Santa Cruz Bicycles
5 HN mentions · mentioned in 5 months, 2020–2024
4:26 · 13M views · Oct 2, 2017
Danny MacAskill tries to destroy carbon fiber bike wheels by riding trials tricks through downtown Glasgow, including on bare rims on concrete.
Used as evidence that carbon wheels and rims are far tougher than their fragile reputation suggests.
5 comments from Hacker News
I was hoping for some actual data. As I mentioned there's plenty of anecdata online, but I don't know if anyone has really studied this. The article you linked to suggests that nobody has done a systematic study. As a counterpoint to the video you linked, I'm reminded of this video of Danny Macaskill having to work pretty hard to break a carbon rim: this video > ... if one is not racing, is it really worth the extra risk for minor performance improvements? It really depends on how much extra risk there is and how much the rider values the performance improvements. Without actual data about the (relative) risk of carbon fiber failure in bike components, we have to guess based on the information we have avaliable. Most of this seems to either be anecdotal, or coming from from interested parties, e.g. bike manufacturers, lawyers who make their living suing bike manufacturers, and journalists who are probably more interested in writing about something exciting happening than something exciting not happening. My impression is that the relative risk of of using carbon fiber in some (but perhaps not all) bike components is pretty small compared to the other risks involved in biking, and the performance improvements are big enough to be worth it for me, even though I don't race.
> Carbon bike frames are designed only for the loads in “normal riding” but not really for all the random things you might do by accident while owning a bike, like bumping it into walls, over-tightening the seat post, etc I wish this myth would stop being perpetuated. Yes, aluminum frames typically crack or dent rather than splinter and become immediately hazardous, but if you hit something hard enough to break a carbon frame, you'll have done even more damage to an aluminum one. If you hit the deck that hard, you're best off getting the frame professionally inspected and replaced if necessary. I think this fear stems from a gut feeling that metal is more ductile and durable than "plastic", but what you're dealing with is far, far stronger than plastic. I always like to show these videos to illustrate: [LINK] this video
Good carbon wheels are incredibly strong. Carbon has the advantage of flexing where aluminum would deform. You can watch Danny macAskill try to destroy bare carbon wheels (no tires) on concrete here: this video I assume some of the horror stories come from people buying cheap carbon wheels or early models before they had layups and molds figured out. If you're really concerned, add something like a cushcore to the inside of the tire for additional damping. Your complaints are common, though. I've all but given on up trying to discuss carbon wheels with people in person because there are so many preconceived notions out there. It was the same way 5-10 years ago with everyone avoiding carbon handlebars for one reason or another.
That doesn't match with my experience. I've got a carbon fibre road bike and some parts of the frame are remarkably stiff whereas other areas such as the handlebars have noticeable flex. It can be surprising to people just how tough/strong carbon fibre parts can be - here's Danny MacAskill's destructive testing of some CF wheels: this video
There is also this video from Santa Cruz: [LINK] where they test the fork and frame I am also remind of the Danny M video of the carbon wheels test: this video