
Regardless, a lot of the best frames are made by custom builders, and still made by hand.
I haven't any plans to make bike frames. There are simply too many great brands already in the market. Besides, I'm in the early days of figuring out how to work with carbon.
There's not much can be done to innovate the current configuration of the bicycle frame. At least not within the boundaries of how the athletes body works, and the confines of the rules of frame geometry. In spite of cycling having the illusion of being driven by tech (it's really driven by marketing!), it's a relatively conservative sport!
In terms of where the market is at, and what companies like Shimano are doing, to stay ahead, they are being slowly replaced, component by component, by smaller players (mostly at the pinnacle of the sport).
Anyway..................................
I'm interested in developing cranks, saddles, handlebars, secondary items, that are due for a rethink!

Thanks Warren, much appreciated.
You guys have been very helpful with youtube videos and supplies.

Hello!
Now I am finishing my master ingeneer degree at university of Pardubice. I am studying composites there at Depatment of chemical technology of macromolecular materials.
My final thesis (master ingeneer work) is about full analysis of carbon fibre laminated tube joints in bicycle frames. 
I love bicycles, all about them. I am not racer but I ride them, I try to make them (I made my own frame for my cargo bike in long-john style), I try to produce some parts (wooden fenders etc) and I do total rebuilds of old bicycles to stylish new (mainly for use as city bikes) but I would love to make some composite parts in near future or my own frame for me (I really need nice carbon gravel bike)
My final thesis is part of R&D workshop in FESTKA (do you know their bikes?) and is giantic pleasure for me to spend some time in their workshop because I can see the best components and really hi-end top bikes...
What parts you want to make? And how? Do you have idea?
I don´t spend a lot of time on this page, if you want, try to cntact me via facebook, I´d love to have little talk with you if you want :-)
Btw. sorry if is hard to understand my english. I need some practice