Archive for the ‘Bike Building’ Category

Among the awesome local builders you can catch a glimpse of Jay’s new 29er. Full write up and photo shoot next week!

The Ball is tonight at the Botanical Garden at Roger Williams Park in Providence, 7-11 pm. Hopefully see you there!

http://newenglandbuildersball.com/

It’s a mouthful, but for another commuter/all-rounder, it just makes sense! Again we’re using the value-laden Sturmey-Archer 5 speed hub, this time laced to a 26″ wheel to keep the scale of this smallish bike appropriate. But the focus for Manya is on practicality, yes (note the fenders and kickstand) but also on style and elegance, so we did our first curved top tube step-through. All it needs is a baguette and a beret.

As we didn’t have the requisite, or at least recommended, three-roller bender for the top tube, we sought help from Mike Flanigan at ANT:

Other concerns included fashioning a gusset to reinforce the seat tube, that would match the lugged BB shell and the collar point:

I also modified Bobby’s Ted Wojcik, as he wanted to run 650B x 2.4 wheels & tires in a frame intended for 26″. Previously I had installed the Black Cat Rocker dropouts; in this case I was able to retain the seat stays, replacing the chainstays and bridges to make more room. And I made a new fork that matches the build height of his old segmented 26″ fork but gives him some more room. Just the right amount, as he has promised to never try to use larger tires.

And an unusual repair, I replaced the head tube on a vintage Raleigh. See if you can spot the crack:

So this sort of repair involves cutting away as much of the existing headtube as you can, and then grinding out what’s left from inside the lugs. It does not. Go. Quickly. Note the sockets for the fork-crown steering lock.

Then a new head tube slides in, gets brazed, cleaned up, and painted.

Last but not least, I repainted a magnificent Nagasawa road/track bike for Marc:

Next: Henry’s MTB! Tom’s belt drive all-rounder! Irina’s do-it-all tourer! It must be summer!

Well this has been a fun one. We have a complicated relationship with stainless steel: we’ve always loved it for things like dropouts, where the paint is sure to get chipped anyway; and we love the all weather durability. But it’s expensive, and even from three suppliers there are a limited number of tube profiles available. Part of the benefit of a custom frame is that we have so many options to choose from in order to optimize performance and comfort.

So, for Myles’ club racer, we decided to use a mix of True Temper S3 and OX Platinum tubing, along with a KVA Stainless drive-side chainstay; and then we upped the ante by doing all the interfaces in stainless: rear dropouts, cable stops, H20 bosses, and brake bridge. A true all-weather steel bike, where it matters.

The frame comes in a tic over 3 lbs, and with some very nice components indeed (King/Enve wheels; Enve fork, cockpit, and seatpost; and Sram Red/Black group) the complete bikes is a svelte 15.75 lbs. Not bad for a durable and repairable heirloom!

I used the Enve 1.0 fork with a 50mm rake and a 72.5 HT angle – this setup is eerily comfortable over rough roads while still being whip-quick, and gives a little longer front center for a stable wheelbase with short chainstays – 41 cm with a 73.5 ST angle and 25c tires. ST center to center is 52.5 cm and effective TT length is 55, with a 10 degree slope.

But enough talk – first more pics of the complete bike, then some shots of the frame before building up.

Jay also painted a 1895 Rudge Penny Farthing:

And I modified a Surly Ogre to accept belt drive with an 8 speed Alfine hub – they said it couldn’t be done, but after a little chainstay crimping and some fine tuning of the chain, er, belt-line, it’s an all-weather commuting monster:

 

And finally I repainted a very rusty old Serotta in the trademark fade:

Next: Sabine’s lugged beauty!

Local hero Mark wanted an all-weather commuter that would keep him and his scrubs clean. So right off the bat we’re thinking belt drive, internal hub, full fenders, disc brakes… and he had his heart set on the Sturmey-Archer 5 speed, seen here in rare disc version. We decided on Paragon sliding dropouts to make belt tensioning easy – but then the question was how to set it apart from the typical tig welded commuter. The first thing we did was put together a unique tube set – a variety of shaped Columbus Zona tubes that had a sort of faux-aero “coffin” profile. This was a purely aesthetic decision, we liked the flat planes and wanted to come up with a paint scheme to play off that. And yes, they were fun to miter.

And about that paint. The orange is a candy flake that needed 6 coats (as opposed to a more typical 2 or 3) to cover properly, but in the sun it’s deep like the ocean. Lots of fun pinstriping along the creases of that crazy tubing.

