Fellet Brazing

Redwoods and Red Wine

2010-10-29T09:39:00.005-07:00

I haven't had much lately to report about. I ended up getting whatever California cold is sweeping through lately, and have mostly been puttering around the apartment, watching documentaries on Hulu, and getting some shop class machining instruction from Tubalcain on YouTube.

This guy is great. I'd adopt him as my grandpa if I could. And since my high school didn't have any sort of shop class, I'm now finally starting to learn some basics. Then, it's a couple machinist books to read up on the theory behind it all. Hopefully, by the time we get settled into a house somewhere, I'll be ready to get a lathe and a mill, and at least have a good start on how to use the things. I just can't contain myself when I think of the ability to make my own dropouts, hubs, braze-ons, task-specific tools... oh man!

My sister came to visit, so I got to play tourist and explore a bit more around here. I took her to see a couple trails through the redwoods within a few miles of where we live. I don't think I could ever get tired of walking through redwoods.

This is a gnarly redwood in the local state park that they say suffers from some sort of gigantism. It barely resembles the other redwoods, but I think it's still pretty awesome.

This is inside of a redwood, that had been turned into a honeymoon suite back in the mid-late 1800's, and it's still alive. You can see where there was once a window carved out in the tree, but it has since healed back shut. These are some pretty incredible trees.

After that, we went for a little wine tasting. My sister has run various bars over the years, and has become quite the expert in cocktails, beers, and wines. She had carried one particular wine from David Bruce, and wanted to try out some of his other offerings. We of course went along, and man am I sorry I did. I don't think I can ever look at wine the same again, after having at least two of the best tasting wines that I've had in my life. I try not to be a snob, and still believe that there are great wines to be had in the $8-$12 range. But tasting a particular $55 bottle of a dry Syrah/Petit Syrah mix ... all I can say is that it blew my mind, and I didn't know wine could do what this one did. It's flavors were so pronounced, yet balanced and not overpowering... yea, all I can say is now I understand why anyone would ever want to pay that much. Not that I can/will anytime soon.

Some of David Bruce's vineyards.

Twisty Road Ahead

2010-10-12T16:06:00.008-07:00

Now that we've been here about a month now, we're kinda settling into a routine. Most of the boxes are unpacked. (well, the ones that didn't have to go into storage) Melissae is well into her science writing program, and I'm... well I have a lot of time on my hands.

It's crazy going from trying to have two jobs and a life, to being un-employed in one week. I try to keep busy. But I don't want to get too deep in a project or hobby, as (hopefully) I'll have a job soon, and it will just be put on hold again. So what have I been up to for a month? Well after un-loading, un-packing, organizing, re-organizing, I've put in some time working on updating the old shops' website. It's needed it for a while, and now that I have the time to do it, it's a way to help out some good friends. But I tell ya, I am not cut out for the office. I can only handle a couple hours here, a few hours there, before my brain feels like it's fallen asleep in a caffeine high I can't come down from. And it's not the caffeine, as I only have a cup a day. I don't know how office people handle sitting in front of a computer screen all day, clicking on tabs, week after week... I guess I'm glad some can, as that's how people come up with, and maintain cool

sites like blogpost :) But once again, I've remembered one of the reasons that drove me into the bicycle business. Not that I'm never in front of a computer, nor am I allergic. I just can't do it all day long.

But once I've gotten my fill of that, and done at least most of the chores around the place, I've been riding or hiking in the amazing redwood mountains. The scenery is spectacular, and the huge trees aren't the only thing that'll make you feel humble out here. The climbs are (at least by my St. Louis standards) epic. There's a road just a few miles from our place that climbs nonstop for 3.7 miles and something like 1,600 vertical feet. It's the sort of climb that reminds me why people get compacts or triples for their race bikes. On my first attack, I only made it 2 miles before my heart felt like it was about to break my ribs, forcing me to turn back. But I've learned to not climb like I was used to in Missouri, but settle in for the 1/2 hour that it took me to finally make it to the top. Here's a view from one of the more photogenic turns in what we've come to call "Twisty Road":

(and the funny thing is: This isn't even one of the steeper sections.)

