How does this work!? Crazy half-wheeled bike concept goes viral

Engineer Sergii Gordieiev is known for his DIY and out-there science experiments which he posts on his YouTube channel ‘The Q’, and bikes appear to be a recurring theme including the CeramicSpeed-esque chainless bike and a drill-powered ice bike. His latest invention, however, perhaps takes the biscuit... and somewhat miraculously, the the half-wheeled bike actually works! Could we see the big bike brands take note?

What is the actual point of it. A wheel is a perfect piece of engineering🤣

— Paul Willard (@pwillard72) June 26, 2022

Deploying “Bikematics”, Gordieiev reassures us that 0.5 + 0.5 =1 so of course, this will work. I must admit I wasn’t convinced, but the video not only shows a walkthrough of how you can build your own, but also the bike dropping off a few kerbs without destroying itself. We’re impressed!

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Firstly, fair play to anyone willing to deliberately destroy a rim while riding a bike, that takes some serious commitment even if it does appear that the rim was weakened beforehand. Secondly, a bit of consumer advice: if you break your front wheel, it’s probably not the best course of action to immediately cut your rear one in half…

Obviously cutting a wheel and tyre in half does raise a few issues... firstly, how do you retain any air? Well, Gordieiev decided he didn’t need air and instead attached the tyre with pipe and rivets. We can’t help but feel that it’s going to have a negative effect on ride comfort, but we also can’t think of a realistic alternative solution.

Screenshot via The Q on YouTube

Having made his two half-wheels and making sure the rear one can be driven using a chainring mounted to the disc brake (also not recommended) Gordieiev sets about extending the frame. It’s here that we see that Gordieiev is not only extremely creative but also absolutely excellent at colour-matching paint.

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So with the bike built, would it actually work? Well 'yes' is the answer, better than any of us could have expected! It is clear from the video that the wheels have to start out of phase, but while riding in a straight line they stay at opposites as they’re the same diameter.

Now, we did note that in the video there was a distinct lack of cornering, and that’s probably because as you go round one the wheels will travel a different distance to each other. That would result in them ending either both at the top or both at the bottom. You won’t be going very far like that…

But why, oh why? pic.twitter.com/1e3Iwwd0Gf

— Storyteller's Tales (@storytellertale) June 27, 2022

Is this the future? Well, no probably not: it’s heavier, more cumbersome, has airless tyres and likely handles like an absolute pig… however as a feat of engineering, Gordieiev we salute you. The world needs more innovative and unusual concepts just like this one.

Let us know what your cycling-related invention would be in the comments below...