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Taiwanese chrome ≠ Leeds proper Yorkshire chrome though right?

I guess we'll see how it wears, I've got a chrome BMX from 1995 that has been stored in various high humidity locations and no bubbling.

Stainless would have been even more expensive than this and as @PhilDAS brazing stainless doesn't guarantee perfection/longevity when left raw/polished.

Tig welding stainless is a different prospect, but not the aesthetic we're going for.

This is perfection!

Hi all, thanks for the comments.

Rear end (and lugs) are indeed chromed rather than stainless, not sure what the reservation with chrome on an off road bike is? Tougher than a paint finish so better protection from chain slap etc, plus shiny. Bike will be looked after, it's not a winter commuter.

The build was put together to be functional for the "gravel"/SFAB around Yorkshire and the hilly roads that connect it all. A shiny silver triple, bar end shifters and klampers would have been pretty, maybe next time.

Chrome is an option @Skülly , we're also looking at options for mounting plant pots in bottle cages for the "at one with nature" vibe, are you happy to consult on this?

With the weather turning the shop has been busier so not had a chance to get back on here with photos. Please see attached.

Did you just assume our religion?

We were outside frame saving and the sun was shining.

"Crust-esqe" are Crust not just World Tours with disc tabs?

The frame needs cleaning up and head badge fitting then we'll get some photos.

Hoping to have this built and rolling for the Magic Rock Gravel Escape on Sunday.

Thanks for all the feedback, keep an eye out as this one is destined for a life in The Smoke.

a few more photos below.

We put alot of work into this one.

More close ups on the instagram

We're just finalising the paint scheme for this as well.

@ibob keen eye!

The customer has one of these

#30002 finally landed in the US and can share more info on our instagram

Ultimately the frames as they were priced barely covered the costs of materials - tubing, lugs, brass, gas, enamelling - there was nothing left to cover labour costs or other business costs.

Following the sale of the building the business became unsustainable. The frames had become pigeon holed at a price point and there wasn't an easy way out.

We're certainly not looking at a "return on investment", we bought the name to rescue it from a similar fate Holdsworth suffered.

We're focused on keeping the name going, building quality frames here in Leeds. Realistically the prices are fairly benchmarked against similar UK operations, and significantly cheaper than some other builders. Operating at a loss isn't an option.

All the orders we've taken so far are full custom.

The posts of understanding and support are greatly appreciated, we'll keep you posted on progress.

With the relaunch it would be great to share some more classic Bob Jackson builds via our social media, if any forumers have photos they're happy to share with the wider world of Bob Jackson enthusiasts, submissions are very much welcome.

In other news, some Fleur de Lis #lugporn work in progres.

It's not really our place to comment on other builders.

Sadly our frames priced as they were previously were simply unsustainable - with the relaunch we want to deliver quality frames, built right.

We don't expect to please everyone, but will do our best to deliver great results for any customers going forwards.

We are able to offer full custom, so that's certainly possible.

We're just about to start on an 853 Fleur lugged 57mm drop caliper/35mm tyre Audax/"Gravel Light" F&F which we're looking forward to.

All Leeds aren't we!

The customer designed the paint based on an old Bob Jackson jersey of his, this was what we worked from.

First build is done

Came together nicely, we're now on with the next one.

Yorkshire has been confirmed as the right side of the Pennines, Lancashire is on the left.

For one of these standard framesets an All-road / Rough Stuff/ Touring 650B / 29er (dep on frame size) could be interesting IMO. Maybe with a signature fork crown to stand out, disc & canti posts, huge clearances, zits for trad racks and new style bikepacking gubbins. To limit it to Road, Track, Audax seems like a bunch of very similar bikes, really.

Thinking the same and it's certainly something we could build. With OTP offerings from Surly, Brother, Thorn and then your Crusts etc fitting this brief - is there actually a demand for this kind of build? As mentioned above based on the feedback we're looking at building "off menu" so hopefully we'll get a request in for something along these lines - we would enjoy building it.

All the feedback above is appreciated and understood - pretty much as expected. That's way too expensive vs that's a really fair price for a frame hand built in the UK. The frames at the old prices weren't viable, we've tried our best to price the frames fairly.

