3T has announced that its Italian carbon factory is now ready to build frames. In 2015, having previously been known as an accessories brand, 3T decided to start making bike frames.
First up was the Exploro in 2016, followed by the Strada in 2017. But 3T made another decision in 2015, one that remained below the radar: that ultimately, it wanted to produce frames in Italy.
The company points to many reasons for this desire to bring manufacturing to Italy from previously outsourced manufacture in Asia. These range from romantic (3T was founded on Italian production in 1961) to technical (full process control) and from organizational (shorter lead-times, more flexibility) to commercial (protection of proprietary technology).
‘99% of carbon frames are made in Asia, even the very high-end ones. Almost all use the same process, which involves the manual lay-up of pre-impregnated carbon/epoxy and lots of manual labour in finishing. Copying that process over to Italy would have been easy, but not very sustainable.’
Instead 3T simply asked itself… ‘How would we design the production process from scratch for a carbon frame in Italy?’
Secondly, the company knew that it could not immediately change everything… ‘it’s better to move in steps. They would target several specific technologies, try them one by one and then combine them into the ultimate frame.’
Thirdly, starting up production is a challenge. The logical decision was to begin at the top of its product range (what 3T calls the LTD level for the original Exploro). The company noted that the volumes required for a top-of-the-line frame would be lower. This way it could work on its processes more easily before scaling up.
After a review of all the manufacturing technologies, two key decisions were taken for the Italian carbon factory:
- Filament winding instead of manual layup
- Dry fibre and resin injection instead of pre-impregnated carbon
Filament winding
Instead of sheets of carbon cut in different shapes and applied on a core, filament winding uses a yarn that is spun onto a core to create a carbon shape.
‘By changing the speeds of the winder, you can change the angle of the yarn on the core. This means you can angle all the fibers exactly as you want – in theory.’
In practice, enormous complexity is hidden behind this simple process. For example, as 3T’s fibre is dry (not yet sticky with resin), it doesn’t want to stay on the core very easily. And winding doesn’t like very ‘sharp’ angles.
So, the 3T team put effort into designing and building its own filament winding machines. The result is that the company claims to have no limitations anymore with regards to fibre angles. 3T adds that it can create almost any layup with a combination of special fibre placement and cutting.
Dry fibre
To use filament winding but avoid some of the problems outlined above, a ‘resin bath’ can be used. Here the fibre runs through the resin before being spun onto the core. Unfortunately, this is not suitable for complex geometries.
With the use of dry fibre 3T notes that it can create more complex parts, integrating different types of fibres and add reinforcements where needed.
Having a production process that starts out with the yarn as 3T now has in its Italian factory means it can create the exact layup want with the exact properties required.
‘As a final advantage of the injection process, the out-of-mould surface finish can be much better. If you do it right that is – the surface can be a lot worse too before you have it dialled in! This means a lot less finishing work after the frame comes out of the mould. For example, in the case of the Torno crank, most of them do not require any finishing when they come out of the mould, the surface is already perfect.’
In 2019 3T started with the development of its first production frame: the Racemax Italia. The goal was to produce a frame that would be lighter than the standard Racemax. This month, it goes into production.
Founders Edition
To celebrate, 3T is producing the first 100 frames out of the Italian carbon factory as a special Founders Edition. It comes complete with fork, seatpost and a few customizations:
- Engraved metal limited edition plaque with frame number
- Custom see-through paint options
- Two finish options under the see-through paint (standard or industrial carbon finish)
- Customer’s name under the clearcoat
- 1X+2X frame or dedicated 1X frame (smooth seattube without any inserts for an FD mount)
- The first frame goes into the ‘3T Museum’, the other 99 are available for purchase. 3T will provide with more details on the Founders Edition frames in the coming weeks. Interested parties can contact the company to get more details on the options and the timing.
The Founders Edition can be ordered from 3T’s Experience Centers and from 3T itself for US$5999 (+ tax) / €5999 (incl tax) / £5499 (incl. tax).
