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TECH NEWS
Stebles Bike Prototype.jpgStebles Bikes launch crowdfunding for unique carbon bike with integrated mudguards
We told you about it a recently, and it was on display at the recent London Bike Show, but now the creator behind Stebles Bikes, a carbon road bike with integrated carbon mudguards, has launched a crowdfunding campaign to put it into production.
Mudguards are jolly useful things in the British winter, but fitting them to some road bikes can be a faff. And even when fitted correctly, they can rattle annoyingly. The solution offered by founder Mark Stebles is a complete carbon fibre road bike with the mudguards built into the frame and fork. No more rattles.
“The design separates the rider from the terrain surface and anything that may fly off the tyres while also helping to keep the drive train running freely in all conditions,” says Mark.
“The unique design of frame and forks covers the wheels to protect the rider from tyre spray while shielding the most vulnerable part of the chain where it picks up the most debris from tyre spray. The cover shapes form a structural frame to support the wheels eliminating the need for a traditional tubular frame.”
A full-size 3D printed prototype was shown at the London Bike Show, and now Mark is hoping to make a full-size working version in carbon fibre. Mark is seeking £30,000 of funding, which will be used to manufacture the moulds to make a fully working carbon fibre bike, with a limited production run that will be sold through the Stebles website.
“I am trying to get this into production to follow my dream of creating my own bicycle,” says Mark. “I have been working on this for many years trying to find the right people to help me along the way and been led along and let down several times. I'm now within touching distance of finally realising my dream and making my own design of bike."
David worked on the road.cc tech team from 2012-2020. Previously he was editor of Bikemagic.com and before that staff writer at RCUK. He's a seasoned cyclist of all disciplines, from road to mountain biking, touring to cyclo-cross, he only wishes he had time to ride them all. He's mildly competitive, though he'll never admit it, and is a frequent road racer but is too lazy to do really well. He currently resides in the Cotswolds, and you can now find him over on his own YouTube channel David Arthur - Just Ride Bikes.
Latest Comments
- DJameson 0 sec ago
My regular Aldi is urban, and the bike racks are heavily used and fantastic. I appreciate that they're right outside the plate glass, so any...
- Rendel Harris 6 min 59 sec ago
So, just as an example, what had five-month-old twins Naeim and Wissam Abu Anza, killed in an Israeli airstrike on a civilian house, done in their...
- Rod Marton 29 min 39 sec ago
The good news is that GWR no longer insist on bike bookings. Though this doesn't solve all the other issues with carrying bikes on GWR trains....
- Steve K 1 hour 2 min ago
On the subject of other vehicles blocking cycle lanes, there is a point on the Croydon Tram between Waddon and West Croydon where it is designed in...
- daccordimark 1 hour 15 min ago
I've had one of these since November and agree it's good value for money. For me, the ride is a bit harsh and I can't really detect any comfort...
- mark1a 1 hour 45 min ago
I tried something similar with some timber and a pair of Delta hitches, with (unlike yourself) limited success, and so for people like myself with...
- David9694 11 hours 51 min ago
You and a friend have won first prize, a day out at Diddly Squat Farm.
- matthewn5 11 hours 57 min ago
Does not compute! If you ride a lot you're going to be boiling your chain every week or every fortnight.
- Andrewbanshee 12 hours 26 min ago
Tbf where I live 2 way roads look exactly like the one pictured.
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25 comments
OK, so looking at the fundraising site they're using:
This is not Kickstarter. They don't have to hit any targets. If you pledge money to them it is immediatly available to them. This is why there are no "rewards" or such like. You are literally just giving them money. They are under no obligation to actually use that money to develop the bike and there is no reurn whatsoever for you
Crud Roadracers are a bit pants. The Zefal Shield R30s though are lovely strapons (ooer)
Sorry to kick the dead donkey but one other thing - that fairing over the back wheel is massive, it will be a nightmare in a cross wind.
is there a single respect in which that is not just wrong?
The lack of bar tape serves as a useful distraction from that 'thing'.
Why?!
Maybe I'm just old fashioned, but that's got to be the most hideous looking road bike I've ever seen.
Don't look at his website . It will only encourage him.
fugly!!
notes to the designer:
That is horrible, really, really, horrible.
I mean what do I know, but 30k feels pretty low for a production run of this sort. What is that, maybe 3 dozen frames, but probably considerably fewer? Seems like a worryily amateur effort on many fronts. And that's on top of the the rather large saftey and aesthetic issues.
Seems a pity, but that front guard needs a diy mudflap or it'll soak the rider's feet and drivetrain. Sks make the same error but you can set their front guard further back using their £2 replacement bridge.
'Cause full fenders ARE COOL.......
cruiser.jpg
I like how they've kept the weight down by dropping the chain.
Crowdfunding.... the financial black hole...
Yep but I keep seeing people backing absolute 'no hopers'.
Blackpool Sea Air in a jar anyone? Just £50,000 to get me started. First 50 investors get a gold coloured jar lid.
[/quote]
Yep but I keep seeing people backing absolute 'no hopers'.
Blackpool Sea Air in a jar anyone? Just £50,000 to get me started. First 50 investors get a gold coloured jar lid.
[/quote]
Just what I need to go with my silver topped scotch mist and bronze topped rocking horse poo.
It's a Rube Goldberg bike! Well done.
I recently bought some P-Clips to allow me to fit my SKS Longboards to my non-eyelet equipped carbon frame. No rattles, no issues. Problem solved for less than a tenner! This particular 'solution' above looks rather elaborate to me.
Needs more ugly.
I like the idea but it's ugly and looks as though someone just cycled through a lake of shaving foam. And what happens if something is flicked up into the wheel, when that something hits the stays? On SKS mudguards the stays automatically detatch, but on this either the frame will break, or the rider will go arse over tit.
One other problem is that getting this into the boot of a car will be difficult because removing the front wheel won't create much space when compared to a traditional bike.
that's gonna hurt when a twig gets flicked up by the front wheel, physically, and financially!
Is this really necessary? A set of SKS chromoplastics cost about £25. Seems like a solution looking for a problem.
I think the problem the designer has tried to address is that most carbon road bikes don't have mudguard eyelets so guards like the sks chromoplastics can't be fitted.
and crud roadracers do tend to rattle...
though i'm not sure why any sensible person would buy this over a non-carbon winter bike with guard mounts?
perhaps designing a carbon frame with some semi-integrated detachable carbon guards would be a better option? - at least they would be replaceable if they got broken, or if you wanted to strip it down for a good clean etc...