Leopard

[FunkyPorcini]

Never heard of them until this morning. I ran across their site and there are some fancy looking bikes on there.

Anybody ever been on one?

Leopard (http://www.leopardcycles.com/gallery.php)

[dirtdigger88]

why does a bike called a leopard have honeycombs on it? :confused:

Jason

[Ginger]

Looks like something for BBDave.

[William]

Store it in the HoneyComb Hideout??? :confused:


William

[Too Tall]

BTW Funkyone your hero Paul Stametes is in the news for his insightfull observation, research and possible patent on an extract of a very rare tree-form fungus that may hinder smallpox spread/severity. He is quite a character.

I don't know the bike. However the TT rings a bell. Looks alot like the Tiawan produced CF framesets a pal of mine gets for about $800 wholesale. Not really impressive up close.

[FunkyPorcini]

Sounds like they paint and assemble bikes. Though I have to admit, they are catchy looking.

============
Founded in 2004, the founders spent the better part of 9 months creating the Leopard Cycles’ business plan with a determination to bring to the bicycle industry, economies that leverage the growing use of advanced materials and sophisticated manufacturing techniques. As carbon fiber and other advanced materials continue to reduce the weight and improve the ride quality of bicycles, bicycle manufacturing has changed. It is with some nostalgia that these are not the artisan frames built by a legendary frame builder using his special skill set to provide a bike like no other – but more of a realization that state of the art bicycles are built today with advanced materials that require sophisticated manufacturing and substantial investment in tooling and capacity.

Borrowing supply-chain techniques from the high-tech industry, the ability to tap offshore manufacturing capacity requires careful evaluation of your manufacturing source and standards to assure consistent quality products. Done right, contract manufacturing provides a complex, quality product at a competitive price point.

In the journey to source our frames and forks, we discovered the ability to manufacture carbon shapes and forms is limited to a few quality manufacturers. Therefore our ability to source a full line of carbon components including; handlebars, stems, seatposts and cranksets is a logical extension to our business model. And yes, our components look like others so we’ll let the buyer judge the value proposition.

Being the low cost producer is mutually exclusive with exotic materials, however we’re a firm believer that you don’t have to be the most expensive to be the best. We cannot provide the lowest cost carbon frames and forks, however we are so convinced that we have a bike that is the sweet spot between ride, weight and stiffness that we offer the industry’s best satisfaction guarantee.

Finally, the bicycle has to look good, not just good, but great. Our unique tube shapes are matched with high quality paint and unique paint schemes. In the age-old debate about form over function, we are committed to providing great looking bicycles.

[FunkyPorcini]

He is quite a character.



What ever do you mean?

[BumpyintheBurgh]

It isn't LEOPARD, it's Leo Pard. Mr. Pard is an obscure but very skilled West Coast frame builder who specializes in carbon frames. Leo got his start in the aerospace industry where he learned about carbon composites and thermoplastics. Leo lost his job with a major aerospace manufacturer and decided to put his unique knowledge to work by building bicycle frames. He opened his business in one side of his garage and originally made frames for some of his cycling friends. As the market for carbon frames grew, so did his business. He was forced to move out of his garage and now has a small shop in San Carlos, CA.
The honeycomb design on the seat-tube signifies Supracor's flexible honeycomb matrix, an engineered material produced from a revolutionary technology of fusion-bonding. It is a derivative of the aerospace industry which relies heavily on the structural integrity and optimum strength to weight advantages of rigid honeycomb composites. However, unlike aerospace honeycomb, Supracor Honeycomb is not bonded with adhesives. Instead, a proprietary, fusion-bonding technique is used to produce Supracor Honeycomb from an extensive variety of carbon and thermoplastic materials. Because it is fabricated from carbon thermoplastics and manufactured without adhesives, Supracor is the only aerospace-type honeycomb to have "memory," the ability to repeatedly return to its original shape. As a flexible and stable structure, Supracor Honeycomb is setting new standards for shock absorption in a wide spectrum of applications—from impact-absorbing components in athletic shoes to bumpers on amusement park rides and custom made bicycle frames.
Don't know what the dots signify but it does have a great paint job.

[dirtdigger88]

I thought the dot were the spots :crap:

Jason

[FunkyPorcini]

Bumpy,

Unless you are being sarcastic, which never translates well over print if I don't know you personally or a /sarcasm isn't placed at the end of it, then I am cucking fonfused.

Wouldn't be the first time I've been had. Now where's my bong, I need to understand?

[Too Tall]

He got me cornfused too sporeman.

[BumpyintheBurgh]

I thought the dot were the spots :crap:

Jason

The dot-spots are actually dimples or indentations on the tube, like on a golf ball, to make the bike more aerodynamic according to Mr. Leo Pard.

[FunkyPorcini]

Leo Pard. Sounds more English or Northern European than Taiwanese or Asian.

[JohnS]

The dot-spots are actually dimples or indentations on the tube, like on a golf ball, to make the bike more aerodynamic according to Mr. Leo Pard.
I'm not an aeronautical engineer but golf balls travel in clean air while the air flowing around a bike's tubes is "dirty' from the front wheel, forks, etc. It sounds like a marketing gimmick to me, but I could be wrong...

[FunkyPorcini]

I think he is pulling your leg John.

[slowgoing]

Leo Pard? It's either a joke or his parents got him good.

[FunkyPorcini]

Leo Pard? It's either a joke or his parents got him good.

Better than Leo Tard

[97CSI]

why does a bike called a leopard have honeycombs on it? :confused: JasonHexagonal rings (i.e. carbon rings) are the basic structure of graphite, the highest form of pure carbon. That is where graphite fibers (and other things graphite) get all their great physical properties. Just thought you'd like to know.

[csb]

hello stem chart

[Too Tall]

Hello Kitty.
Take your meds.