How do we make a frame out of flax and carbon?

After the harvesting of the flax a series of traditional techniques are applied: threshing, retting, dressing, spinning and weaving. The final product is a fabric which when finely woven, produces a textile of great strength.

Once dried, this material is impregnated with epoxy resins. The resulting textile is called the pre-preg and will then be rolled and stored at -18° Celsius to ensure stability of the epoxy matrix.

The next step is the formation of the frame: the pre-preg is wrapped around pre-formed shapes and built up layer by layer before being placed in a mold.

Each frame size and model has it own unique 'lay-up', with the orientation of each of the layers determined by the intended use of the frame. 

By customising the lay-up, each frame can be finely tuned to produce differing characteristics.

For instance, a larger frame can have added rigidity built-in while a smaller frame can be built to offer more compliance.

Each of these lay-ups takes a great deal of skill and care to perfect - not to mention the many months of R&D it took develop each lay-up schedule.

The exact specification of each of these lay-ups is a closely-guarded secret, but the 'Museeuw Way' is just one of the reasons why Museeuw frames out-perform the competition with their 'one-lay-up-suits-all' designs.

Then the mold is closed and the prepreg frame will be hardened, or cured, in a process that combines heat and pressure. This takes place in a machine called an autoclave.

Pressure is applied to both the inside and outside of the frame, ensuring there are no voids between each layer and to evenly distribute the epoxy throughout the structure. After cooling, the mold can be opened and the frame can be removed for painstaking finishing by hand.

Now each frame is rigorously checked and thoroughly tested both visually and on highly sensitive test rigs.

After final approval, the frame will go to the paint shop for painting and graphics before being treated with a UV-protective clearcoat to keep things looking bright and fresh for the life of the frame.

And now finally, the frame is ready to be assembled into your dream bike!