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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@Mark1
That Sarto is great; can't wait to see the full build.
My new frame is being cut (did they mean circumcised?) and now noticing all the other beautiful fish in the sea is particularly acute.
If you ride a hand built frame made by a local builder, you might be in the middle of a race and find yourself being cheered on by your maker.
Happened to me today.
And for the first time this season (since moving up a category), I finished a whole CX race without being lapped!
@Bespoke
The tour was great (see a couple pics at Post 121 above). Hugh took us through the process of building a frame from scratch: fitting, geometry, Ti tube selection, cutting, welding, component selection, etc and even demo'd the paint booth and powder-coated a fork. He baked it in the oven while we hammered him with questions. Super nice guy. He's got "made by hand" down to an art. He was saying that about half of his customers order Ti frames and then end up ordering another at some point. One of his customers has 9 of his bikes--talk about yer n+1!! [and, yes, the thought of a custom Ti graveur mosheen entered my mind as the evening progressed...]
So I thought my next n+1 would be a cross bike, but instead a handmade steel Engin road frameset sort of fell into my lap. I'm going to have to cannibalize Bike #1 for parts, but I think the new frame warrants that sacrifice. My Ridley Orion will have to hang on a hook in the garage for a while.
@VeloVita Even as a proponent of CX I can say that buying handmade steel from a reputable builder is never the wrong choice.
@seemunkee
The bent hanger is just the consequence of taking your bike and riding in a cool new place, although it points to a possible case of poorly packing the bike (i.e. not removing the rear derailleur).
As for the stem, they damaged it and need to replace it, unless you fucked up the screw that broke and the mech kept you informed of what was going on. This is why you go to an LBS and don't shop online; they are experts and should be able to handle your equipment without damaging it, or inform you when damage is a risk. You were not out of line, but I'd talk to the usual mech before burning the bridge, but only ever work with the ones you trust.
@VeloVita
Fuck, you got hit in the ass with a rainbow while you we're riding your unicorn.
We demand photos!
@G'rilla
Well done@G'rilla!
There's no better feeling than feeling stronger, seeing progress.
@G'rilla
@mouse
I've wanted a handmade frame for a while, but honestly was waiting for my 40th birthday (in two years) to treat myself. This just kind of happened. Basically the frameset (complete with custom matched stem and titanium seatpost in standard Engin fashion) is something Drew built a couple years ago for someone, but they ended up not keeping the bike. I guess its been ridden maybe 650kms. Drew has been sitting on it but wants it to get ridden so he offered it to me at a price I simply couldn't pass up. The geometry is a bit odd (normal square seat and top tubes 59.5cm, but a looong headtube in comparison), but as it turns out, it should work perfectly for me and allow me to run the matching +10 degree stem flipped to its negative rise with no spacers and deep traditional drop bars (something like Deda Newtons). I had several phone conversations with Drew about the frame dimensions and he was great about taking a look at my current setup, hack measurements and fucked calculations, listening to my ramblings and and providing drawings of how the new frame would fit in comparison with various stem/seatpost configurations. In the end he decided that it would be a good idea to take 15mm off the head tube and offered to do that for me - so I probably won't have the frame until next week, but I'll post photos when I get it built up. I can't wait to get some riding in on it before it gets too nasty around here and I resort to the rain bike.
I start building my first frame on Friday. Oversized columbus zona for a sprinter track frame for the first one. Working my way up to a Titanium racer. It will be all tig welded.
I'm debating on dull nickel plating, or Gulf livery.