arantix

a while ago i featured the “paratrooper” an indestructible folding bike designed for the military but released for public use. today i’d like to share something equally incredible, probably about as ugly, and maybe even as indestructible.

the arantix. manufactured in utah by delta 7 sports. at first glance it could be just another mountain bike,


but click on this image below for a closer look which will reveal a startling new approach to frame design.

iso truss technology has been applied to a variety of products of different scale. its design and composition makes it incredibly strong and incredibly lightweight.

so where you'd expect to see solid tubes, you see instead a woven lattice structure! "each arantix bike frame takes approximately 300 hours to build, as single carbon fiber strands are woven to create the open lattice structure of each frame tube. each bundle of carbon fiber strands are wrapped with kevlar and then baked at 255 degrees fahrenheit for four hours. the ends of the baked tubes are then machined before being joined with molded carbon fiber lugs to make a complete frame".

"in total, each completed arantix frame is built with 1,672 linear feet of carbon fiber," says tyler evans, program manager of delta 7 sports. "that's longer than five and a half football fields, or by comparison, a single strand that long would reach to the top of the tallest building in the world, the taipei 101 in taiwan."

here’s some information on the bike itself.

here’s a close-up of the iso truss lattice structure;


here's a picture of a girl holding an example of the lattice structure as applied to a larger form.


this is not a bike on the cheap side in fact it’ll set you back $11,995.00 (usd) but it’ll almost certainly be the only one on your block with a projected production rate of 200 for 2008 and 1000 per year after that. if you’re happy just owning a frame then prepare to chisel a cheque for $7,000.00 (usd).