KTM tests a Carbon-Fiber Chassis in MotoGP

Is Dani the only one testing it or is Jack on one as well? 

Copying Triumph..

Honda…Yamaha…John Britten…even, very quietly, some Italian folks…DECADES ago…

I’m jus’ sayin…

Just Dani right now

1991…

Rossi's not a fan

Have watched road racing since the early 80's and raced in the 90's...I am yet to fathom why they waste time and money in CF frames. Very few have made it work and never for much more than a few races or parts of a season. Even CF Swingarms come and go, never staying more than a season or so.

I have raced with the Britten here in NZ and it was incredible but never faced stiff competition like WSBK, MotGP etc. It came out of the box way faster than any of its (2nd tier) competition and never really faced top-level machinery or nth-degree developed bikes.

It's possible its frame suffered the same too stiff or whatever they ultimately drop them for, issues as all others.

Though the girder front end might have helped offset that.

Its just too bad they can't do that in MX. We just have far too much G-force pulling in different directions from all the jumps, and bumps.

CF frames and wheels have been standard on top end MTB’s for years, including downhill.

Technically it could be made to work for MX.  Probably not cost effective though.

Yep, I have a 2010 Cannondale carbon, its held up.

CRM made a complete carbon YZ250F years ago… Never read anything about it though. 

I don't remember that at all.. Probably didn't work too well, or just too expensive of an option. Probably saved 10 lbs of weight though.
 

edit: found your article

https://motocrossactionmag.com/ask-the-mxperts-16/

I remember him sliding out at Jerez and thinking Stoner was going to have to sacrifice a goat or something to get away from the curse of the Ducati front end.

The 2013 BMW S1000RR M already have it on the production bike . .

KTM is bleeding 10's of millions a year in motogp. I am off the Beta the next time around. Been on KTM's since 83.

I know how well carbon works in the MTB world, I’d love a carbon MX chassis. That dead composed feel is so much smother than most frame materials. Depending on how it’s engineered the increase in traction could be pretty beneficial

Do you by chance personally know or know of Andrew Stroud? He and I were teammates at the 1991 Suzuka 8-Hour World Endurance Championship in Japan.

That YZF CF Chassis bike - it might be / be an example of the bike that a Brit girl used in WMX GPs a few years ago, and, I think one bloke in, perhaps, EMX250? Though, I think she was on a Suzuki engined bike?

CF Chassis have been around for quite a while in Motorcycling. 

Certainly earlier than the brilliant Britten. Though, if you've seen the Britten documentary, you'll see an early failure of CF components - either,  or plus, the mainframe or the Girder fork during a track test in NZ. Later, the Britten was cleared of any blame in the death of Mark Farmer in 1994 at the Isle Of Man, after some (rather nasty) controversy. 

I think a full CF chassis was used on the Ducati GP9. And, CF Swingarms / CF 'plate reinforced' Swingarms were being tried well before that. 

I got to see and have a good squizz at 2 such bikes during the 85(?) Swann Insurance Series here in OZ. That was a fantastic end of year International series, which had many great / soon to be great riders and some very exotic Motorcycles  - Mal Campbell raced the NR750 Oval Piston Honda ( not the red production bike - the full on Works Racer) one year in the Swann. 

One was Niall Mackenzie's Armstrong 250 GP bike. They started development of that chassis in '83. I couldn't find pictures of it Naked - that near all encompassing body work is just bodywork, though probably CF. It had a Twin Spar CF Frame, and Swingarm : 

 This one (well, the bottom picture) is the Heron Suzuki CIBA-GEIGY chassied  XR70RV that Kevin Schwantz made his debut in GPs on in 1986  . He bought it in the last couple of years, and re-liveried it back to the Rizla paintwork he'd had on it. I remember it / them in mainly the Skoal Bandit livery, which is what Rob " The Burley  Humbersider'' McElnea  was riding at the Swann. Note, it's an absolute BASTARD of a thing to put up multiple pictures here now.... :  

I’m really surprised carbon wheels haven’t shown up in moto. It’s an easy retrofit to current models, there’s a performance advantage, plus they’re expensive and give rich guys another option to buy crap the rest of us don’t want to pay for. Conevalves and carbon wheels could be the new standard..

For reference, a carbon downhill mountain bike frame is usually around 1.5 pounds lighter than the aluminum equivalent and about $1000 more per pound of weight savings. You’d probably see about a 4-5 pound weight savings with a motocross frame. In the right hands you might have a competitive advantage with a carbon motocross frame.

The ability to tune flex and the absorbent/dead feel could probably be as big a benefit as the weight loss. I’ve got an old FS carbon MTB, it’s amazing at flattening out trail chatter and keeping the wheels in line while turning across the small choppy stuff that likes to throw a bike off line. And you’re right about cost, that sh!ts expensive.. 

Edit: Agree 100% with 434, he posted it better and faster than I did, lol..

Absolute legend. Outstanding rider and guy. 

I am sure they know what they are doing, but that Oceangate submarine has put me off carbon fibre at the moment

Man I much prefer denting a rim vs exploding a rim. 

A good first step for carbon would be spokes. 100% tension, no compression. The nipple interface might be a challenge though. 

I’d guess and it’s just a guess.  If we see CF, it’s going to be a wrap like rifle barrels.  Save a little weight, be able to control frame dynamics/flex etc.  just a guess.