Mark my words: Downward sloping “funny bike” top tubes. everything old is new again. After this carbon thing cools down, and after every possible tube has been dimpled, rear wheel cutout’ed and rendered impossibly aero, there will be nowhere for bike stylists to go but back in time.
Look for it soon - I’m saying a year max - and remember where you heard it first. You’ll be pointing at compact geometry -style bikes, and calling THEM “retro” or whatever word is used to describe retro in the future.
And they’ll be made of Magnesium! Seriously, I think Mg has the potential to be the next big material of choice. Not many bikes made of it yet, but if you ever get a chance to throw a leg over one, you will find they are ‘oh-so-nice!’ Check out www.paketa.com
Roval wheels and, what’s that, an 18 tooth large cog corncobb freewheel with 53/42 front CR’s? Obviously, one could flatten **hors catégorie climbs **on a Kirk with precise ease!
My point was that my magnesium frame, as it was welded, was exposed to EXTREMELY high heat, and it did not catch on fire. Wood is flammable as well, but if you hold a match under a log it likely won’t ignite.
Mg being a highly flammable material is most likely the only thing that most people remember from their HS Chem classes, in which they probably spent most of their time sleeping.
As well, Mg was good enough for Petacchi to win how many stages of the Giro d’Italia?
My point was that my magnesium frame, as it was welded, was exposed to EXTREMELY high heat, and it did not catch on fire. Wood is flammable as well, but if you hold a match under a log it likely won’t ignite.
Mg being a highly flammable material is most likely the only thing that most people remember from their HS Chem classes, in which they probably spent most of their time sleeping.
As well, Mg was good enough for Petacchi to win how many stages of the Giro d’Italia?
It was TIG welded, meaning a flow of inert gas was blown over the joint as it was welded. Otherwise, you bet your ass it would have burst into flame.
The solid rocket boosters on the Space Shuttle use aluminum oxide as a fuel, so apparently aluminum is pretty flammable as well. Guess I should be extra careful riding my Cannondale tomorrow, right?
My dad used to work for Norsk Hydro, a norwegian magnesium manufacturer with offices in Michigan and Canada, etc. They helped cast the Kirk Precision bikes. IMO, they were a little heavy and unforgiving.
I had the raw luck of being gifted one of the frames, and being a stupid teenager, I took the Mountain Bike frame instead of the roadie. Oooh. How I wish I could go back. It was easily a few pounds heavier than my buddies cheapo mountain bikes.
I seriously doubt that MG will make it into bikes. My guess for the future is lattice structures that will make tubing super-light, like this Iso-truss bike:
Oh, and a Mg frame will not catch on fire. For fun, we used to take magnesium cast parts (from my dad’s spares) on scouting trips, and found that even with a blowtorch held to a 0.5" thick piece, it took a minute to get hot enough to burn, and consistent oxegen to really burn hot. Powder and strips were great, but you’d have to leave your bike in an open flame for a few minutes and then bellows it for it to light up.
Mg HAS made it into bikes… I am looking at my Magnesium Paketa sitting 5 feet from me! It is 93% Mg, 6% Aluminum, and 1% Zinc tubing. And it is welded, not cast as those Kirk Precision bikes. They extrude the tubing specifically for these bikes and are hand-welded in Boulder. And these bikes are LIGHT! Mine weighs in at just under 16 lbs. Petacchi rode a Mg Pinarello Dogma in the Giro. The reason it is not more prevalent, IMO, is that it is difficult to learn to weld it. It takes a long time to heat up to the point that it begins to weld, but once started, the welder must work very quickly.
Oxygen is required for things to burn. With tubes of magnesium (or aluminum or a log) the ratio of oxygen to fuel is too low for it to ignite. The aluminum oxide in the space shuttle solid-fuel propellants is impregnated with oxygen (thus the oxide) and also in a granular form (which allows the oxygen-fuel ratio to be increased). So unless you have a serious fire near the Mg bike or else file it into shavings, it won’t ignite.
Same reason you need kindling to start a fire with wood.
I am also looking at my mg paketa–it is racked next to several other bikes–carbon, steel, aluminum, ti, etc.–the paketa gets more ride time for one reason: It is more comfortable!
Pinarello would sell more dogmas, but they aren’t as sexy looking as their carbon frames. But look what their pros ride…mg.
Hmmm…interesting question…an excellent one to ponder/pontificate on while I drink my cup of coffee on this yucky, wet, rainy/snowy, windy, cold Saturday morning in Ohio and my R2.5 sits whimpering in the garage, wanting to go and ride while its owner is too much of a pansy to go out on a day like today…
-I wonder if more high end bikes won’t be folding a la the Ritchey bikes…they have virtually no weight penalty, and are waaaay more easy to transport. The latest Ti/Carbon Ritchey folding road frame is right at 17.5 pounds…
-I think the trend towards lighter and lighter bikes and components will continue…I bet in 10 years 13-15 pound bikes will be the norm, just like 20 pound bikes were when I first started riding (I remember my first decent road bike…“wow, its only 21 pounds!!”)
-I bet we see more third brake levers on the aero bars so you can stay in the aero position and brake…saw my first one at a bike shop in Lebanon, Ohio a month or so ago…
-Here’s one thing I would like to see…don’t know if its possible…some kind of rim that allows you to run a tubular like tire without having to glue it on (and something easier to mount than those current Tufo tubular/clinchers) and has some of the advantages a tubular rim has over a clincher.
The bike business is a bandwagon business to be sure. 10 years ago everyone would not shut up about titainium, then it was aluminum now it’s cabon fiber. As noted, the other thing the business likes to do is no pun intended, re-cycle things, so something that was big 10 years ago will no doubt make it’s way back to the forefront, repackaged and rebranded as hot and new! Wait for it, the next big thing is going to be . . . steel!
**
Roval wheels and, what’s that, an 18 tooth large cog corncobb freewheel with 53/42 front CR’s? Obviously, one could flatten **hors catégorie climbs **on a Kirk with precise ease!
