Dutch Chair Company Thonet recently commissioned a bicycle design project to London based designer Andy Martin. This $ 70,000 wooden bike is built using a process called steam bending which was developed in the 1930s. The bike has been constructed from beech wood which has been used by Thonet to manufacture some of their popular chair designs. The frame is precisely adjusted with a CNC machine along with its solid beech pan which sits on sprung rod supports to reinforce joints and major stress areas in the frame. The fixed gear conception takes influence from the tradition of cycling; where one has a greater connection to the bike and the surface a user rides on. Built without brakes, it still has the capabilities of using several interchangeable gear ratios.
+ Thonet