I don’t get to build a lot of road bikes so I was excited when Ryan wanted me to build one. But things changed quickly and a small rack and lights came into the mix. The head tube was all his idea. I’m glad he suggested it because it’s not something that I would’ve done voluntarily. Ryan had a little bit of pull on this one because this is the 4th (!) bike he has had me make for him. This bike was shown at the 2018 North American Handmade Bike show and was runner-up for best fillet brazed bike.
The tubing is oversized but he still wanted to use a standard 27.2mm seat post. I fabricated a seat tube reinforcement sleeve that allowed an aluminum shim to recess into the seat tube so that only a small polished ring of aluminum was visible. Two small binders were added to the rear to take up the excess real estate back there.
I consider this to be a fillet brazed bike even though the head tube and stem may indicate otherwise. The frame was built with the outer head tube initially and then carved away. A sleeve that acted as the actual head tube was inserted and silver brazed in. The final effect is sort of a lug edge, sort of a fillet, and sort of a bi-laminate style. This style allowed me to do the red, white, and blue paint scheme that Ryan wanted. A lot of work went into this frame and one might not realize this until they scan through the slideshow which I highly recommend.
The stem was built in a similar manner but because I couldn’t slide in the inner sleeve, I had to build it all at once with brass acting quickly to not melt out any of the filler material as I was building up the fillets of brass. Definitely one of the trickier stems I’ve made! The paint on the stem nicely complements the head tube to make the frameset and components more cohesive.
The tiny rear rack was a fun one to make. This was a design of Ryan’s. I just had to figure out how to attach it to the seat stay bridge. Ryan fabricated a small roll-top bag that fits perfectly on top of this rack with leather straps that slide though the stainless loops.
A battery operated taillight was integrated into the rack for utilitarian purposes. The headlight is a Lezyne rechargeable that was mounted to the fork blade with a custom wing nut for easy recharging. Both lights were painted to match to further integrate the accessories to the frameset.
The components were curated by Ryan and are a perfect balance of black and silver. Paul Components, White Industries, Campagnolo, Brooks, Nitto, Compass, and Chris King components make this a very nice bike. Check the full slideshow to see how it was built.
See the full slideshow.
Ryan’s bi-laminate road bike
April 30, 2018
I don’t get to build a lot of road bikes so I was excited when Ryan wanted me to build one. But things changed quickly and a small rack and lights came into the mix. The head tube was all his idea. I’m glad he suggested it because it’s not something that I would’ve done voluntarily. Ryan had a little bit of pull on this one because this is the 4th (!) bike he has had me make for him. This bike was shown at the 2018 North American Handmade Bike show and was runner-up for best fillet brazed bike.
The tubing is oversized but he still wanted to use a standard 27.2mm seat post. I fabricated a seat tube reinforcement sleeve that allowed an aluminum shim to recess into the seat tube so that only a small polished ring of aluminum was visible. Two small binders were added to the rear to take up the excess real estate back there.
I consider this to be a fillet brazed bike even though the head tube and stem may indicate otherwise. The frame was built with the outer head tube initially and then carved away. A sleeve that acted as the actual head tube was inserted and silver brazed in. The final effect is sort of a lug edge, sort of a fillet, and sort of a bi-laminate style. This style allowed me to do the red, white, and blue paint scheme that Ryan wanted. A lot of work went into this frame and one might not realize this until they scan through the slideshow which I highly recommend.
The stem was built in a similar manner but because I couldn’t slide in the inner sleeve, I had to build it all at once with brass acting quickly to not melt out any of the filler material as I was building up the fillets of brass. Definitely one of the trickier stems I’ve made! The paint on the stem nicely complements the head tube to make the frameset and components more cohesive.
The tiny rear rack was a fun one to make. This was a design of Ryan’s. I just had to figure out how to attach it to the seat stay bridge. Ryan fabricated a small roll-top bag that fits perfectly on top of this rack with leather straps that slide though the stainless loops.
A battery operated taillight was integrated into the rack for utilitarian purposes. The headlight is a Lezyne rechargeable that was mounted to the fork blade with a custom wing nut for easy recharging. Both lights were painted to match to further integrate the accessories to the frameset.
The components were curated by Ryan and are a perfect balance of black and silver. Paul Components, White Industries, Campagnolo, Brooks, Nitto, Compass, and Chris King components make this a very nice bike. Check the full slideshow to see how it was built.