It’s quite a mouthful, the VRZ 1 Carbon Fibre Track Bike with 3D Printed Lugs, but the name says it all. This thesis project allows rapid creation of custom track bikes: design the geometry, print the lugs, cut the tubes, and glue it all together. With stainless steel lugs, the frame plus fork weighs 1580g, and it could be made even lighter by using titanium for the lugs. The main trick is in the 3D printing. If you’re not up on the technology, it involves a laser, driven by CAD software, that fuses powdered metal of your choice in thin layers, building them up into a 3D object—kinda like assembling a salami from the thinnest slices imaginable. That is your MR simple science moment—the video (below) explains it best…