‘World’s First’ Fully 3D-Printed Mountain Bicycle Hits The Dirt Roads
In what is touted as the “world’s first” fully 3D-printed downhill bicycle, Colorado-based Revel Bikes is hitting the pavement running with a new carbon fiber mountain rider.
The ‘Rodeo’ was created with Arevo Inc., a company that 3D-prints continuous carbon fiber thermoplastic material via a robotic arm. This method opens itself to more intricate designs, lighter form factors, and a more fortified finished product.
In this case, it weighs just 33 lbs and has a 200mm travel suspension system and what looks like a fan blade on its front triangle. The company’s riders tested it, racing down different mountain trails, and concluded that the Rodeo rode better than they had expected for a prototype.
Downhill bikes have specific suspension settings allowing riders to navigate rough terrain.
In 2020, a Silicon Valley brand called Superstrata emerged with what it claimed as the first 3D bike. However, that version probably wouldn’t get you down mountains or dirt roads.
Unfortunately, the Rodeo is not made for personal use and is a project to test just how far 3D-printing can go. Revel notes that one of the benefits of such production processes could also enable future bikes to be fully melted down and remade into different items.
[via Off-Road.cc and Trend Hunter, cover image via Revel Bikes]
