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Handmade Bikes

Like handmade bikes? Who doesn't? This weekend is the Handmade Bike Show in Sacramento, CA (NAHBS)

You can go to the NAHBS and see the main bike makers that will be there. Moots, for one, would be of interest to me, because I met a traveller at the Portland Hawthorne Hostel who was riding one and we did a great Swampcast interview. What a cool bike!

I've visited with a few handmade bike makers. Lex of Villin Cycles was one. There's a good interview here in the Bike Zoo. Vanilla Cycles is another, in Portland. No interview because his huge poodle wouldn't behave long enough for us to even come in and take a look around! And, Ryan Aulton of 8ABC, now known as Pleasant Cycles is gearing up to make frames.

Handmade bikes. What's the attraction? I mean, when you think about it, fine precision and tolerance are a lot easier to achieve using mechanized methods of production. But, handmade bikes make sure that errors sometimes overlooked on the assembly line are not overlooked.

What's our preference and experience? Handmade or mass produced? Which would you rather have? I'm about to go for a ride on my Trek 1000. I don't ride it much because I prefer my small batch bikes, like Ciocc. But, it is the most modern of my lot.

That's it for now. Hope you make it to the Handmade Bike Show. If you do, be sure and take lots of pix and post em here in the Bike Zoo.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Chandra on February 25, 2016 at 12:02am

Great idea, Mike!
I went to the one in Austin in 2009 and saw many a bicycle maker, including Co-Motion, Brompton, etc.

And, ended up with a Brompton.

It is a fun show to go to.

Enjoy and take care!
Peace :)

Permalink Reply by Michael Levin on February 25, 2016 at 5:43am

Wow, Austin! I didn't know there was a HBS in Longhorn country. I actually have 2 (of what were 3) bikes stored in Austin right meow. Here's one and I've hyperlinked it to a group of hi-res photos - it's a Rossin:

The other is a unknown brand lugged steel frame with multiple brand hi-Q parts. I refer to it as The Blue Bike.The last bike has gone away to where my bikes must now be that disappeared when I was a kid. I haven't lost one since I was about 16, but as I said, this one is in that mysterious place bikes go when they disappear.

"Raleigh Professional 56cm

Campagnolo Nuovo record derailleurs, crankset, bottom bracket, seatpost, headset, brake cable clamps, and derailleur cable guides Suntour bar end shifters, dia compe royal grand compe brakes 3ttt record stem, unsure of bars, brooks professional small copper rivet saddle. Note fastback seat stay cluster, sloping fork crown, and bottom bracket cutouts Odd on this frame are the double eyelets on the front and rear dropouts as well as the braze ons for the derailleur cables on the downtube Dropouts are campagnolo. Seat binder bolt is campagnolo
Wheelset not noteworthy - hubs appear Spanish, may be Zeus, but cannot confirm, rims are Weinmann"

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