One thing is clear: this bike is unique in the world! Despite the global flow of goods, almost all of the 2000 or so individual parts come from the European Union. Almost the entire value creation took place in Europe. According to a Greek legend, Zeus, the father of the gods, transformed himself into a white bull to seduce the king's daughter Europa. If Europa had been a mountain biker, he would probably have fallen in love with our bike for the BIKE Project Europe have to transform. Around 95 per cent European content impresses not only ancient princesses, but an entire MTB scene.
German basic ingredients for the BIKE Project Europe
From the Weld seam of the aluminium frame via the magnesium housing of the Gearbox and the carbon fibre-reinforced plastic of the brake levers through to the air chambers of the Chassis most of the value creation took place in Germany. Hidden parts, such as the reduction sleeve in the seat tube or the seal heads of the fork, are produced in Germany, as are striking parts such as the carbon handlebars and the brake lines. Other components of the project bike, such as the fork bridge, dropouts, brake fluid, slave pistons, drive gears and bottom bracket shaft are all made in Germany. Tyres, tubeless kit, grips, stem, headset and seat post are also made in Germany. The development, assembly and quality control of the frame, gears, suspension and cockpit are 100 per cent German.
Many small details determine whether a bike can call itself "Made in Europe". Many German companies with international expertise contribute to our MTB for the BIKE Project Europe. One of them is tyre manufacturer Continental. Both tyres on our project bike, the Argotal and the Kryptotal-Re, were manufactured by hand in Korbach - which is unique in Germany. Some of the development work also takes place in Hanover. Continental is a real global player, not only in car tyres but also in the bicycle industry. International suppliers ensure the supply of raw materials to the production site in Hesse. Together with the Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, Continental is committed to the sustainable extraction of natural rubber.
An entire network of German development partners, material manufacturers and test laboratories is behind Ergon's grips. The Koblenz-based company produces its rubber grips here in Germany. As a German quality product, it is of course tested by TÜV to ensure it is free of harmful substances. The GXR model does not require a clamp and can therefore be manufactured 100 per cent in Germany. The reduced design keeps the weight low. For the twist grip of the Pinion gearbox on our project bike, the right-hand grip was supplied extra short.
European flavours for the Europa-Bike
From our neighbouring country France the transmission oil and some of the chassis lubricants. In Italy most of the seals in the fork and rear shock as well as the complete saddle. The chain, clipless pedals and cranks were Portugal produced. For the curing process, the frame went to Bulgaria. Austria contributed the upper tubes of the upside-down fork. In Poland hubs, spokes, nipples, rims, other lubricants and the sliding bushes for the suspension elements were manufactured here. Not from the EU, but from a country that is part of geographical Europe Switzerland part of the pawls in the gearbox and the toothed discs of the rear wheel hub.
We have also found a Swiss-German solution when it comes to tubeless tyres. For many bikers, the tubeless set-up is synonymous with mess. To prevent this from happening, Pius Kobler invented clever products such as his own valve system and a pumping aid. MilKit is proud of its development in Switzerland. The Swiss image not only stands for high quality and exceptional precision when it comes to cheese, chocolate or luxury watches. The fact that the products are manufactured in Germany does not detract from this. The sealing milk in our EU bike is based on synthetic latex without the addition of ammonia and is 99.5 per cent biodegradable.
Asian additives
Like all mountain bikes, our EU bike also contains a small amount of Asia. However, this does not mean that the Bike Project Europe has failed - on the contrary! The project is both an experiment and an explanation. Even more important than the high European share is to show which parts the industry currently produces in Europe and which not. Outer shells and trains, for example, are among the products whose manufacture in the EU is hardly economically viable due to raw material prices and high machine costs. We have found a German-Asian compromise solution for our project bike: The parts are produced in Taiwan, but a large part of the added value remains in Germany. Foam liners and plastic parts, such as clips and end caps, are manufactured in Nuremberg. The packages are assembled in Germany, and the plastic-free packaging also comes from here.
The tubes and milled parts of the frame, brake callipers and discs, fork steerer tube and stanchions as well as the cables of the telescopic seatpost actually come from Taiwan. Damping pistons, gearbox seals and the raw material for the frame come from China. When it comes to small parts and aluminium tubes in particular, most manufacturers justify their decision to buy from the Far East on the grounds of good quality and significantly lower prices due to large quantities.
BIKE Project Europe - the parts list
- FrameAlutech Fanes 6.1 Pinion (Germany)
- DamperIntend Hover Gamechanger (Germany)
- Suspension forkIntend Edge Enduro (Germany)
- Tax rateAcros (Germany)
- Stem: Intend Grace FR (Germany)
- HandlebarsAcros mtb carbon (Germany)
- HandlesErgon GXR (Germany)
- Gearbox, Gear wheels, gear lever, chain tensioner: Pinion C1.12 (Germany)
- Cranks: Pinion (Portugal)
- ChainSram PC-1 (Portugal)
- PedalsTime Atac Speciale 12 (Portugal)
- Seat clampVecnum tooLOC (Germany)
- Reducing sleeve: Vecnum (Germany)
- Seat postVecnum Nivo 182 (Germany)
- Train set Telescopic support: Capgo (Taiwan/Germany)
- SaddleSelle Italia X-Bow TI 316 (Italy)
- Brake system: Magura MT7 (Germany/Taiwan)
- ImpellersDT Swiss EX 1700 Spline (Switzerland/Poland)
- TyresContinental Argotal/Kryptotal Re (Germany)
- Tubeless kit: MilKit (Switzerland/Germany)
Alternative parts from Europe
Of course, our EU bike is not the only possible body made from parts produced in Europe. On www.bike-magazin.de you will find plenty of alternatives to our parts list and perhaps even some inspiration for your own European project:
Jan Timmermann
Editor
