What To Know About A Carbon Bike Frame And Its Build And Ride Quality Characteristics

Looking at the history of the carbon bike frame reveals an item that probably owes its existence to the efforts undertaken by US defense and aerospace engineering concerns in the 1970s. That's because efforts undertaken to produce the space shuttle and stealth aircraft were the main impetus when it came to its development. Nowadays, even bicycle frames and other components are made from it.

In the 1970s, aerospace engineers began considering ways in which they might make military aircraft lighter and more "invisible" to radar. Carbon fiber isn't a metal, meaning that radar waves (radar stands for "Radio Detection and Ranging") tended to not bounce off of it is readily as it does metal of all types. This was a great discovery, and meant that aircraft could be stealthier against such radar.

This gave engineers the idea to start substituting carbon fiber from metal in many different applications, most especially those involving aircraft. When it's properly laid up or molded, carbon fiber is able to be shaped into many different forms. Aerospace engineers and others looked at this with excitement, because certain shapes slip through radar easier than others.

Carbon fiber also has a great many properties, all of which contribute to its structural rigidity and extreme durability, in many cases. This meant that its light weight and durable nature made it a perfect candidate for use as a material on the space shuttle. Lighter weight meant less use of expensive fuels for the shuttle, in other words.

These same aerospace engineers eventually migrated to entrepreneurial activities in many cases as well. This means that they struck out on their own, forming their own aerospace companies or other businesses that created goods made from carbon fiber. One of these was bike frames. Carbon proved to be durable, extremely light in weight and easily molded into such frames, with the right equipment.

Bicyclists, at least in the 70s and 80s, were a hidebound lot and many of the top names, such as Greg LeMond (who won the Tour de France three times) all resisted, at first, swapping their steel-framed bikes for new and somewhat exotic versions using other materials. These included aluminum, titanium and carbon fiber. But the light weight and durable nature of the material soon convinced them otherwise.

These days, there's almost no pro or elite-level bicyclist or triathlete who doesn't ride a bike made of carbon fiber to a large degree. One such cyclist is Lance Armstrong, who won the Tour de France eight times. His bicycle, of course, is specially-made and costs more than $15,000. But its essential characteristics can be found in many commonly-produced bikes far less expensive.

While they'll never be as inexpensive as bikes made from steel or even aluminum (titanium is at least as expensive), a bike made with a carbon bike frame is still within reach of many an average cyclist. That's because many such bikes are now made in factories in mainland China and Taiwan, which turn out high-quality bikes with relative ease. This is certainly a happy circumstance for any cyclist.

There is a big difference when it comes to weight with certain bike frames and carbon bike frame is the lightest material out for bikes. We have many different carbon bike frames that can help you perform better tricks like the pros.

Tags: bicycle, Bicycles, carbon bike frame, carbon fiber bicycle frame, Cycling, Sporting Goods, Sports