Level top tube road frame in steel

The rack is full again

There was a delay in getting these frames back from the heat treater and powdercoater as they both have been pretty busy as of late. Eight frames showed up today and I have been spending part of the day putting on decals. It may be the day before Thanksgiving but I'm not going home early-I would rather get this stuff done now and not have a Friday where I can't do some welding because of not finishing today's work.

Single speed 'cross frame for So-Cal.

With luck this frame will be all ready for the big Nor-Cal So-Cal showdown in mid January. This is a pretty big frame but it is very light being of 7005 aluminum. I am pretty happy that these stainless faced rear dropouts are fairly easy to get, unlike last year.
There's room for a fairly large tire and the mud shouldn't build up too badly.
After spending about 4-5 weeks on steel it is nice to switch to aluminum just to keep fresh. Next week I have to build a steel frame before I finish the three other frames in this batch.

Here's something you haven't seen in my shop.

Looks like I'm possibly building a frame or two for another lable. This frame is a Broakland 'Pipe bomb' ....at least it is my version of it. If the designer likes it I might be building more.
There's a lot of old GT in the look of this frame, kind of an urban fixed-gear for folks who like to do tricks and defy death on the east bay streets.
The frame is made to withstand serious beating and occasional unplanned stresses.
It is unlikely that someone like myself would ever really test this frame to it's limit but I'm sure it will happen as soon as it finds a home.

Retro-shift in da house

I'll bet you haven't seen these......downtube shifters grafted onto brake levers. Some really clever guy up in Portland is selling these cyclocross specific units. Think of it, less than half the price of the ones from the big companies and probably much more resistant to any kind of failure due to mud and water. I have not ridden them very far yet but I'll be trying them in the mud very soon...perhaps tomorrow. Go watch the vimeo on the retroshift to see it in action.

Big tire road frame and fork with Cantilever brakes

The future owner of this frame used to be a pro roadie. I'm wondering when he last had a steel frame and fork.....must have been a long time ago as virtually none of the bikes used by pros are steel any more, at least on the road.
The tubeset is fairly light but not delicate as the frame weighs in at 4 lbs. 2 oz. , a good weight for a bike that will see some bad roads.
While the frame has no provision for a rack, it is fully fitted with spots to anchor full fenders as this bike will see some wet weather.
Here's the unicrown fork , probably the most popular style that comes out of my shop. These blades look like standard 'cross unicrowns but they are a bit stouter and will be good on rough dirt.

Big tire road bike, hold the fenders again..

The owner of this frame will be commuting over the Golden Gate into S.F. on a daily basis but had the thought that having the big-tire option would be nice for taking dirt shortcuts and detours now and then.
This 3 lb. 13 oz. True Temper OX frame is pretty sporty for a big tire bike and will have a custom order Wound-Up carbon fork and Shimano long reach calipers , my default brake for this type of build.
It was a little tricky making the bendy stays conform to these lug-style dropouts but the result was nice. My supply line for my most favorite dropouts isn't returning my calls so I guess I'll have to try something new, maybe more of the type you see here.

Disc brake town-cross 26" wheel frame

The rider of this frame is 4'10 3/4" so it is very small. It will get a new carbon disc fork sold under the 'Whiskey' name that looks pretty impressive to me for the price.
I elected to put the cable adjusters on the head tube as the brake lines should not interfere with the gear cables at all. Disc brakes on tiny bikes really solve a whole bunch of cable routing issues.
Yes, it's like a BMX frame but it will be ridden on the streets of San Fransisco towing a trail-a-bike or a load of groceries. It might get ridden out on the Marin Headlands.....I'm sure it will be fine just about anywhere.

'Cross frame for Santa Rosa

This Euro is equipped with fender eyes and will be versatile but foremost, it is a race frame. The frame is a mixture of Nivacrom and reynolds 725. I did not weigh it yet but it feels pretty light.
I put on the traditional wavy gussets and standard 'cross cable routing. This is the 16th steel 'cross frame of the year and probably not the last. In 2010 I only build 8 so steel is coming back, at least in my shop.

Big tire road frame and fork-hold the fenders

This is a big tire road frame but it is a bit more racy than the usual item. There's a lot of little touches that were requests from the customer.
Head tube mounted cable adjusters were one request a little out of the ordinary for me.
the next thing were some really beefy chainstays to make the power transfer feel solid. These true Temper chainstays are the same cross section as fork blades, just thinner walled. they had to be deeply indented to be able to accommodate the Michelin Jet 30 mm tires.
The narrow section 376 mm axle to crown length straight blade fork also had some stainless steel dropouts which will be masked off in the paint process. I almost never have this request but it makes a lot of sense. the rear dropouts are stainless as well.
These dropouts are a little pricey and the fit is maybe a bit tighter than I would have liked but the went on flawlessly. They match the fork crown motif pretty well. I think this is the fourth frame I have built for this customer and I hope it is the best.