Varonha custom frame... And other ongoing stuff

that's not just a fatter tyre but a fatter wheel - it's a hummingbird frame with 26" rear and 29" front :)

Hence the ;)

Have not had time to see it in the flesh but Mario sent me these this morning!

1 Attachment

And further to the photos received this morning I asked Mario if he could send me an overall view of the frame, which I received later in the afternoon... From what I gather the forks are finished too, no pics yet...

1 Attachment

Went down there on Monday and see this in flesh. Looks awesome, so light for a frame that you want to have jumping around and the forks Wow very nice!! Like the Custom touches that you have input, the seatpost clamp and lug is very nice. looking good man think it's gonna be a rad ride. Are you going to get Mario to spray it for you?

Glad to hear you saying it's light! It was never a priority for me to have the frame super light, but having put solidity first I was a bit worried it could end up too much.
Yeah I started talking to Mario for the paint, but that will probably take time. I considered briefly having custom stem which would match the frame (but 100% sure about this) which involves riding the bike for a while to assess correct stem length... and have the bike just primed to avoid rust... Might also have Mario's guy to powder coat it, then Mario would do panels on top / Varonha logo, and clear coat... still undecided...

... and thanks for the nice comments!

Other info about the process...
Winston is still looking into the graphics / logos for Varonha. We had a chat about it a couple of weeks ago.

Few days after that conversation, my friends from Berlin Sarah and Veronika were visiting London and was staying at mine. They are graphic designers (http://ottosauhaus.de/)
One evening after a big meal at Mezze Mangal, we were all back at mine and I told Sarah about the project. Winston was keen on using his initials on the head tube... But unfortunately, VW was already taken by some German car manufacturer!
Sarah came up with a simple and very cool idea. The following week, after a few intermediary options and emails, a logo was finalized. Winston loves it and a stainless steel laser cut version should appear on the head tube of my frame, which I'm extremely happy about.

1 Attachment

Question to the people in the know...

I will be using this stem on the bike (at least for a while, until maybe a custom stem). Just bought one off ebay in perfect unused condition.

I know the manufacturer would advise against it, but... what if I run the front brake (cantis) thru it, like this:

1 Attachment

Drilling an OTP alloy stem anyone? Is it suicidal? (I've got the 110mm one, in case it would make a difference to your expertise)

that 'WV' headbadge is a work of genius loic; I don't expect anything less from you ..

that 'WV' headbadge is a work of genius loic; I don't expect anything less from you ..>

It's all my friend Sarah's work, from ottosauhaus. I've only done the potatoshop insertion onto a bike picture to visualize it better...

Looking at the VO stem, there is a flat section inside, precisely where drilling is intended... Would that make it a safer procedure?

1 Attachment

I quickly modeled it in Solidworks and ran some simulations:

http://imgur.com/a/I37y4

Displacement is virtually identical between the stem with and without hole, which seems to indicate it doesn't make too much of a difference. Keep in mind this is a rough model and more importantly I'm a designer who happens to know Solidworks and not an engineer. Someone with actual knowledge about this should probably chime in. @mdcc_tester perhaps?

Why not get Winston to make you a stem, as pictured on the rock?

(Maybe with a bit more aesthetic thinking in the design).

Displacement is virtually identical between the stem with and without hole, which seems to indicate it doesn't make too much of a difference

It doesn't make much difference to overall stiffness, but drilling holes in things usually creates stress concentrations at which fatigue cracks initiate. Plenty of people have done it before, and not many of them seem to have died from it. I have a 12cm Cinelli 2A with a tapped hole in the top to mount a computer, and it's showing no signs of ill effects some 25 years on, although that's in very light road use. The people who usually drilled their stems were cyclo-crossers, who obviously gave them a much harder time than I ever did, and they are still doing it:

That doesn't make it right. The correct attachment location for the cable stop if you still insist on using cantilever brakes (and seriously? It's nearly 2015, get over it) is the fork crown.

I quickly modeled it in Solidworks and ran some simulations:

Thanks so much for that! extremely helpful towards making a decision in the sense it confirms what I felt about it... (I won't hold you to that calculation don't worry!)

Why not get Winston to make you a stem, as pictured on the rock?

110mm is what I'm guessing will be a good lenght for me (although I drew the geometry with a 120) I'll ride it for a bit like this, then yes, a Winston made stem is something has been considered, but not just right now.

A steel stem would need to be open face type ideally... although if it's custom I should not need to swap it in theory...

It doesn't make much difference to overall stiffness [...] The people who usually drilled their stems were cyclo-crossers, who obviously gave them a much harder time than I ever did, and they are still doing it: ...if you still insist on using cantilever brakes (and seriously? It's nearly 2015, get over it) is the fork crown

Thanks for that.
Disc have been considered. But they don't please me on other levels than efficiency. Fork dimensions / rake have been drawn using OTP disc forks (several of them, XC ones and touring ones...) meaning that I have the option to have front disc brakes if I decided to, and the strategy for brazed on cable stops have been decided so that if I put V-brakes at the back (which I'm assuming are more powerful - seat stays are beefy with that in mind) there would be no unused braze on bits remaining.

But point taken, insisting on cantis is dated. I've got very strong hands, I'll be fine...

But enough about drilling stems. I've been to Winston's on Saturday to decide on the final details (braze on stuff, etc...) Could have done that almost two weeks ago, frame was ready but I did not find the time...

In the end the rear cable will not rub against the shoulder of the seat bolt, but there will be a normal cable stop then I'll use the Surly hanger. Ed will not approve, but I really like the versatility and simplicity of it (it's adjustable, and removable if I decide to use V brakes). I don't have a picture from sat but there's one on the other page. Winston did a nice detail at the seat cluster, with two little arrows pointing up. The cable would have hidden this on the non drive side. Also, all the cables (front and rear mech + rear brake) are running on the TT. Had it ran as originally intended, the brake cable would have been higher than the other ones and it would have looked messy...

1 Attachment

/\ /\ /\ /\ /\
Of course, I wanted to put some wheels on.. but all I had to hand was an old road bike wheel Winston had, with an un-inflated tyre, and my lopro front wheel... both 23c, so it's not filling the gaps...

More

1 Attachment

And another one...

1 Attachment

Looks absolutely fantastic, you must be chuffed!

Do you mind me asking how his pricing compares to other people?

Looks absolutely fantastic, you must be chuffed!

I am very happy indeed...

When I "placed order", it was £850 for frame + forks in 853 tubing (although stays are now 725), fillet brazed (had a choice to go with lugs too). That was during the summer. Winston has built few frames since, faster than mine (because I spent a lot of time discussing the details with him and I was not always available to come back quickly with my decisions / changes of plans). I don't know what it would be now.