German Urwahn Drop Kicks Gravel e-Bike Market With Award-Winning 3D Printed Waldwiesel

Technology is changing the way we live each day. With that, so are our vehicles and toys. One team from Germany, Urwahn Bikes, seems to have taken technology and made it their puppet, in the process spitting out unimaginable 3D printed feats of engineering, one of which is their newest gravel cruncher, the Waldwiesel.

The Waldwiesel is a gravel bike that features Urwahn’s Fair Frame process which includes handcrafting, all the while using 3D printed tubes, and selective laser melting to bond everything layer by layer. No, welding here folks. I’ve inserted an image or two of Urwahn’s Vagabund Edition bike, just to get a clear idea of what I mean.

Now, two bikes have been released by Urwahn, a classic drivetrain, and an electrically assisted version, and one of them is already an award winner, having picked up the 3DPC (3D Pioneers Challenge) award. This award was given to the electrified version with the title of “World’s First 3D Printed Gravel E-Bike."

Both bikes used the same 3D printed steel frame with integrated belt port and flat mount. To keep things nice and clean, internal cable routing is used to help the frame geometry shine through. That's not all these two bikes have in common. The same fork, same newly designed Acros headset and handlebar, and even drivetrain and braking systems are the same.

What differs is the MAHLE ebikemotion integrated assist system. Found on the rear hub, a 250-watt motor puts out 40 Nm (29 lb-ft) of torque while giving you an assist up to 25 kph (15.5 mph); anything beyond that is all you. I understand that you may feel that 40 Nm of torque is not enough to do what you like, but on gravel, that boost is sure to make your ride so much more enjoyable.

Powering this motor system is a downtube integrated battery with 250 Wh of juice. Urwah’s website shows that this is good for up to 80 km (50 mi), but e-bike range always depends on road conditions and an array of other factors too. However, there is better news yet. A range extender, mounted in place of a water bottle cage, pushes your max range by another 60 km (37 mi).

For the drivetrain, both bikes feature a Shimano GRX 600 with one and 11 speeds. As the bikes are set up on a one-speed ring, all shifting can be done with just one hand, ensuring you keep control of the bike with ease. This also offers a smoother shifting experience as you can’t mix up your shifting fingers. Braking is completed by Shimano too, with the same GRX 600 hydraulic disc brakes and 160 mm (6.3 in) rotors.

Two aspects of any gravel bicycle that you need to pay attention to are the wheels and tires. For the Waldwiesel, rims are a pair of DT Swiss 481DB with 32 holes for solid spoke strength and some flexion. As for the tires, Continental Terra Speed with 40-622 mm sizing look like the perfect choice on this bike, both for styling and function.

Optional, a backlight can be asked for and is achieved through a LightSKIN seat post with integrated lighting. Front lights come in the form of a LightSKIN UE Mini stem mount.

One thing to remember about any Urwahn bike you see is that the frame's shape you see acts as a suspension. The lack of a seat tube allows the rear triangle to flex, just enough to absorb vibrations and shock, leading to that award-winning ride I mentioned. Tires also lead the suspension game when you’re talking about gravel bikes, and so Continental seems like the optimum choice.

All this optimization will cost you, however. The standard “Bio-Bike” version is going for €4,500 ($5,277 at current exchange rates) with just basic equipment, while the e-bike jumps to €5,500 ($6,450 at current exchange rates). However, you will be able to easily break that as Urwahn “knows no bounds” when it comes to customization. You can probably opt for the GPS tracking system they have for other models too.

You know, ever since I found out about Urwahn, just last year, they’ve already pushed out three new bikes, all aimed at gravel riding. Are they onto a trend? Possibly. Are they looking to be at the front of the 3D printed bicycle game? Obviously. With that said, I wonder what their MTB may look like. No, they don’t have one designed...yet.