Recyclable carbon wheels have been round for a number of years. Nevertheless, till HUNT’s H-Cyclo, they differed in building and bodily properties relative to conventional carbon bicycle wheels, frames, and forks.
HUNT Bike Wheel has seemingly solved the Rubik’s dice, permitting the model to recycle conventional thermoset carbon wheels again into supplies that may type different carbon elements. The British model flexes this new know-how with two gravel-oriented fashions, the HUNT 40 Carbon Gravel Race H_Cyclo and the HUNT Carbon Gravel Dynamo H_Cyclo. The latter has a generator within the entrance hub for powering lights.
Thermoset vs. Thermoplastic Carbon Bike Elements
To grasp why HUNT H_Cyclo is a big growth in biking, a bit backstory is critical.
Conventional thermoset carbon building makes use of “prepreg” carbon materials. Carbon fiber producers pre-impregnate materials with uncured epoxy resin. Wheel producers reduce and lay these items based on a posh layup schedule into molds. Baking these molds in ovens cures the epoxy resin, turning the versatile cloth into the extremely stiff, robust, and light-weight carbon elements that cyclists recognize.
Earlier than HUNT H_Cyclo, recyclable wheels utilized long-chain polymers (thermoplastic) as a substitute of epoxy resin because the bonding agent for the carbon fiber. Materials model FusionFiber provides names like Revel Bikes, Forge + Bond, Chris King, and others to be used in recyclable wheels. FusionFiber claims its thermoplastic materials has a number of benefits: much less vitality to supply, much less end work, zero toxins, and automatic manufacturing steps, amongst others.
In my expertise, the bodily properties of FusionFiber wheels additionally differ from thermoset fashions. Thermoplastic wheels perceptibly really feel “softer,” damping vibrations and the jolts from sq. edges extra successfully. However this isn’t essentially fascinating in all circumstances. Thermoset carbon has the stiffness that cyclists demand, particularly in racing.
Thermoset carbon manufacturing strategies are essentially the most mature; producers in varied industries have labored out many of the kinks at this level. And this confirmed methodology typically produces the very best strength-to-weight ratios ultimately merchandise, based on HUNT.
How HUNT’s H_Cyclo Bike Wheels Crack the Code
HUNT borrowed know-how from the carbon wind turbine blade business, leveraging chemical reactions to revert the epoxy resin to its authentic type, liberating up the carbon fiber. Each of those can then be used once more to supply carbon fiber merchandise.
HUNT produces its H_Cyclo wheels utilizing the time-tested thermoset methodology the biking business has used for many years. As an alternative of utilizing warmth to cut back the top product, HUNT employs a chemical resolution referred to as CleaVER. This, mixed with agitation and warmth, separates the resin from the carbon for reuse.
Amazingly, the epoxy resin will be reused as much as 20 instances. Moreover, HUNT can reprocess the CleaVER resolution for continued use.
HUNT defined to me that, much like thermoplastics, the unique wheel must be considerably damaged down earlier than resin extraction. This implies the merchandise made out of the extracted carbon have to be smaller.
HUNT steered carbon fiber soles for biking sneakers, parts like stems and seatposts, pc mounts, and, once more, tire levers are attainable output merchandise. This is similar subject with thermoplastic recyclable wheels.
How Do I Get Some HUNT H_Cyclo Wheels of My Personal?
Each the 40 Carbon Gravel Race and 40 Carbon Gravel Dynamo wheelsets can be found now for an MSRP of $1,399 and $1,849, respectively. And on the finish of the wheels’ life cycle, HUNT will cowl all the prices associated to assortment and recycling, even when the wheels meet their demise in a crash. The wheels include HUNT’s normal 3-year guarantee towards materials or workmanship defects.
The 2 H_Cyclo wheels be a part of HUNT’s “Maintain Part One” venture, which goals to enhance sustainability throughout all its merchandise. Present wheels inside this lineup embrace carbon variations that use 10% recycled carbon fiber and 75% recycled aluminum, amongst different efforts. HUNT additionally sells frivolously used wheelsets at a financial savings of as much as 50% in its RE:NEW program.
HUNT Bike Wheels slated a set of H_Cyclo wheels for GearJunkie, and we are going to report again as quickly as attainable.
