That's not a robot right there.
Live music is better than recorded music. It’s a given. Having that connection, where you’re sharing the same space as the artist is a unique experience that can’t be replicated on a plastic disc. To receive the gift from the giver personally is a moment of intimacy not possible if it arrives in a package in the mail. To be able to garner instantaneous gratitude, be it by applause, cheers or a smile is the reward that the artist lives for, else they wouldn’t be there. Showing appreciation for the gift returns the favour in kind. The performance feeds the audience, and vice versa.
Vinyl records hold the same sort of appeal that steel bicycles do; both materials revolutionised their respective industries and held the mantle of the best, the only choice, for decades. Then both were usurped by smaller, lighter composite materials and while the convenience and perceived performance they offered took over on a wholesale scale, a handful of purists held on to their Electric Ladyland limited edition LPs along with their Colnago Masters and Merckx Leaders. Vinyl may have been suddenly deemed cumbersome, inconvenient to use and harder to source, but it still offered a timeless sound quality that just had something about it, something that CDs and MP3s would struggle to achieve.
Same with steel bikes. There’s an indisputable and indescribable feeling that comes in the first few pedal strokes on a steel bike, and like pulling out that dog-eared copy of Hunky Dory, you know exactly what you’ll be getting, and you’re gonna like it. Picking up a hand-built bike from the person who made it is like going down to the studio to grab a signed slab of wax that Nick Cave hands to you himself. Straight to you.
Where the vinyl record remains round, grooved and black, the steel bicycle’s tubes remain round, straight and flat. You can’t improve on what’s proven. What’s perfect. Only the touch of the hand of the artist can make each one unique, where things that are really just simple things (a record, a bicycle) can be themselves set apart by the signatures laid upon them by their creators, curating originality (Jagger, Jaegher). To say it’s pretty special to see your own bicycle being made, your name on the tubes as they come together to be joined forever by the heat of the torch and the deft touch of the electrode, would be a modest assessment. To finally ride it, might be impossible to describe.
I know as well as any of you that I've been checked out lately, kind…
Peter Sagan has undergone quite the transformation over the years; starting as a brash and…
The Women's road race has to be my favorite one-day road race after Paris-Roubaix and…
Holy fuckballs. I've never been this late ever on a VSP. I mean, I've missed…
This week we are currently in is the most boring week of the year. After…
I have memories of my life before Cycling, but as the years wear slowly on…
View Comments
@wilburrox
I would use some type of frame saver, cheap peace of mind. Plus you don't want a post seizing in the frame, because it will happen especially if you don't remove and grease the post occasionally. Most good steel frames the main tubes and rear triangle are usually sealed so it's just the seat tube you need to worry about
You cannot tune the ride characteristics of other materials like you can a custom steel frame. My last custom steel frame, the builder choose tubing type and thicknesses and other various details, riding style etc. to build a frame tuned to how I wanted the bike handle and ride, and that is exactly what I got, your not getting that with other materials
@Roger
You can't braze a sealed tube. Air pressure from the heat spits the hot silver or brass out (usually in your face) and leaves a starved joint. It’s possible to braze the vent holes closed after building the frame, but I’ve only ever seen that on forks, never on internal holes or even a rear triangle. Too much cleanup and it just seals in moisture rather than letting the frame breathe.
@Brett
I have a good record player, and I just recently completed my Led Zeppelin collection on Vinyl - the final bit being a perfect UK pressing of Zep I. There is some noise on the record, but its much more dynamic than my digital copy which I stream from my phone or laptop.
The record is more fun to listen to, but it also means I'm flipping the record every 30 minutes whereas I can hit shuffle on my library and hear music I forgot I bought.
Each has their place and on any given day is the better choice.
As this applies to Rule #12, no one has to guess. We need bikes of all shapes and sizes, in all materials and disciplines.
@TommyTubolare
I don't know how you got that I was somehow criticising other materials because I'm not at all! Even though my steel frame is stiff, it's certainly not light, so I'd never claim that it's "better" than another frame made of a different material. I agree entirely that carbon has many benefits that steel can't duplicate, and I'm not foolish enough to try and claim that any material is superior in every application anyway.
My (I thought clearly stated) point is that geometry isn't the only predicator of ride quality; that materials, dimensions and finishing kit also have an effect. I don't think there can be any rational dispute about this.
@pistard
Maybe I should have used a better term than sealed, I do know that the front main tubes on my custom Indy Fab frame are closed off.
@Haldy
About brazing vs. TIG welding : we use brazing for small attachments such as cablestops etc. and our lugged frames. The lugs will make the joint strong enough and minimal weight is less important with these frames. Technically TIG welding is however far superior. The joint is stronger and less material is added so it is lighter as well. TIG welding (especially the very thin tubes and even more stainless) is a lot more difficult, requires very precise mitering, equipment is more expensive and the learning process takes far longer.
@Roger
Yes, my IndyFab is like that too - I haven't quite figured it out!
@wilburrox
It all depends on how and how much the frame will be used and where. If you ride a lot in the rain etc it might be useful to spray some WD-40 or similar inside from time to time. Grease between the seatpost and seat tube will keep most of the water out if redone regularly.
@frank
I'm envious..... I have I, II & IV.... I have a ways to go