We Made It

2010-09-19T09:22:00.005-07:00

It was a hell of a week leading up to the 2,200 mi drive to Santa Cruz, CA. Aside from wrapping up the usual work and friend things before taking off to the other side of the country, I had yet to finish Matt's frame. After a few real long days, and the usual cuts and burns, I managed to both finish the frame, and make one stupid blunder that ended up scrapping the fork. Hopefully, it will be soon after this year that I can set up shop again, and start over on that fork. But until then, Matt will have to settle for a carbon substitute.

The frame came together at the last minute, giving me just a few days to pack up my entire workshop and some of the house. Luckily, Melissae was more than awesome in packing up most of the house while I finished the frame. Overall, I think the frame turned out quite well. It's one of those frames that I'm kind of reluctant to give up to someone else. But that's the name of the game. Matt was quite pleased, and I'm still waiting to see what it looks like painted and built up. (You have to send pictures!!!)

The move itself went pretty well considering moving a 2 bedroom house and workshop in a total DIY fashion. A day of loading up the truck tetris style, 4 days of driving a 25 foot truck, averaging between 54 and 58 mph, with mountain passes getting around 35 mph. If anything, it gave us plenty of time to appreciate our great country's landscape. From nothing to see in Kansas but a whole county whose painted road lines have worse alignment than a Huffy:

...to the beautiful mountain passes and amazing geology of Colorado and Utah.:

We're now just outside of Santa Cruz, in the redwoods for the next 9 months to a year. I'll keep posting about goings on, rides, bike news, cool things around here, and life in general. But it will be a while before I've got another frame to show off. But as soon as that happens, I'll be back at it for sure. Thanks again to all the friends back in St. Louis for all the help and love we got while we were there. We definitely feel like we were/are welcome there. Maybe I'll meet up at a race with you guys. Until then, take care.

Looking Up From Home

2010-08-15T07:17:00.003-07:00

Well folks, some big things have happened. My wife has gotten into a science writing program in UC Santa Cruz. The plan was for me to stay here and build that year, but after her 3 month stay in Germany, and running some numbers when she got back home, we've both decided it makes more sense to go out there together. This is pretty exciting for me, as I am originally from San Diego. So this move is going back to many things I love about that state.

The only downsides are leaving some really good folks that I've come to call my friends, and leaving our little house with a basement workshop. With cost of living out there, there's no way we can afford a place with enough room to set up shop. So for the next year, (unless something crazy happens) I won't be building any frames. I'll contact everyone on my list to let you know personally, and I will be keeping that list to start up again after we get settled again. But for now, I've got until September 10th to tie up loose ends, pack up, and finish Matt's frame.

Even though a large part of me feels like I'm finally going home, there will always be a part of me left behind. I have met a ton of really great folks in the greater St. Louis area. From bosses and co-workers, to customers, to friends, and every combination of the above. Thanks to all who've helped us make this our home for the past handful of years. Your midwestern friendliness won't be forgotten.

And for the next year, I'll still keep the blog updated with what's going on in my life. There won't be a whole lot of frame building for a while, but once I can get it going again, this is were to look for it.

Looking up at the Redwoods, through a burnt out 'stump' (which was taller than me).

This is the stuff that makes me think of home.

Work and Fun

2010-07-30T15:16:00.003-07:00

Since Melissae has come home from Germany, I haven't really posted much. But I have started picking up the work pace. It's kind of odd that I seem to get more done with her around than when she's gone. Between picking up the extra slack at home, and not having my moral boosting buddy, I haven't really got much to say for the three months that she's been gone.

