Bicycles

Splinter Bike - a bicycle built ENTIRELY out of wood

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Thompson made a Renovo-like stand to show off the Splinter Bike at a recent photo shoot
The wheel rims have been coated with adhesive to give the bike some traction
The wheel rims have been coated with adhesive to give the bike some traction
Close up of the steering mechanism, which is described as a chunky plywood butt hinge
Tully's favorite triathlon bike seat was used as the template for the ply and MDF seat
Tully's favorite triathlon bike seat was used as the template for the ply and MDF seat
The Splinter Bike design
One side of the frame, painted and ready for assembly
The Splinter Bike has undergone extensive bench testing but has not yet been out on a track
Lathing the shaft
Thompson wheels out an early prototype, held together with metal nuts and bolts
The team hopes to raise money for disaster relief charity Shelter Box, and the Splinter Bike has been painted and branded with the charity's colors
Thompson made a Renovo-like stand to show off the Splinter Bike at a recent photo shoot
The custom-designed pliCog drive system
Close up of the steering mechanism, which is described as a chunky plywood butt hinge
Nothing has gone to waste - a broom handle was used to make the horn-like handlebars
Thompson told us that "the crank is not much different to a regular one, apart from it being replicated on both sides and made out of wood."
Thompson told us that "the crank is not much different to a regular one, apart from it being replicated on both sides and made out of wood."
Michael Thompson with Splinter Bike all-wooden bike
Thompson made a Renovo-like stand to show off the Splinter Bike at a recent photo shoot
Thompson adding the all-important branding to the wheels
View gallery - 21 images

Just over six months after making a joke bet in his front garden, Michael Thompson has lived up to his idle boast of being able to make anything out of wood. Unlike other bike designs where wood is just one of several materials used in the construction – like the duo from Audi and Renovo, which has a hardwood frame – every part of the Splinter Bike is made from either birch plywood, Lignum Vitae, Ekki or an old broom handle. Thompson's friend and accomplished triathlete, James Tully, now has the unenviable and certainly uncomfortable task of riding the 31 kg (68 pound) engineering marvel into the record books.

The inspiration for the small wager, and the subsequent build project, came as the Tour of Britain race went through Norfolk for the first time last September. Now, after over 1,000 hours locked in his shed made of earth, Thompson has emerged with the Splinter Bike – a 100 percent wood, glue and paint bike.

The Splinter Bike has undergone extensive bench testing but has not yet been out on a track

Many of the furniture grade birch ply components, including the cogs, frame and wheels, were made by hand, the latter also having about 3.5mm (0.13-inch) of Evo-Stik Serious Stuff Ultimate Power Adhesive applied to each of the three wheel rims to provide some grip when dry. Two gear options have been developed – with 4:1 and 3:3:1 ratios that's said to result in the rear wheel rotating 3.3 or 4 times for each revolution of the pedal. Tully won't be able to change gear without swapping wheels, though, so he'd better make the right choice before the record attempt.

Hidden behind a pear-shaped design at the rear is the bike's drive system. "The drive is very simple," Thompson told Gizmag. "Instead of sprockets at the rear hub and the chainring I have replaced them with plywood gears and instead of connecting them with a chain I have used a 700mm diameter, 128 tooth plywood gear, known as the pliCog. This 3 gear drive is replicated on each side of the bike. The whole thing runs like clockwork, literally."

Where moving parts meet, oily Lignum Vitae hardwood has been used in place of metal bearings to minimize friction. The axles are made from reclaimed Ekki and the pedals and handlebars fashioned from an old broom handle that was unlucky enough to be laying around the Eco-Shed.

Close up of the steering mechanism, which is described as a chunky plywood butt hinge

The all-wood steering mechanism is described as a chunky plywood butt hinge and Tully's favorite triathlon bike seat was used as the template for the ply and MDF seat, custom-shaped for a snug fit. Thompson informed us that his "crank is not much different to a regular one, apart from it being replicated on both sides and made out of wood."

A static test run in December saw an early build achieve 350 rpm (without resistance), which was worked out to be 28.96 mph (46.6 kph). The project aim is to reach – and hopefully exceed – 37.6 mph (60.5 kph).

By the beginning of April, the Splinter Bike was painted and branded to tie in with the Shelter Box disaster relief charity color scheme, for which the team hopes to raise some funds.

The wooden bike's designer and creator told us that although extensive testing has been undertaken on the bench, "as of yet, we haven't tested the Splinter Bike with James on the track." To get accustomed to pedals that are always moving when the bike is motion, Tully has been given a Harry Quinn fixed-gear bicycle from the 1960s to train on.

Thompson constructed a version of a Renovo stand to best show off the bike for a recent photo shoot before starting on the second half of the project – raising money and searching for a suitably flat venue for the attempt at the first land speed record for an all-wooden bicycle. "We have a few venues available to us, mostly outdoor velodromes," says Thompson. "We are hopeful that we end up setting the record at the new 2012 Olympic Velodrome."

Michael Thompson with Splinter Bike all-wooden bike

Malcolm Pittwood from the Speed Record Club will time Tully as he pedals the Splinter Bike as fast as he can for 250 meters (820.2 feet) around the track. The rider is allowed a 15 meter (49 feet) push start and an unlimited build up distance before recording begins.

The Splinter Bike team has set its sights on making the attempt before September this year, when Thompson told us that the bike will be going on display at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London as part of an exhibition called Power of Making from September 2011 to January 2012 and then it will be going on a UK tour of 3 or 4 other museums from February 2012 to February 2013.

View gallery - 21 images
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5 comments
Michael Mantion
Impressive. Two thumbs up, a very rare thing from me..
Gadgeteer
Way back around the mid 1980s, Cyclist magazine had a brief piece on an bike that was completely made out of wood. And it had a lot more craftsmanship than this. It essentially duplicated a road bike of the era, right down to a chain made with wooden pins and wooden link plates and wheels made with wooden spokes. I think they even noted that it was also rideable. Now THAT was impressive.
Iván Imhof
Nice concept but I have doubt how durable it is on bad quality roads and exposed to the weather. Wooden elements like that are usually quite sensitive to wet, they use to swell when they get wet. And what happens with the wood in case of a crash or fall?
Cowfy Kaufman
i\'m impressed by this one indeed.
Ricky
this has been done before. Like Gadgeteer said I too have seen a wooden bike, although the one I saw was made by a gal in china, that one was truly unique