Thursday 8 March 2012

The geometry challenge


Good evening,

I’m about to write about the second step of creating a bicycle frame - the geometry.

Then first approaching this task, I thought it would be rather simple; type a couple of numbers into the tool bar and POOF! A new frame is created. But no, it is not a simple as that. The process is rather difficult, since when you are designing a frame, the measurements need to be to the closest millimetre.

Since I’m a beginner to frame building, I tried copying a well known frame called the Ridley X-fire, and adding a couple of personal adjustments to the frame to make it suit my liking. I used the program bikecad.ca, which is used by many large-scale bicycle companies when they are designing frames. After copying in the number and adjusting some measurements, I printed off the details and save the image on my computer.

After finishing creating my ‘sketch’ on the computer, I uploaded it on a bike forum called weightweenies.starbike.com/ to gain some impute from some professional bike companies and professional cyclists. After being told my calculations were completely incorrect, I took the designs back to the drawing board.

Finally, after my 4th draft, my ‘sketch’ was completed! Next stage is the selection of tubing, preparation then finally the construction and welding of the frame.

Stay tuned!