But Matt's frame is coming right along. And lately, some good progress has been made. But that also didn't stop me from being dragged by the good guys of Team Seagal out to the Thursday night dirt crit series at Castlewood State Park. Man was that a blast. That was despite half of the B's crashing each other (or themselves) out in an adrenaline powered orgy, clawing at dirt and grass, on their ultimate quest for a slightly lower place number in their second tier class standings of local notoriety. I managed to keep the rubber side down in my personal quest for checking out and having as much fun as possible in the local scene. And it really was a great scene. A ton of people out to have a good time, mixed with free food, beer, riders of young and old, bikes ranging from mtn tandems, kids bikes, and bmx's, to full carbon race machines, finely tuned for local dominance. It really was great to get out, ride, and see people of all sorts sharing what it is to ride a bike through the woods.

But enough fun, back to work:

Main frame is all mitered and ready to rock.

Seat stays shaped, and with caps brazed on top.

Second section of seat stays brazed and cleaned.

Showing how the segmented seat stays will come together with the wishbone. This is the idea that Matt helped me come up with. I really like this look, and may have to re-visit it in the future.

Days of Hard Work, To Save Time

2010-06-18T18:13:00.003-07:00

Well, that's the idea anyhow. The last three days that I've spent frame building (which translates into the last two weeks), I haven't built much in the ways of frames. Instead, I've built what I hope will save me a great amount of time in the future: A front derailleur braze-on mount jig. That is, I built a thing that will allow me to (in a matter of minutes) braze on a front derailleur braze-on tab to a road bike seat tube.

Before I braze the front triangle of the frame together, I like to do the braze-ons. That way, any distortion made to the tubing happens before the frame is together. Because any distortion after the frame is together could cause misalignment, and add further stress preload to the tubes. But this makes it really hard to get the braze-ons exactly where I want them, as there is no other part of the frame to reference. Many braze-ons can be off by a millimeter or two, and not really affect anything. Just think of the travesty that would occur if your water bottle mounts were another millimeter further for you to reach whilst riding. Not to say that I don't spend entirely too much time making sure they're exactly where I want them. But if they were a tick higher or lower on the tube, I wouldn't exactly scrap the whole project. But if your fancy front derailleur needs to be one or two millimeters higher so you won't shift it straight into your chainrings, but can't because the mount is just a hair off... well that pretty much sucks. So normally, I spend about a half of a day measuring, re-measuring, checking, re-measuring, tacking, checking, and brazing to make sure that darn thing is exactly where I need it.

But now, once I make the BB miter on the seat tube, I hook up my modified bottom bracket shell into my frame jig, bolt on the derailleur braze-on tab, load up the seat tube (held in place on the top by my frame jig, and on the bottom by the braze-on tab itself and another bit of steel welded to the faux BB), and braze away. It should be dead on to both handle compact road cranks, and the typical 39-53 combo. If a customer does want to make it custom to handle something outside that range, I can use only one of the two tab mounting bolts, and go higher or lower. But no matter where I put it, the tab mounts square and flush to the seat tube, and only a few minutes to set up! Oh man, I can't even tell you how excited this makes me. And no, I won't build you one! (maybe one day when I have a full machine shop, and I can make something like this a little quicker)

Three days of hard work, and this odd little thing is what I ended up with.

A mitered out bit of extra down tube helps hold the seat tube in parallel.

Here it is in action, mounted up in the frame jig, just after I used it for the first time.

And after all that, there it is. Right exactly where I wanted it, and square to the BB shell. (when it is in there)

Then, and now...

2010-05-21T16:30:00.009-07:00

Ok, so I've been gone for some time now. Well, not literally. Over the winter, I was working on getting my motorcycle kit up and running. Most of it went pretty smoothly. But I quickly learned that I am not an electrician. All the mechanical bits seemed to be a logical combination of my background of working on my own cars, along with working on bicycles of all trades. But when it came to the wiring, I had never really learned much past the couple weeks my high school physics class talked about circuits and V=IR. But I can now say after re-wiring it a few times, and one electrical fire, I know a ton more than I did before. The bike is now running, and I just have to jump through some legal hoops to get it legal.

