The invention of the cardboard bicycle (google it). Got me thinking about alternative materials to make bicycle frames. Lead, marble, and wood came to mind but didn't seam plausible for a frame. Then came Ice. The cardboard bicycle still uses standard tires, rims, brakes, chain, crank, pedals and sprockets but replaces the pricy frame with cardboard. In my idea, the bicycle is a mold for water that freezes the crank bearing in place as well as the steering tube. All other accessories are optional and to be added after the freeze. Remove the frame from the mold and go for a ride.-- evilpenguin, Dec 01 2012 // wood came to mind but didn't seam plausible for a frame. //
Bicycles have been made with wooden frames for a very long time.
As for ice... It's brittle, and when it breaks the pieces are generally quite sharp, and in most climates it's not permanent. It makes no sense to lock up what in two hours will be a scattering of unusable parts.-- Alterother, Dec 02 2012 Designed for short rides. And not everywhere is hot. Many people ride bikes in snow-- evilpenguin, Dec 02 2012 Even in very cold climates (like the one I live in), ice will melt during the day if exposed to direct sunlight. Ice also melts when placed under pressure, so all of the weight-bearing points on the frame will begin to melt as soon as you get on. Ice also melts and cracks when in contact with metal, because the two materials expand and contract at very different rates over the course of a day.
So...no.-- Alterother, Dec 02 2012 Ah, now if the idea had called for a _pykrete_ frame, my response might have been different, but pycrete, as we all know (or at least as those of us who know do), is not ice.-- Alterother, Dec 02 2012 I got it right the first time. One outta two ain't bad.-- Alterother, Dec 02 2012 Well I'm selling a mold, not a finished bike, so if it melts make another one. And if you want a pykrete bike, you can easily make one. You can add your favorite color food coloring too, make it look great.-- evilpenguin, Dec 02 2012 So by selling the mold and not the frame, you're excusing yourself from legal responsibilty when an ice-bike shatters and a long frame member impales the hapless rider through the guts?-- Alterother, Dec 02 2012 Yes-- evilpenguin, Dec 02 2012 Good thinking - product liability's a bitch …
// it would seem logical to cover the road in spikes to reduce skidding //
Neat idea, you should post that …-- 8th of 7, Dec 02 2012 Ice cream, sherbet, orange juice, gravy, whatever you have. Freeze it, ride it.-- evilpenguin, Dec 02 2012 Dang it, just popcicled a tire-- lurch, Dec 02 2012 Optional accessory molds would be available. Ice helmets, safety pads and an ice water bottle for //vodka for the repair kit//-- evilpenguin, Dec 03 2012 Better hurry up and copywrite 'i-cycle'.-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Dec 03 2012 Looking forward to seeing the ice shorts.-- pocmloc, Dec 03 2012 //why not? // has a lot of answers, some of which are mentioned in annos above. As the ice melts, does the bicycle change size? (Therefore parts not fitting well will cause a disturbance.)-- xandram, Dec 03 2012 Im not sure I understand the seriousness this idea is being granted. I guess I just envisioned a bike that would be ride-able long enough for someone to see you doing so. Not practical transportation. More of an interactive art piece. Now everyone take off your serious hats and have fun, okay?-- evilpenguin, Dec 03 2012 But I -was- being serious with my annotation.-- pocmloc, Dec 03 2012 //ice shorts// the word you're looking for is "detumesce"-- lurch, Dec 03 2012 //Now everyone take off your serious hats and have fun, okay?//
The fun started for me when I imagined someone sitting on, and instantly shattering, a pure frozen water ice bicycle. A video of this actually being done would be even more fun.
Engineering-wise, though, I'm pretty sure the range of the proposed vehicle is the same as that of falling off/through a disintegrating bicycle.-- CraigD, Dec 03 2012 Okay, some of the bakers need to take off their serious hats...
one (serious) engineering note though... This idea isn't for a mold the same dimensions as a traditional bike frame. The ice would need to be very thick to accommodate the stresses put on it. Just guessing here, but thinking somewhere like 6 inch's thick for the frame.-- evilpenguin, Dec 03 2012 Freeze some reinforcement into the ice, maybe? Kevlar strapping, or perhaps tubing for control cables, acting like rebar in prestressed concrete? (You wouldn't want to damage the outside of the ice by putting in a screw, eyelet, piton, or whatever to hold a brake cable in place, for example)
<edit> or perhaps an external wrapper / reinforcement / decal that tends to keep broken pieces from going into places or people they shouldn't-- lurch, Dec 03 2012 I might have taken it as apparently intended if the idea had been presented as some form of art or public spectacle, or even categorized under "public: art" (or "public: embarrassment"), but the category selection of "product: ..." and the comparison to a real and functional product kind of threw me...-- Alterother, Dec 04 2012 Honestly, the category selection process is cumbersome using my phone, which is my way of accessing the HB. I usually just try and find what suits my idea most closely. If jutta wouldn't mind (doing it for me) I would like this idea to fall in some sort of art category. I find it hard to express the true meaning of my ideas but it usually works out. I don't mind bones, btw. If you really hate my idea I encourage voting based on what you think...-- evilpenguin, Dec 04 2012 Sorry for the misunderstanding, then. I don't hate the idea, I just thought a few oversights needed looking into.-- Alterother, Dec 04 2012 If you made a tandem, would it be "an icicle built for two" ?-- 8th of 7, Dec 04 2012 random, halfbakery