Current Work

Moving along

Jeff's road bike underway.

I have been rather productive the last few weeks. I have a few projects that I really would like to find time for but these last bikes are allowing me to maintain some form of timely delivery. I fell behind last year and am trying to get somewhat back on track. There are a few tools I really want to make, this year I am building a few titanium beta bikes and I also have to build a bike for Jamie Swan who is building my new road bike. Somehow I will fit all this in while becoming a father as well. Should be a busy year!

Here is Jeff's bike after a good day of machine work and getting a great start.

Here is a few photos of the chainstays being slotted for the drop outs.

Here are the next 30 or so bikes waiting to be checked in and put in the tubing shelf.

This weather is AMAZING. I have actually been riding my bike to work and really enjoy the commute.

Cheers,
Drew

Welding

A few weeks ago I posted "fillets". Now I will enter welds.

I like all forms of joinery and also really like having the ability to do all of them. TIG welding has lots of uses and one of them is speed. Not many will deny that TIG welding was introduced into the bicycle manufacturing world to speed things up a bit. Once the lug was not as common it was easier to TIG weld a bicycle than use fillets and spend time with finish work. I like that TIG welding just puts your work out there for the people to see.

Here is Brian's bike after welding just before I brazed the drop outs and the seat tube sleeve:

Tomorrow I will finish the bike and get started on Jeff's road bike.

Cheers,
Drew

Road Bikes

I have a few road bikes in a row. I am excited about all of them.

First one is a "weekend warrior" style bike. It is a bike that is hopefully going to be zippier and lighter than Brian's light tour/commuter bike. He wants this bike for the weekend rides when he is not loaded down. Carbon fork, fast back styling and fully TIG welded. Super straight forward bike with an exact purpose. I like that.

Here is Brian's bike after tacking and an alignment check. Next I add more tacks and weld it in the correct sequence.

Wheel check:

Next bike is Jeff's bike which is a fillet brazed classic lined road bike.

Have a great holiday weekend.

Cheers,
Drew

Comments

alignment

Submitted by sminch on Sun, 04/04/2010 - 8:27pm.

Drew,

What is the purpose of mounting the frame on the alignment table by the head tube as opposed to the BB shell? I no you are checking for twist but that's about all I know of what you are doing.

Thanks, Wil

Datum

Submitted by drew on Sun, 04/04/2010 - 9:16pm.

The datum used for inspection is not the point. You can use anything and still check everything. The BB is a very hard piece of the frame to trust for inspection until it has been faced again (and even then it needs to be PERFECT which is not easy). I check centerline, axle faces, BB perpendicularity, and many other things all with the headtube datum. I find it far more accurate.

-Drew

Fillets

Making fillets smooth. They sure look nice once done.

I do like the look of fillet brazed bikes. There is a certain industrial beauty in TIG welding but something about a smooth fillet that just works with a bicycle.

Here is Owen's head tube after I did most of the finish work. The small 29R's always get a unique look since the two tubes appear to be joined together. Underneath all that brass there is two tubes with total contact to the head tube but once you create a smooth radius with the brass it becomes one where the two tubes are in the middle of the head tube. Looks great once painted.

The bike is getting braze-ons tonight and then completely finished tomorrow. I wanted this done by yesterday but as usual I seem to have lost the day wrapping other loose ends up.