Based on feedback we've decided to offer custom geometries, and full custom design (brake type, wheel size, sloped top tubes, beltdrive and hub gear options etc) on a price on application basis.

In terms of disc road, gravel etc - it's certainly something we're open to building but there are plenty of options in the market for this, if anything we felt there was a lack of options for a quality, classic steel frame. It may be a limited market, but we're a small business. If we can build some special bikes for people that appreciate and enjoy them - then we'll be happy.

Our first frame since the relaunch is currently in paint, here's a link to our Instagram and I've attached a couple of images to the post for those that don't use Instagram.

Thanks everyone for the feedback, we've got a few orders in and I'll aim to share progress as we go.

We've just sent this out to all of our outstanding frame inquiries, thought it might be worth sharing it here.

Greetings from Kirkstall Road Leeds, the home of Woodrup Cycles and Bob Jackson cycles.

Thank you for your interest in the future of Bob Jackson.

Following the decision being taken by Donald to close Bob Jackson back in 2020, we attempted to rescue the business in the existing location and setup. Due to circumstances out of our control this was not possible. There were reasons Donald had decided to close the business. In the end we bought the name, some old stock and a couple of bits of machinery, we then began thinking about how we could bring Bob Jackson back to life.

The Woodrup and Jackson names go back a long way. On their return from service in WW2 Woodrup founder Maurice and Bob joined forces, with Maurice investing in Bob’s existing shop on Harehills Lane. They then opened a shop together on Burley Lodge Road (5 minutes from our current location) under the JRJ Cycles banner. They proceeded to set up a factory on Hyde Park Road in a big old Victorian house, where the frames were built and enamelled.

Maurice built the frames while Bob dealt with front of house and sales. Over the years, the partnership faltered and they went their separate ways, with Bob keeping his Harehills store and Maurice keeping the Burley Lodge Road shop, setting up there as Woodrup Cycles. Maurice opened our Kirkstall Road shop around 1969 and we've been here, building steel frames ever since.

Since we bought the Bob Jackson name the bike industry has been on a rollercoaster ride, we’ve been doing our best to hold on tight which meant putting the Bob Jackson plans on hold as we focused on the day to day running of Woodrup Cycles.

As the bike industry has returned to normality we’ve been able to begin planning for the relaunch. We have decided to offer 3 classic Jackson frames, adjusted slightly for the modern world. We’ve tried to simplify the pricing structure by speccing each frame with appropriate braze ons and including single colour paint with down tube, seat tube, head tube and tubing decals. All prices are for frame & fork and the frames will be built with 1 1/8th ahead steerers. We are able to offer custom geometry and custom paint options and full builds if desired - price on request.

We’ll be offering a Vigorelli, an End to End / Audax, and an Olympus in set sizes from 50cm to 62cm. We’ll be building in 725 as a default, this offers significant improvements over 631 at a relatively small price difference. 853 will be an optional upgrade.

We are putting together a frame shop team and production will be headed up by Steve Woodrup, these frames will be hand built in Leeds where Bob Jackson belongs.

Audax/End-End in Reynolds 725 with standard lugs and all appropriate eyelets - £1585.
Vigorelli (singlespeed/fixed) in 725 with standard lugs will - £1550
Olympus (road racing) in 725 with standard lugs - £1585
Each of these frames can be upgraded to Reynolds 853 for £150

We have a limited number of Fleur de Lys lugsets (8 sets), possibly the last of these that will make UK shores. We will be doing a special run of Fleur de Lys lugged framesets with a special barberspole and panels paintjob which will add £500 – this can be done on any of the frame models.

All prices include UK VAT but do not include shipping, handling or customs charges.

Thank you for taking the time to read through this update and please respond if you have any queries or would like to place an order. We are currently looking at around 4 months lead time on frame orders however we expect this to increase quickly. We hope to have some new show frames built and painted with the next few weeks and we've already had our first Olympus 853 order come through.

We are really excited to begin this new chapter in Bob Jackson history,

Thanks

Tom

Bob Jackson Cycles / Woodrup Cycles
345-349 Kirkstall Road Leeds
0113 2636212

Bob Jackson Cycles of Leeds