Bamboo bikes? Yay or nay?

[durianrider]

Ive riden and raced a calfee bamboo before it got stolen in Malaysia last year. It was super heavy, stiff and comfy. Great conversation starter. Ive got another one being built up now.

Anyone else got a bike thats been made from a stolen panda lunch?

Here are some shots of my old calfee. (Please no jokes about the green chris king hubs and orange velocity rims.)

Loui Leon Sanchez check'n it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5HjL7yMc_U

 

[The Bald Eagle]

Great piece of craftmanship. The top picture those are not gear or brake cables.
They look like Braided Nylon Cords.

 

[flicker]

Craig Calfee is cool. If you ever get a chance talk to him!

 

[Cliveds]

I have always lover the look and philosopy behind bamboo but never had a chance to ride one.

Check out Boo Bikes - this would be my call.

 

[BroDeal]

I have always lover the look and philosopy behind bamboo but never had a chance to ride one.

Check out Boo Bikes - this would be my call.

Wow. Those wheels are hideous. I wonder if there is a way to make the graphics even more garrish.

Aside from that it looks like a Calfee knock off. Why not buy the original?

 

[Cliveds]

Thats a really short sighted perspective. Calfee are the originator of the Bamboo bike but it does not make then the only ones who make good bamboo bikes.

Read the Boo story, it's a good one.

 

[Black Dog]

Why use bamboo at all? Is this not a solution to a problem that does not exist?

 

[RedheadDane]

I haven't got one, but it's kinda classy

And I completely forgot that bamboo normally aren't those thin sticks we get aroun 'ere...

 

[Cliveds]

It's for people who have already have all there cycling needs taken care of and just want something different and something they love.

It's not a problem solved it's a privilege afforded.

 

[Black Dog]

It's for people who have already have all there cycling needs taken care of and just want something different and something they love.

It's not a problem solved it's a privilege afforded.

Fair enough.

 

[Polyarmour]

I'm sorry but I just don't get it. It's only a small part of the bike that is bamboo, everything else is manufactured 21st century stuff just like every other bike. I'm not sure what kind of a statement is being made here. It's not like it's a bike for the poverty stricken 3rd world to use or a low embedded energy green bike. What's the point? It's just a novelty bike, ...like my son's chopper.

 

[tubularglue]

Why use bamboo at all? Is this not a solution to a problem that does not exist?

if i had coffee in my mouth, this would of made me spit it on the keyboard......

bamboo bikes are cool, for those into bamboo bikes. whatevers


ride on non meat eating man

 

[Guttercat]

It's for people who have already have all there cycling needs taken care of and just want something different and something they love.

It's not a problem solved it's a privilege afforded.

Exactly!.

I don't want one myself, but an engineer friend of mine did his first bike build ever, in bamboo (told him I want his first steel build, which he is currently working on ).

It's shown here on V-salon:
http://www.velocipedesalon.com/forum/f10/first-build-17077.html

 

[dsut4392]

I'm sorry but I just don't get it. It's only a small part of the bike that is bamboo, everything else is manufactured 21st century stuff just like every other bike. I'm not sure what kind of a statement is being made here. It's not like it's a bike for the poverty stricken 3rd world to use or a low embedded energy green bike. What's the point? It's just a novelty bike, ...like my son's chopper.

Ouch, that's gotta hurt., but I can't think of a valid opposing argument.

Bamboo is an incredibly versatile material, but in the context of a high performance bike...
...it's certainly not cheap
...it's not any lighter
...it's not any stiffer
...it's barely (if at all) more environmentally friendly
...it's time consuming to make

Still novelties are fun

 

[Polyarmour]

Ouch, that's gotta hurt., but I can't think of a valid opposing argument.

Bamboo is an incredibly versatile material, but in the context of a high performance bike...
...it's certainly not cheap
...it's not any lighter
...it's not any stiffer
...it's barely (if at all) more environmentally friendly
...it's time consuming to make

Still novelties are fun

Sorry I didn't mean to come across negative or personal, I think Durianrider is one of the most unique characters on this forum. I enjoy watching his videos. So if he buys a new bamboo bike and films himself doing a mono with Robbie McEwen, I'll shout him a crate of bananas!

 

[Boeing]

interesting

Bamboo is not new to frame building all these years.

 

[Boeing]

Straight out of Africa? http://www.zambikes.com/

ZAM Bikes seem lie a cool company with a unique product

http://www.shanghaibamboobike.com/history/

and then there is this little family company in Italy it you want to add wood rims to your bamboo rig:

http://www.cerchiinlegnoghisallo.com/homeeng.php




yay! Waaaay!

 

[simo1733]

Thats a really short sighted perspective. Calfee are the originator of the Bamboo bike but it does not make then the only ones who make good bamboo bikes.

Read the Boo story, it's a good one.

I don't no how long Calfee has been in business but bamboo bikes have been around since 1894 .

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Let's say you've already worked up a real good sweat. In that case there's one place bamboo bike frames make real good sense. Being bamboo is a good insulator, if you stop to take a break underneath those high voltage power lines and you are on your bamboo bike, you're safe. But let's say you park under the power lines for a break when riding a carbon frame... DO NOT STRADDLE THE FRAME. You might be the recipient of a discharge of electricity that has built up in the carbon frame, and the electrons are just looking for a nice moist spot to zap. Pow!

Don't know if that could really happen, but I would be much less concerned with the wooden bike.