Current Work
Where does the time go???
Man have I dropped the ball on the blogging thing. For those that might actually read this I assume you have all but given up on me. Luckily the website is so well designed (thanks Nick) it also includes the Flickr site which I am rather consistent about.
Since it has been a good while I am not sure where to begin. Went to a few Phillies games. One was with Jack and he got his certificate for his first Phillies game (which they won 14-1 against the Braves!).
I have been very busy since the cycling season is in full swing and I had 2 stainless bikes almost back to back which makes for some long builds. This week I am getting the forks done for them. Originally the plan was to get some special fork legs from KVA and make it stainless. That plan has been taking way too long so it has been scratched. In general, dealing with all the companies that produce stainless has proven to be very difficult. A big problem is on the builders because we (even as a total collective) do not use enough product to justify the time invested in the production.
I am currently building the cross bikes for the 2011 season. One of them is going to Eurobike and will be in the Enve booth. The time bomb is seriously ticking on that one!
Here are some photos from what probably feels like last year since my last post:
Thanks for reading,
Drew
Guess who???
So who guessed who the bike I am building is for? It is kind of easy to figure out since there are some comments on my Flickr page that really give it away. Like I said it is someone that adds a huge amount of personality to the bicycle industry. He annoys some and humors many but few can deny he has created a following.
The bike is getting a new feature for me which I am very happy to try. I am always looking for ways to improve my bikes, but the one area that is the hardest to solve is bending your own chainstays that will work perfectly for the job. I tried and tried to work with the offered stays and eventually gave up and have had some stays made to my specs. These stays should offer the same tire clearance I strive for and increase the stiffness of the bikes in a way that few customers would complain. Here are some photos from the mystery bike with the new stays:
Here are some shots of the fork and stem waiting for construction:
The views on my Flickr page are staggering from one tweet that the owner made. It is like 400% increase from the norm!
Cheers,
Drew
In the groove
I have been in a good groove. Got the 953 bike done and kept moving right along. I have Marianna's bike welded and fork welded. Now I will do all the brazing for both tomorrow. If time permits I will also finish her stem and make the seatpost.
The next bike I am building is kind of special. I have built bikes for celebrities and some rather high profile people but all in all I treated them with the same respect I would any other person in the queue. The next bike however is for someone I think is extra special and adds an incredible amount of soul to the bicycle industry. I won't give it away just yet but some clever people will easily be able to figure it out when I start his flickr set.
Here are some shots from the past few days while I was building Marianna's bicycle:
Check out these super cool shelves I had made by my buddy Jim who is a cabinet maker. They are made from white oak and should hold up to a few hundred pounds each. It is all part of the endless quest for organization in the shop. This allowed a good bit of space for the tube roller. I also have been label crazy with all the hardware. It is like a mini McMaster Carr with all the hardware having a drawer with an item name. More pictures of that when I am done!
Cheers,
Drew
Better late then never
It appears that spring has arrived. Just in time for May which is rather late, but I will take it. Next weekend is my first (and only) attempt at making Andrea's first mother's day special. I was kind of hoping the tandem would we finished but that is on hold so I can get customers bikes back from paint. We can still figure out a nice day and hopefully include a bike ride with Jack in a trailer.
Today I went down to watch Andrea run the Broad St. run. Jack and I walked around and had a good old time people watching and trying to spot one out of 30,000 runners. It was hard but somehow we spotted her. It is a rather well run event and the weather could not have been nicer. What a beautiful day for a distance run.
This week I will be finishing the 953 bike and then onto the next 3 bikes which are actually all single speed 29r's. I am also making Ed a new front end for his full suspension bike so he can use a tapered fork and get a bb30 crankset. Plus he wanted a bike with a curved top tube!
Cheers,
Drew
ps- photo so the post is not lame:
