Loopwheels

[g00dride]

Anyone back Loopwheels? They look pretty plush riding.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1205277475/loopwheels-for-a-smoother-more-comfortable-bicycle

https://s3.amazonaws.com/ksr/assets/000/471/212/c100bfc4f2efa63120425a6beafb51cc_large.jpg?1364315 377

[Louis]

It's interesting how folks keep trying to refine the bicycle.

One way of thinking of a bike is that it's a bunch of springs, from the ground up to your butt. This is adding some more flexibility in place of the spokes. Best of luck to them, but I don't see one in my future.

[flydhest]

"Reinventing the wheel" literally.

While I agree with Louis in general, and am curious if the cushioning is uniform at all angle -- it looks like compression might be different depending on the orientation of the springs to the ground-- nevertheless, it says it is for 20" wheels, so perhaps for folding bikes or those with smaller wheels, more spring might be particularly useful. Why it would help more than a larger volume tire at lower pressure isn't clear, but this could actually serve a purpose.

Well, that is my quota for completely uninformed spouting for the day.

[cmg]

give me comfort or give me death........ what was the problem? Need to make it more complicated. :) enclose the loops and an use an inflatable bladder to set spring rate. better, set a sensor that that senses the road condition and inflates the the tire or increases the tension of the spring.

[redir]

Cool. I think there is plenty of innovation left in the bicycle. Look at mountain bikes. There is something new every month it seems.

Now all he has to do is sponsor Danny MacAskill!

[mvrider]

Is it me, or does this configuration have no lateral stiffness?

Anyway, since common wheels have the spokes in tension, for a more compliant ride, why not just replace the spokes with bungee cords?

[Louis]

It will have some, due to shear and bending of the springs, but the exact ratio of vertical to lateral stiffness is tough to guess.