Firefly New Website
 

https://fireflybicycles.com

Looks like there are some new goodies from this awesome builder crew.

My favourite is the 3D printed chain-stay yolk. A really good idea and very nice execution. They keep pushing the envelop. Love the custom drop outs as well.

They take their craft to the next level.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around how it's possible to do 3D-printed titanium

Titanium powder and a laser. They are 3D printing way more exotic materials in the aerospace industry...

Check out Bastion out of Australia - 3D printed Ti lugs connected with carbon tubes. I saw one in the flesh at Blacksmith in Toronto a few weeks ago and it's a truly amazing piece of engineering. Maybe overkill for a bike, but impressive nonetheless.

Moots-

3D printed lugs seem pretty silly. Typically you want to 3D print complex geometries which would have many complicated braze operations if traditionally produced. This application just seems like a gimmick...

There's a lot of great builders but if I ever drop the money for custom it will definitely be a Firefly or Mosaic. Those chainstays might be the tiebreaker.

Not only do they build great bikes, their website is excellent.

As a lucky Firefly owner, and get personally sized in shop - there shop is as clean as an operating room. It is a great place to visit if you are pursuing them.

Tyler and his wife are artists (trained). When I was there, they had local artists showing their stuff on the wall.

Have some good beers in the fridge

...and medical devices.

Tubes and tube shapes are usually constrained by the lugs. 3d printing allows you to customize the shape and also, from a manufacturing standpoint, allows you to print materials on demand.

The technology is there, it's just a matter of time before we start seeing 3d printed tubes, bb/st/cs/dt junctions (specialized uses something similar for the allez but it's not 3d printed), 3d printed bars, stems whatever.

The complementary piece to the 3D printing is AI for the design, the two enabling design and creation of pieces that look truly alien. Check out the stem that illustrates this here.

not really anything new, been 3d printed ti bike parts/frame parts for awhile

Not if you want lugs for custom geometry bikes.

In past generations, builder would by 72 or 73 degree henry james lugs, with or without cutouts, with std size tubes. They grab from stock. Now with all the variants capable of angles and tube dimensions, lugged frames - could be easier for builders to obtain. For carbon/ti we would lose that nice welded look that is desired, custom builders would find something else to make their product unique.