The bicycle brake lever of Blackwave GmbH in Germany saves 35% of the weight compared to similar aluminum parts.
"A carbon fiber frame is almost the standard configuration of a good bicycle, but few people dare to make carbon fiber brake levers," said Timon Strube, chief operating officer of Blackwave GmbH. Blackwave and bicycle parts supplier Trickstuff have recently designed a high-quality brake lever made of carbon fiber sheet molding compound (SMC), which is said to be 35% lighter than previous aluminum brake levers. .
Blackwave is quite new to the sporting goods market, but not to carbon fiber SMC. The company was founded in 2016 by former university classmate Bastian Behrens (CEO) and CTO Raphael Setz, focusing on special auto parts made of carbon fiber SMC. Behrens and Setz met for the first time at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), where they successfully manufactured carbon fiber SMC car rims for their school’s Formula Student automotive design and engineering team. Behrens said that this car was very successful in college competitions and ranked third in the world in 2013. These SMC rims will be a source of inspiration for the new partner company.