Ecobeard's Projects.

I’ve not been riding as much for the past 18months, and some of the bikes have been slightly neglected.

I found some time yesterday to go over them all and give them the TLC they deserve

I also even managed to go out for a ride and took Spacebiek out for a cheeky 20miles. I enjoyed it so much I will try and get out again today on it.

A couple of thoughts struck me, in these heady days of customers creating bespoke artisanal moaning to throw at artisanal frame builders (especially it seems, the one who do it for a living and not because they fancied it and their design job was a bit hard).

I am lucky enough to have 5 bikes that have been made for me, across two frame builders, one established for 30 odd years, one with 5-6 yrs + in the game. I can honestly say that I have enjoyed the process of getting them built in every case.

Rightly or wrongly I concluded that it’s down to a few (pretty obvious) things. I knew what I wanted and which frame builder I wanted it from & I was clear with them what I expected and when I expected it

But I also listened to their feedback on timescales and the bikes I had requested.

If I’m at work and a supplier is quoting for a standard design, that we have used 1000 times before, then yes I expect it to be a pretty simple, fast process.

If it’s a design based on a standard, but then has a load of design changes or finishes that I have requested, then I would listen to the designer and work with them, it’s part of the ‘fun’ of a new/challenging/different design. You can expect reasonable delays against a standard job.

I think some how in the current framebuilder/customer climate that has become lost somehow. It maybe that they are victims of their ‘success’, so more people are looking to go custom, but don’t really know how to approach the process, especially if they have zero self awareness, can’t be bothered to listen to the expert they have gone to and seemingly have no common sense.

It may also be that a lot of the ‘new’ commercial frame-builders are actually pretty awful, from what I have seen first hand (and not through insta marketing) some of it is utter dog shit that’s just hype and the customers should be rightly pissed off. (I’ve seen one chap walk away from a ‘quirky’ builder leaving his deposit and the mess of a bike behind out of sheer disgust)

Bespoked and all the other shows now almost seem to be largely parody’s of them selves now, to me anyway. I’ve even heard of one case where a new insta frame-builder has had to be taken to small claims court by a mechanic, due to terrible quality of the frame costing them their job.

I find it all very sad, from both aspects knowing both unhappy customers and unhappy frame-builders, because essentially both parties want decent bikes out of the interaction.

However, this is all negative. The positive side is this. When both sides sensibly invest in the process the product of that is sublime. I mean, it makes you smile just seeing it or riding it or just knowing that you have access to these relatively unique things. (If my genesis bikes are reading this, I love you to).

They are bikes at the end of the day, so use them for what you asked for them to be made to do or what you bought that specific design to do.

If it’s to be a precious jewel with a fancy paint job that’s taken a life time of saving, then yes look after it, coddle it and be annoyed if the paint chips. If it’s designed to go off-road in a fashionable sense, then use it for that and cherish every paint chip you get*. Just remember that your individual perception of the bike means fuck all to the person/people that made it, the design of it does though.

I once nearly got arrested in Paddington Station because Someone chipped my newly resprayed bike in the middle of the TT by letting their bike run into mine with untaped bars. I lost it, I get it, but now I look at that chip and it makes me feel embarrassed/chuckle at my self.

Riding the bike makes me feel grateful though, because I know I can enjoy the wonderful bike that someone poured their skill and soul into, to my request and I am the only one that truly can, because it was made for me.

Not quite sure why I wrote all that, maybe just a bit bored of the moaning.

LoL

*I love the scratches on the bottom of the DS Chainstay on this bike because it reminds me of hammering the shit of the silly carbon thing at Roubaix, and it being the best bike I’ve Ridden there, even though I was probably trying to break it....

1 Attachment