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Bicycle Technology, Rob van der Plas and Stuart Baird
Cycle Publishing/Van Der Plas Publications (2010) 9781892495 662
29cm x 23 cm 320pp $39.95
The most enjoyable, accessible and comprehensive book on this
subject in print
 
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I have long wondered about whether it would be possible to design a
school science syllabus (or at least part of one) around a bicycle. Taking
apart and reassembling a bicycle would be the starting point for lessons
in physics, mechanics, metallurgy and chemistry.
There would be scope to talk about how society drives or neglects technological
advance and to discuss issues of build-quality, obsolescence and the economics
of manufacturing. And even if some of this went over the heads of the
students, at least by the end of it they would be able to repair a puncture
and to adjust their gears.
Alas, I have neither the scientific background nor the pedagogical expertise
to turn this concept into reality - so if you do, please help yourself
to the idea. Then arm yourself with this book - a fantastic encyclopaedia
of technical information about how bicycles work, made accessible to those
with only the most rudimentary technical training.
Van Der Plas is an old hand at explaining how two-wheelers work. A mechanical
engineer by training, he has been writing about fixing bikes since the
mid-1970s and has published an entire library how-to maintenance manuals.
He has also long promoted cycling scholarship through his involvement
with the International Conference on Cycle History. This, with the added
benefit of contributing editor Stuart Braid's input, makes for a ocean
of information and experience that has been distilled into this volume.
After a brief history and anatomy of the machine, the book divides into
chapters each concentrating on a discreet part of the bicycle - frames,
wheels, steering gears and so on. Each is explained using diagrams and
text to a level of detail that would be dizzying, where it not so clearly
articulated.
Throughout the approach is to explain each aspect of the bicycle theoretically
- forces expressed as equations, angles defined and demonstrated diagrammatically,
and so on. Then the narrative takes a practical turn, describing variations
on the common patterns and providing occasional technical tips for fixing
problems.
As a straight-through read it might be a bit much for those without
a technical background. If, however, you only read a chapter, or even
a section, when you are adjusting your brakes, or checking your chain
for wear, there is a treasure trove here to enrich, entertain and elucidate.
TD Dec 10
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