Bamboo Bike - how To

Here is how I built my bamboo bike:

1. find an old frame with large diameter tubes.
2. Cut out the center section of the top and down tube.
3. Take these cut out portions to your local bamboo retailer. I found a lot of places in Chinatown that sold lengths of bamboo. Find two poles of bamboo that fit snugly in the tubes you cut out.
4. Cut the bamboo to fit into your top tube and down tube. Aim between the joints in the bamboo, and leave as much room as possible. The farther into your tubes the bamboo goes, the stronger the frame will be when you are done. Sand it down to fit if in necessary.
   
5. I used steel reinforced epoxy inside the areas where the bamboo goes inside of the frame. I am not sure if this is necessary, but it can' hurt.
6. Drill and bolt the points where the bamboo enters the frame.

I have been told that I drilled the holes in the frame a bit too close together and that it may have weakened the design. I am not too worried, as I can't imagine using this bike for anything other than critical mass and other various street party type events.

For the stability of the frame (assuming every bike I've ever ridden is a 10) I would call this a 7. Before I put the bolts in I was using just epoxy, at which point I would say it was a 2.

Thanks to Bike Pirates for help finishing this project.