This ‘lefty’ aero road bike is just the tip of an insane Italian iceberg
Jemm bikes makes ‘carbotanium’, honeycomb kevlar frames and more
Have you heard of Jemm (or J-emm) bikes? Yeah, me neither. This Italian custom brand is doing some truly mad things with bikes, including this astonishing 1× aero road bike with a custom ‘lefty’-style rigid fork.We spotted this bizarre machine, called the Gravel 5.5 HC, at this year’s Bike Place show, and it’s just one of the strange and wonderful things Jemm makes….
Alongside relatively conventional custom carbon bikes, Jemm builds frames using ‘carbotanium’, a carbon-titanium weave as used in the construction of supercars like the Pagani Zonda. The motorsports connection is not an accident — Jemm is based in the Emilia Romagna region’s so-called Motor Valley, a stone’s throw from the headquarters of manufacturers including Ferrari, Ducati and yes, Pagani. According to Jemm’s Jon Iriberri, carbotanium offers some of the advantages of carbon — albeit at an increased weight — with the ride quality of titanium. A carbotanium frame will set you back at least €4,500.
All of Jemm’s frames are built in house, and the weirdness doesn’t stop at metal-carbon composites. Jemm also builds frames using a kevlar honeycomb, which purports to offer superior vibration absorption to conventional carbon, at a similar weight. Honeycomb frames start at around the €3,000 mark. Jemm’s bikes are all custom, so you can mix and match frame designs, materials and paintjobs to your heart’s content.
On that last point, the Jemm colour palette tends towards the lairy and Euro. The brand even makes mountain bikes, ones with a distinctly Euro flavour.
source: https://www.bikeradar.com/road/news/article/jemm-bikes-first-look-51601/
