Additive Manufacturing A Racing Bike from the 3D Printer

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The British bicycle manufacturer J. Laverack, together with luxury sports car manufacturer Aston Martin, has developed a racing bike that is fully tailored to the user's needs and aesthetically unique. The implementation relied on 3D printed metal solutions from Renishaw.

In the beginning, the team at J.Laverack faced a blank sheet of paper: the design of the racing bike was meant to be unique and innovative. The goal was to manufacture the bike's frame so that even the screws were not visible. Additionally, the dimensions of the racing bike were to be fully customizable to the user, featuring a bespoke handlebar and personalized dimensions. This differs significantly from conventional bicycle production processes, which often rely on built-in adjustments to adapt to their users. Oliver Laverack, co-founder of the company, commented on the planning process: "We wanted to completely rethink bike design to create the most individualized, beautiful, and technologically advanced bike. It should be custom-built to the millimeter—like a series of perfect one-offs."

3D Printing Enables High-Performance And Geometrically Optimized Individual Parts

The team faced considerable technical obstacles during production, but a solution was quickly found. Additive manufacturing proved to be the perfect technology to tackle these challenges. Laverack emphasizes, "During the development of the bike, we realized that with 3D printing, we could produce high-performance and geometrically optimized individual parts. Additive manufacturing doesn't require tooling and is ideal for customized applications in small quantities. However, it is a relatively new technology with which we had little experience. We were looking for a development partner with whom we could build a close relationship and who could support and guide us throughout the entire project in the design and production of the 3D-printed components."

Thus, the team eventually found its cooperation partner Renishaw. As an expert in 3D metal printing, the manufacturer brought valuable knowledge to the production of the racing bike. Renishaw had already been involved in the production of the British Olympic bikes. An important commonality, as David Clow, co-founder of J.Laverack, emphasizes: "Collaborating with Renishaw in the field of additive manufacturing was an obvious choice. Renishaw is not only a world-renowned British engineering company, but we were also impressed by their work on the Olympic track bikes for British Cycling."

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The engineers at Renishaw manufactured the required parts in a way that avoided protrusions and internal supports. This was only possible through the use of additive manufacturing, which provided the engineers with the design freedom needed to create complex geometries. These also allowed the reduction of component weight. The components were printed from 6AI/4V titanium in 30-micron thick layers, which were then heat-treated and machined. The production was carried out using the RenAM 500Q printer, which features a gas flow system, precise dynamic control, and connected software for the digital workflow.

The Special Feature of the J.Laverack Aston Martin.1R

The J.Laverack Aston Martin.1R is the world's first boltless bicycle, with no visible bolts, screws, or fastenings on the headset, seat clamp, or brake calipers. The brake hoses are hidden within the handlebars, which, by the way, use the same design and manufacturing techniques as a Formula 1 car's front splitter. The production of each bicycle takes over 1,000 hours, including more than 500 hours of CNC machining. Every detail is meticulously crafted and tailored to the specific needs of each individual.

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