Fall is definitely my busy season for building bikes. Lots of shows and lots of deadlines. Mark was going to be traveling to one of those shows earlier this month so that was my deadline. I had ironed out a lot of the details with him over email so the build went relatively quick. On his frame, I used my very last set of Rivendell road lugs. These are one of my favorite sets and it’s a shame I won’t get to build with them again. The tubing on this bike is all Columbus but it is a mix of SL, Zona, and Spirit for Lugs. Mark had discussed having a finch put on the bike somewhere as finches are significant to him. I ended up creating a custom Columbus tubing decal replacing the iconic dove with a line art finch that he provided. Other details on the frame include a rubber chain slap guard, integrated pump on the seat stay, a tapered downtube for added frame stiffness, front and rear dynamo lighting including the new fender taillight from Velo Lumino, Schmidt SL connector-less fork tips, a front bag support rack, and a set of removable low rider racks.
Picking a color for your custom bike can be an overwhelming task but Mark knew what he wanted right from the start. This burgundy is so eye catching in the sun yet subdued otherwise. It goes incredibly well with the honey brooks saddle and shellacked cloth handlebar tape.
When assembling the components for a randonneur bike like this, I end up ordering from distributers from all over the world. One of the distributers this time was Grand Bois in Japan where I got the rims, hammered fenders, fillet brazed stem, and centerpull brakes. This was my first foray into using their brakes and they are fabulous! I particularly liked the spherical straddle hanger and its simple design. The curves of the brakes were appealing too and they were a breeze to set up. Another component of note on the bike is the beautiful Rene Herse crankset which was tastefully modified by Jon Williams of Drillium Revival.
Mark is currently using this bike as his commuter which is a great application as the days get shorter and the lights become a necessity. Check out the full slideshow of pictures to see the bike coming together.
See the full slideshow of pictures.
Mark’s 650B randonneur
October 22, 2015
Fall is definitely my busy season for building bikes. Lots of shows and lots of deadlines. Mark was going to be traveling to one of those shows earlier this month so that was my deadline. I had ironed out a lot of the details with him over email so the build went relatively quick. On his frame, I used my very last set of Rivendell road lugs. These are one of my favorite sets and it’s a shame I won’t get to build with them again. The tubing on this bike is all Columbus but it is a mix of SL, Zona, and Spirit for Lugs. Mark had discussed having a finch put on the bike somewhere as finches are significant to him. I ended up creating a custom Columbus tubing decal replacing the iconic dove with a line art finch that he provided. Other details on the frame include a rubber chain slap guard, integrated pump on the seat stay, a tapered downtube for added frame stiffness, front and rear dynamo lighting including the new fender taillight from Velo Lumino, Schmidt SL connector-less fork tips, a front bag support rack, and a set of removable low rider racks.
Picking a color for your custom bike can be an overwhelming task but Mark knew what he wanted right from the start. This burgundy is so eye catching in the sun yet subdued otherwise. It goes incredibly well with the honey brooks saddle and shellacked cloth handlebar tape.
When assembling the components for a randonneur bike like this, I end up ordering from distributers from all over the world. One of the distributers this time was Grand Bois in Japan where I got the rims, hammered fenders, fillet brazed stem, and centerpull brakes. This was my first foray into using their brakes and they are fabulous! I particularly liked the spherical straddle hanger and its simple design. The curves of the brakes were appealing too and they were a breeze to set up. Another component of note on the bike is the beautiful Rene Herse crankset which was tastefully modified by Jon Williams of Drillium Revival.
Mark is currently using this bike as his commuter which is a great application as the days get shorter and the lights become a necessity. Check out the full slideshow of pictures to see the bike coming together.