The Real Beauty of a Renovo is the Ride... the Looks Are a Bonus:
It's the smoothest bike you'll ever ride, stealth quiet, lightweight and responsive, stiff as you want. Renovo hollow wood and laminated bamboo frames will forever change your understanding of what a bicycle should be, and how brilliantly these natural materials perform when designed to their strengths.
Badash 29er MTB, hickory and padauk
Hoodoo Time Trial / Triathlon bike raced at Ironman World Championships, 2010
A Renovo custom frame offers:
- Lightweight; a frame weighs from 4 to 5.5 pounds--bikes, 16.5 to 20 pounds.
- The smoothest ride of all, thanks to wood's unique ability to absorb shock and vibration--you feel the difference immediately.
- Stiffness? Oh yeah. As stiff as carbon or better if you wish, but most importantly, we tailor the stiffness and ride quality to your riding style and weight, so the bike is designed for you, not some theoretical average rider.
- Rain? C'mon, these things are made and ridden in Portland Oregon. They're sealed inside and out with epoxy, then finished with linear polyurethane, the same clear coat you'll find on expensive cars.
- Tough. Most woods used by Renovo are stiffer, stronger and harder than axe handles or baseball bats. The frames easily withstand impacts that ruin butted metal or carbon frames.
- The fatigue life of wood rivals carbon and is substantially longer than aluminum or steel.
- Heirloom quality. The Renovo is tough, durable, and can be easily refinished in 100 years to look new again. Take a look at some really old bikes here.
- The Renovo frame is environmentally friendly, with sustainable woods, bamboo and low VOC finishes.
- See our customer's comments here.
Why Wood?
We chose wood not because it's different, not because it's sustainable, but simply because we believe its engineering properties suit the requirements of most bicycle applications better than any other material. The performance of wood in applications more structurally demanding than bicycles has been well proven over many years. The most successful fighter bomber of WWII was the all-wood 400 mph British Mosquito, of which some 7500 were built. The all-wood unlimited hydroplanes Slo Mo Shun, Miss Budweiser and their brethren pounded through the water at well over 150 mph for many years through the '70s, and the fastest unlimited hydroplane ever at 511 mph is all-wood.
But over the years, wood in high performance applications has mostly been replaced by metals and plastics because wood is far more costly to work with. Designing is difficult because it's properties vary among species, and woodworking is demanding and difficult, so mass production is generally a non-starter. But where production is limited, and the properties of wood are matched to the product, it is difficult to surpass.
But, we don’t claim wood is the solution for everything, or even very much for that matter. As a lightweight structural material we know it’s also good for airplanes, boats, and a few other things. We're often asked to make wheels, handlebars, forks and more, but these each have practical or engineering drawbacks. So, while we may make something in addition to bicycle frames, it will be just as conservatively designed and engineered.
Renovo Frames are Made Completely In Our Shop In Portland, Oregon
Renovo frames are a sublime blend of high-tech magic and fine craftsmanship. They're created on computer and machined by a computer controlled machine. But the majority of time in a frame is handwork; the real beauty is revealed only by caring craftsmanship wielded by computer-age people with a deep commitment to fine craft and fine bicycles.
Functional Art Then...
On her 800 mile tour in Germany, Brigitte parks wherever...
Some folks view these frames as works of art, too nice or delicate for daily use, but they aren't your mom's dining room table. We chose wood for it's ride quality and sustainability, and got beauty as a bonus; but it's not a weakness. An impact that will dent and ruin a butted metal or carbon frame merely bounces off the Renovo frame leaving a small dent.
Wood is tough stuff; from axe handles and baseball bats to the walnut stocks of the 1903 Springfield rifles, the U.S. Infantry rifle from WW1 through the Korean conflict. These rifles were thrown from trucks, dragged through sand, rivers and hell, used as pry bars, clubs, crutches and still functioned as rifles. After the wars, civilians bought these battle-scarred relics and refinished many of them into gorgeous sporting rifles.
A Renovo Frame Will Outlast You and Still be Looking Good
Like the Springfield gunstock, or any bicycle frame, a Renovo can be dented and scratched. But, like those gunstocks, and unlike other frame materials, the Renovo is easily refinished, because it's wood all the way through, not just a paint layer. And the best news--a dent or scratch won't escalate into a frame-terminal crack as with other bike frame materials. So really, if you want a beautiful bicycle as your daily driver, the Renovo is your best bet, and yes, between rides many owners park their Renovos in their living rooms or offices as art they can enjoy between rides.
Unlike Any Other
The Renovo is custom made with select woods chosen by the owner, and, thanks to the color, grain and figure of wood, each frame is completely unique, even if made from the same wood as another Renovo. Compact geometry in six sizes ranging from 51cm to 61cm fit nearly anyone.
The woods, adhesives, and finishes are probably not what you're familiar with, so please visit 'What You Don't Know About Wood' for an overview.
Patents are pending on the Renovo hollow frame.