The Two Bicycles of Varonha.

^ this ^

have you considered putting riser bars on it and a canti basket, pretending it's a retro mtb

No I haven't considered doing that, and probably never will.
But....my replying means I have now considered it, so, yes I have considered that.

Ah, the posh commuter dilemma. Might as well have one good bike for everything rather than 7 1/2 that don't ever work right and take up all the space or mental capacity to do anything about it.

Just keep it and ride it! My All City is too nice for a commuter but if I'm riding something for 10+ hours a week I want it to be fun. The answer is to keep the Varonha AND get a retro MTB to mix it up a bit.

I'm stictly (self imposed) on a 1 bike policy. I only have storage space for 1 bike, don't ride enough to warrant more than 1 bike.
I need projects to occupy my mind and hands, figured old/vintage mtbs may be slightly more bank account friendly than keeping fucking around with custom built bikes.

Winston 1 needs to/should really get powder coated this year, so that would mean stripping it down, posting to Winston/Aurum, that means the ball crushing agony of choosing a colour, and also means being without a bike. If I were to sell it for a decent price then the new owner could pick their colour of choice, saving me the agony/sleepless nights, and colour can be a major factor in whether someone chooses to buy your (ones) frame set.
Anyhow, it's all just the ramblings of an overactive, under utilised mind.

How about keeping one bike for yourself that is custom and really nice and then spent your energy building bikes for other people who don't have the skills themselves, for free? Like you did for that friend of yours but instead complete strangers. Then after the build is complete you take them for a ride. And then that's it. I'd follow that YouTube channel

You could build up a nice folder, there’s always space for a custom Brompton and they sell really well if you want rid of it.

A lovely idea, for someone with social skills, some sort of local social media presence, and the confidence/self esteem to put themselves on youtube.
I wouldn't mind building bikes for complete strangers as long as there was the bare minimum of personal interaction.

Fair <3

Don't really dig the whole folding bike world, just not my thing.
Did consider one when I lived on a narrow boat, but built a shed on the mooring instead.

A few ideas of what I'm looking at as inspiration for my next thing.

Firstly, Mikkelsen, apart from the disc brakes obviously.

digital dice roller

Next, Trek, had one in my late teens, best mtb I owned.

digital dice roller

And finally, one of my favourite forum bikes, just so well put together, bordering on perfection, nicely done @Tijs

digital dice roller

You would not be disappointed with old steel MTB as your only bike, especially if you don't do tarmac-only centuries, but prefer a bit of shoddier terrain.
I built one a few years ago, inspired by xbiking movement — GT Tequesta. Rolled like a dream, was pretty comfortable (although I went with flatbar, those old MTBs are awfully long) and stopped on a dime — DBAD crowd, please stop reading here: got some PM bosses welded on and put downhill brakes. Couldn't find anything good to mount as a rear brake — u-brake standard. Who knew that Maguras fit there?
Ok, DBAD people, you can come back, too bad that the post is over.

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I did this too with an old Peugeot (the pink raider).. you could prob go to 650b with brake adapters too..

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Not really a fan of GT, but I quite like the look of that (aside from the brakes ;)
Still looking for a suitable frame set, trying to get a friend's husband to part with a Kona Explosif, I will wear him down eventually.
@Technics100 that Pug is rather bloody lovely.

Thanks, it was a bit of fun for a while.. It did get better tyres and also shortened the chain.. £20 and some part bin finds.. :-)

This is ever so true.

Though 1 commuter / tourer and 1 road / off road bike

(and one marin single speed)

I've this coming now.. so may do a drop bar monster cross 1 x build on it..

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I really enjoyed putting together my specialized rockhopper (early 90s). 7 speed bits were super cheap which meant I could throw some money at Freshtripe for some fancy bits and it still wasn’t very expensive. Probably the best value bike I’ve ever built.

It complements a road bike very well, but I’m not sure I could live with it as an only bike (I’d miss the speed!).

What about a mid 90s 700c-but-larger-tire hybrid type thing? Rim brakes and steel but a bit speedier on the road?

What about a mid 90s 700c-but-larger-tire hybrid type thing? Rim brakes and steel but a bit speedier on the road?

This is actually the way to go, I'd say. My friend just built Wheeler 3000 with 1×10 drivetrain and 40c-ish tires, and it's great.

I'm in no rush to find a suitable frameset to fuck about with, when I sell the Varonha I'll keep a few bits in a box (parts I know I'll use whenever I build summat up).
Not really bothered about speed, it'll just be a commuter, and I'm never in a rush to get to work.
The Rockhopper I had lined up turned out to be an A1, so alu, not really what I'm after.

Going to look at a couple of vans (road going vehicles, not skate plimsoles) this weekend, so Winston 1 and some bits will be up for sale by the end of this month.

too nice for a commuter but if I'm riding something for 10+ hours a week I want it to be fun.

This.