I’ve never new one could make their own carbon fiber bike and now I’m thinking I’d like to try in the future.
Thank you Project Junkie!
Just a bump to make sure people see this.
I just think this guy is amazing and I could almost kiss him for putting this stuff on the web.
Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point. And to do that requires some detailed ply analysis, which I haven’t seen. He’s a very skilled technician, but I didn’t see any analysis.
To prove my point, he specifically says that his bikes weigh more than the examples he’s copied.
If you’re going to build your own carbon bike, then take the time to do the analysis and design it for your weight. If you’re 160 lbs, then you don’t need the extra material that I’ll need at 200 lbs, and your bike “should” be lighter by a few grams. You can also tailor the bike for the way you ride: Long straight hauls? Put more cush in the seat stays. Mega hill climber? Stiffen up the bottom bracket and chain stays. That’s the beauty of custom composites…you tailor them to exactly what you need.
I think he’s Z frame was more than 5 lbs. That’s a heavy carbon frame, but I don’t care about weight. I’m going to make a shape that i can’t purchase, not sure what or even when but it sounds fun to me.
Damon Rinard, now at Cervelo,made his own carbon bike, ages ago.
Look here. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/rinard/
I too have thought about doing a carbon bike for myself, but I’ll start with an idea I have for carbon bottle cages and a carbon disc wheel, before I venture into an entire frame. Now if I can just get TriSpouse to let me bid on an Autoclave online auction, I’d be away at the races! 
Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point.
My homebrew usually isn’t as good as what I can pick up at the store, that doesn’t mean “there’s no point” to doing something yourself.
That’s pretty neat.
Are you going to make a carbon wheel or a carbon fairing for a wheel? I don’t know why but I wouldn’t trust myself to make wheel but I’ll trust myself to make a frame.
And what sort of bottle cage are going to make?
Are you going to make a carbon wheel or a carbon fairing for a wheel? I don’t know why but I wouldn’t trust myself to make wheel but I’ll trust myself to make a frame.
And what sort of bottle cage are going to make?
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Wheel? with my concept, it should be fine enough for me to use some idiot named TriDork as the crash test dummy
However, the recent post showing the HED3 with carbon cover laminated over top, got me thinking as well. I’m a bit anal, so I’d cut the carbon a little better and vacuum bag, to do less than 40 hours of sanding, but I liked that general concept, particularly since I have a HED 3 wheel already -
Bottle cage? Ah, that’s a secret
Possible hobby business idea, so not telling just yet.
To get up and running, I need some customized tools/jigs made up. (thank god a co-worker is a fitter/turner and loves tinkering) Then I need a source for carbon cloth and/or prepreg, that I can afford for the development prototypes (currently places I’ve found have minimum orders larger than I can afford/justify in the short term)
I couldn’t do that to a HED 3 wheel. I think a normal wheel cover would be faster and there’s not much out there that’s faster than a HED 3 rear for kona.
Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point.
Haven’t we been through the “weight doesn’t matter in a time trial” discussion before?
Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point.
Haven’t we been through the “weight doesn’t matter in a time trial” discussion before?
true, but around these parts, flat TT’s are as “rare and hens teeth”
and ya still gotta lift the wheel into the back of the car after the race, and that ain’t always easily done!
I think the “weight doesn’t matter in a TT bike”, was the philosophy with the Lotus bike, where the frame alone weighed 5.5 lbs from memory. They were apparently still keen to keep the weight down. When they sent it to the painter it weighed X. When it came back it was mysteriously 80g heavier than they’d expected. Apparently, the painter had used primer on it to get a nice finish. They ended up sanding it down, to save the paint weight AND the primer weight.
I’m not sure how much weight or even drag for that matter, the single sided fork saved. The customer versions all came with a double bladed fork.
Every 50 grams I save on my bike is another 50 grams of chocolate I can eat! You do the math!
thanks…great site !
Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point.
