It wasn’t so long ago that the majority of bicycles were made by hand, from raw materials, in places that aren’t China or Taiwan. While some of these artisans are still around, their wares are increasingly harder to come by, and to procure an example of their work means an outlay of time and money which is more than most are willing to commit. This is a problem with not just bikes; mass consumption is big business, not only in everyday necessities but for ‘luxury’ items as well. A bicycle can be considered a luxury item for some, so to bring them to the masses, they must be produced in ways that lower the cost of materials and labour to a point where the average consumer can feel like they are getting a quality product at a reasonable price. And they usually are.
They just aren’t getting anything unique.
Now that three of the four bikes in my possession are made by hand, I have made a commitment to only own machines produced not by robots, not from composites and not from ‘factory farming’ methods. While there are many excellent bicycles produced en masse, the little bit of personality that is instilled in each of my rides sets them apart and I know I’ll see not many, if any, similar steeds on my roads or trails. How many dudes you know roll like this?
Riding the cobbles of KT12 on my Merckx Team SC and KT13 on the Pavé steel Cyfacs re-opened my eyes to the subtleties of a well-made frame and the characteristics which can be incorporated into the bike by the maker; each one can be tweaked to offer a ride quality specific to each frame, each rider, even the environment in which they are created and which they are intended to be ridden. The Merckx was fairly hard to come by, and I stumbled upon it by chance rather than through any concerted effort to find it. I sometimes think it found me. It’s a bike I love to ride, but also to just appreciate its lines, its pedigree, its Made In Belgium heritage, no doubt welded by a grizzled Flandrian who cut his teeth in the very factory he still works at 40 years later. I’d like to think so, and there’s some small likelihood of it, at least. Maybe I will return it to Belgium once more, in Spring, from where its journey started and where it made its mark in history more than a decade ago.
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/brettok@velominati.com/merckx sc/”/]
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If all else fails send me some better clearer pictures to ken@deaconbikes.com I'm pretty sure I'm seeing it correctly though so if you want to send the frame over the pond (you're in the U.K., right?) I will fix it for you for free. You just gotta pay for the shipping both ways.
I wholeheartedly agree, though I am agnostic on material choice. My Time VXR is every bit as excellent as some of my custom steel bikes. That being said, something about custom steel from experienced hands, especially when he talks you into boring some holes in the chainstays.
@Cyclops
The frame is Airplane Columbus tubes. I'll put some photos of it at the end of this post.
This is actually a good idea because I was pondering on how to ask you for a CX frame at some point with the measurements of this frame exactly, on account of it being so comfortable for me. Though of course I could just leave you to do your own ''thang'' and see what comes out, the ones I've seen around here are really great that way!
The aesthetic of the race machine for me is really important, so it would kind of kill it to have a nut on the outside over there. Arguably i should just get a new frame, but for that I need to fall in love with it first, and this is not the right time in my life for that.
I figure these are detailed enough:
Maybe its cause of my age or when I entered the world of cycling but I really do love Carbon. All those bikes are beautiful, but If I had the ability all my bikes would be carbon. and BTW, Carbon is easier to repair than aluminum and steel cant just be repaired by any old welder, if anything an entire tube would need to be replaced.
@Cyclops
Before drilling, you might be able to still rotate the screw thread out by using something pointy like a nail and tap it with a small hammer in the direction of unscrewing. May need to try from both sides of the screw to see which works best.
And if drilling, please centre punch the screw in the centre first. Drill wander makes a mess of holes.
@sthilzy
Not knowing how big the bolt is my suggestion would be to use a small drill bit and drill a small hole in the middle of whats left. then pick up a tap and die set, or just the tap you need(same size as the bit or one size up) insert the tap into the hole with a hammer if needed(gently) and use the tap to unthread it out.
I did this once on an old truck I had. I sheared a coolant sensor(which was brass) I didnt have any other way to get it out.
I basically posted 2 methods, the first method is pretty cheep and you would need to use on tap size is compared to the drill bit.
@grahamr
Nice. I always lusted after those back in my college days. Haven't seen one around here in ages.
@biggles most hardware stores sell screw extractors. used them many times while working on old cars.