And here are some shots of the mitered tubes:

I also repainted a Gitane which had been languishing under a thick blanket of powder coat:

The fork had a bent steerer so I was also charged with building a replacement. The great thing was that I could get a Newvex crown from Richard Sachs that would nicely compliment the frame’s Nervex lugs, and of course we’re all about the continental bend to the fork:

Next: Sabine’s road beauty and some internal hub retrofits. And, more belt drive!

Especially with some lovely silver Campy components. Go ahead, tell me I’m wrong. I know you’ve seen other Circle A’s this color, but as always the devil is in the details, and Ron’s road bike is lousy with them. Details, that is.

Lots of parts courtesy of Richard Sachs, lots of stainless bits… lots of subtle awesome.

Next: Mark’s belt drive Sturmey-Archer commuter will melt your brain. Count on it.

Usually this space is devoted to whatever projects are rolling out the door,
but this spring brings some exciting changes to Circle A.

It’s with a bittersweet mix of pride and sadness that Brian rides away
from the Circle A nest and hangs up his own shingle under the banner of
Chapman Cycles. He started as a friend, became a customer, then an
apprentice, and leaves having served as a true partner who was
instrumental in moving Circle A Cycles both physically (to our current
location) and professionally, as we pushed each other in new directions
and to new levels of quality.

I look forward to seeing Brian on rides and over beers, and to casting an
approving eye over his work. Best of luck, Brian.

Meanwhile, Jay and Josie are in the process of setting up their studio next
door, and we’re excited to welcome them to the compound. Look for a spike
in outrageous lug- and box-lining and handpainted details!

As Circle A enters it’s 13th year I’m psyched to be surrounded by so many great and talented friends and comrades. Keep loving keep riding!

There’s no winning around here when it tops 90 for days in a row. The choice is Tyvec suit or torch. Choose your poison. While I finished the details on Mark and Ron’s frames, I painted a couple of Italian beauties for our friend Dave – a Colnago and a rare Masi.

Both were interesting restorations with various degrees of chrome degradation. If it’s really bad, we blast it off and paint over, like the Colnago’s chain stay. If it’s good, we hand-strip the paint around it, polish it, and make it pretty.

          

Here are some details of Ron’s club racer. I’m painting next week, watch this space for the full build – and finally, Mark’s belt drive, 5 speed Sturmey/Archer super commuter!

    

OK, so I’m happy to say this Waterford went out the door looking a bit better than when it came in:

Bob brought it in for a repaint, but upon inspection we found some… issues…

Bob decided the frame was worth saving, so I cut out the old stays and brazed in some new ones.

With that taken care of, I could proceed with paint:

I also did a frame repair on local legend Jack Madden’s Atlantis. He had an altercation with car that left the top tube bent and the head tube tweaked. Time for more surgery!

And then with paint:

I also repainted a Zancanato:

And replaced a dropout on a Gunnar:

Next: Mark’s aero-tubed, 5-speed Sturmey Archer commuter! Did I mention the disc brakes and belt drive? I KNOW!

Here’s Afredo’s smashing coupled club racer/light tourer/travel bike. His design for the paint, and I’m very happy with the final product. It’s a mix of True Temper, Dedacciai and Columbus tubing, and of course the always fabulous S&S couplers. There is a Ritchey Pro Carbon fork, painted to match; and that’s a 6 degree slope to the top tube, a gentle compact geometry that makes for easier packing (no need to remove the cranks).

And here are some shots in progress:

Also, Alfredo is a journalist and photographer, and took these great shots of me working on the frame:

And here are some of the built up bike, with stem, bars and seatpost painted to match:

I also painted a Raleigh, a Bottecchia, and a Rivendell, and made a touring fork for Cindy’s S3 cross bike.

Allow me to introduce Matt’s 29er. We are big fans of repeat customers – among other things, they are our most reliable test-beds to see how our bikes hold up, what fitting or handling tweaks me might consider, etc. I built a cross bike for Matt back in September 2010, but now he was ready for some more serious off-road action. Here it is:

           

Those are Black Cat Rocker dropouts, and some fun paint (three color logo!) that was Matt’s idea. Here are some pics in progress, including making sure that the fork cleared the down tube:

     

I also painted a new Mostowy, an old Bottecchia, a suspension fork, and am building a 20″ fork for a folding bike. All well and good, but some of us can’t wait for spring:

Next: Alfredo’s coupled road bike, and Mark’s belt-drive internal-geared commuter!