Danish ceramic bearing specialist CeramicSpeed joined forces with the Danish Technological Institute to design an ‘innovative and exclusive’ 3D-printed hollow titanium pulley wheel characterized by a ‘unique blend of light weight and extended lifetime’.
The company is launching the first-ever 3D-printed titanium pulley wheels this week at the National American Handmade Bike Show, and in two weeks’ time at Taipei’s International Cycle Show. The 3D-printed pulley wheels have been designed ‘to meet extreme applications, shave grams off, increase durability and improve the drivetrain’.
The 3D process, also known as additive manufacturing, builds up by adding thin sequences of titanium dust, heated by a laser light and imprinted in ‘layers of perfection’. The result is a lightweight titanium pulley wheel assembled with CeramicSpeed coated bearings, which has ‘scored top’ under extreme conditions in laboratory and road tests. The certified pulley wheels have a life span three-times longer and are 10% lighter than CeramicSpeed’s standard aluminium collection.
Eskild Herskind, the project manager who supervised the entire process, said “The 3D-printed pulley wheels passed the tests with flying colours, overtaking the results of standard ones. We are continuously looking to improve our methods in order to offer the sports industry the best guarantee of a high-end product.”
Suited for road, tri as well as off-road, the CeramicSpeed pulley wheels are compatible with Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo, 10-speed and 11-speed. The first production batch of the 3D-printed pulley wheels is distributed as a limited edition of only 10 marked sets, each delivered in an exclusive case.
“We like to keep ourselves up-to-date with the novelties within the tech world. Once we do that, we have the freedom to experiment with design in a creative way, at the same time upgrading and optimizing our products’ features. We now introduce the world’s most innovative pulley wheel, and we owe it to our belief that modern technology and innovation is what describes us best,” said Martin Banke, Managing Director at CeramicSpeed.
CeramicSpeed was founded in 2004 with all products handmade at the company’s HQ in Denmark. The company specializes in ceramic bearings for the cycling industry, distributed in more than 20 countries. Pro Tour teams such as Team Tinkoff-Saxo, Omega Pharma – Quick-Step and Astana Pro Team are riding CeramicSpeed products.
