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Nov. 4th, 2010 09:49 pmWhat are the minimum technological requirements for developing bicycles? If there are bikes, then what other tech should be reasonably expected?
I'm worldbuilding on the fly, and I have the urge to throw them into my sword-and-sorcery-ish story. If I can make my story different by having a sword-wielding heroine on a bike, I will.
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I'm worldbuilding on the fly, and I have the urge to throw them into my sword-and-sorcery-ish story. If I can make my story different by having a sword-wielding heroine on a bike, I will.
Posted via Journaler.
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Date: 2010-11-05 05:32 am (UTC)Speed and safety didn't really pick up until the use of rubber tires (not necessarily inflated).
If you can make chainmail, I think you can make a bike chain. Good metal sprockets are probably more of a trick.
Brakes are not likely, but could be done using materials from a stringed instrument, leather pads, and some basic leavers.
You can make a pretty low-tech modern style bike, materials wise, not quite medieval but perhaps Renaissance. The more sophisticated it is, the more expensive, as the fiddly parts are probably all done by hand by several different artisans.
Peasants would have to make their own, so they'd be quite rudimentary.
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Date: 2010-11-05 02:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-11-05 05:47 am (UTC)Anon