Do you win every triathlon you enter by hours and hours? Do you swim so fast you don’t get wet? Do you ride so fast time goes backwards? Do you run so fast people can’t see anything but a blur? I didn’t think so…
The point isn’t to build the lightest, most aerodynamic bicycle frame the world has ever seen. The point is to just do it because one is interested in it…
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Yes, you can do it. However, unless you can get the carbon weight under the weight of a welded frame, there isn’t much point.
Do you win every triathlon you enter by hours and hours? Do you swim so fast you don’t get wet? Do you ride so fast time goes backwards? Do you run so fast people can’t see anything but a blur? I didn’t think so…
The point isn’t to build the lightest, most aerodynamic bicycle frame the world has ever seen. The point is to just do it because one is interested in it…
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Which is fine. If you’re interested in the techniques, then go for it. Composite are very challenging and reward good effort.
At a the base of a lot of the “I want to build my own…” is usually an asterisk that says “because I don’t want to spend the money to BUY one.” And the cold reality is that to build a composite bike at home costs as much as a high end bike, complete. Go price out the costs for the vacuum system, the material for tooling, the material for the product, and all the assorted specialty tools needed. For that kind of money, you can get a pretty dang nice new carbon bike.
BUT, if you still want to do that, by all means, go for it. You’ll learn a ton, have a LOT of fun playing with composite, and before long, you’ll see just how easy it is to make some great stuff. I suggest you spend some money on good books first, to get an idea of how the systems work. If you have questions, there are people on the forum who do this for a living, including me, and would be happy to help.
If you want to see some amazing work with a lot more detail check out Jure Berk on Weight Weenies. Jure’s skills are amazing for being so young. He MAKES his own tubes then puts it together to have an amazing frame. He has done a lot of work such as posts, seats, combo’s and is working on a new frame. I would say his skills are on par with other more well known builders like Crumpton and Parlee.
http://weightweenies.starbike.com/...80684&hilit=berk
If you add him on Facebook, he has been posting there more lately because of University, racing professionally and doing his carbon work it has not left much time for updates on the different forums he posts on.
As for the weight and aero discussions, both matter but one is more important than the other. Both together are better than just one or the other. Both will save seconds which is what we are trying to achieve? Training to save seconds, being more aero to save seconds and losing weight (bike and body) to save more seconds.
Good video and such, but he used a couple of terms improperly I believe.
“Prepreg” is when the carbon cloth comes with the expoxy mix already included. It’s flexible, like a plastic or stiff leather. You mold it into the shape you want vacuum bag it to compress it and hold it in place, then heat it to the required temp (about 150 deg C from memory) and then let it cool nthen you peel off the plastic vacuum bag and Voila, a carbon item. It’s great because it’s quicker, tidier, guarantees the right amount of epoxy, but it’s more expensive and of course, requires the vacuum bagging and the heating.
What he did was really a “wet layup” method where you wet the cloth thoroughly, then stick it on or mold it to shape. His tape job mimics vacuum bagging, but wet layup doesn’t need heat (it uses a different epoxy mix, that cures/activates at room temp, not at high temp. When I’ve done wet layup (one a wood/fibreglas composite canoe I built) I wet the itme being repaired first, then laid wetted matt on top, with both wet surface touching. Carefully wet out the semi dry cloth and voila, you’re done. It’s messier, but ends up with a better and bubble free result.
There is also the dry layup technique where you lay the dry cloth on the item (say the bike frame) then paint on the epoxy with a brush, and it soaks in, effectively gluing it onto the other surface.
Ideally they all do pretty much the same job, but in different ways. Depending on the specifics of the installation, one method or another will lend itself to being easier, faster, or more effective, that’s why the 3 methods have evolved.
FWIW, when I did a carbon repair on a friends frame, I did the grinding back of the damaged carbon, then shot in a short burst of expanding foam into the hole and then sanded that back. It held the carbon cloth in place better than the way in the video (ie just not pushing it into the hole). Then you can apply even pressure (vacuum or tape applied pressure) to get a better result.