My wife, Melissae (finally) graduated her PHD in chemistry at Washington University of St. Louis in the spring. So the lead up to that got life a little crazy. After that, we got her ready and packed for a three month internship in Germany. During which time, we moved a buddy and co-worker in to help me pay the rent while Melissae is gone. This is going a long way, as not too long after the internship is over, she has gotten into a science writing program in Santa Cruz for a year. You can read about her adventures at her blog:

Weltanschauung

After a bunch of life hitting all at once, I'm back and ready to tear into some frames. Thanks to those of you hanging in there with me and my delayed posts/builds. First up, is Matt's commuter bike, with clearance for some cyclocross tires. Kind of a go anywhere, from home to work, to going for a dirt ride on the katy trail. It will be a mix of lugs and a fillet brazed BB junction to allow me to direct the chain stays however I need to, to best gain chainring/tire clearance. The first two miters are made, and I spent half the day re-shaping the top tube / head tube lug. Nothing overly fancy or ornate, but I like how it turned out.

As always, more pictures on my Flickr site

Oh The Places You'll Go... (long post)

2010-03-23T09:17:00.009-07:00

So instead of another post talking about how I've been super busy, life's hectic, I haven't done as much frame building, but stay tuned.... I thought I'd spend a little time talking about product differentiation. It's never a bad thing for a company (or individual) to come up with new ideas, push limits and boundaries, and try to keep things moving forward. And with every progression comes a time when that person or business can say "Hey, check this out! It's cooler and better than the other guys!" But when the differentiation is either just plain different to be different, or possibly even comes with a downside, then why bother? That is, unless we reallyneed to be different so badly, that it's worth paying more to have a thing of less quality. Before I get to some examples, don't get me wrong here. I'll be the first to admit that it's cool having things that set me apart from all the other 25-30 year old, middle class, caucasian, males out there. But not when doing so sets me apart in a negative way.

I was looking through the wonderful eye candy of the 2010 NAHBS pictures, and came across some gorgeous examples of skill, creativity, ingenuity, and of course, many ways of differentiating one builders frames from another's. There is the obvious material differences, paint differences, component selection, and tube shaping. But there is also differences of welding in extra tubes or bits to either enhance the strength, ride, or even nothing but aesthetics. However, I also saw a few examples of doing something negative, just to get attention. I borrowed a few pictures from Dirt Rag's coverage of the event to illustrate what I feel to be a negative direction for frame building as a whole.

I don't mean to call anyone out in particular, or start a rapper style war. But when I see things like this seat tube cutout, leaving just a hair of material left, I have to wonder about the intentions. Strength/stiffness/weight, this is definitely worse off. Aesthetics, well that's a bit objective, but if I were to sacrifice that much for looks, I'd at least want the curve of the cutout to match up with the curve of the wheel. Would having a plated 29er with track bike clearances set you appart? Absolutely. In a good way?.... well, I'm sure you could find someone out there that would think this is cool.

Again, I fully appreciate the fact that from 20 feet away, most steel frames start to look pretty similar. And I'm all for something neat to set you apart. Hell, even if it adds a few grams, as long as it really makes you happy. But sometimes paint matching and shape matching the "power bulge" of your Rock Shox fork on your head tube, and adding what appear to be cable rubbing bars, so the cables rub a different part of your expensive paint, doesn't seem to be a progression and argument to buy custom.

Working in the bike industry, I get to see plenty of examples of details that set one companies frames apart from each other, but add nothing to the actual performance/weight/functionality of the bike, and sometimes end up making one of those aspects worse. I understand the cutthroat nature of corporate production, and appreciate being able to stay competitive. And hell, at this point, I'd expect a corporation to do change things on a frame without truly understanding the consequences that change could have on either riding or working on that particular bike. It's not like everyone in a business that large rides and works on their own bikes. But when a small frame builder - with hopefully a passion for bicycles and the desire to balance the drawbacks of a design to the minimum - starts doing things like this, I'm personally disappointed.

Everyone has their own flavors, and that's what makes getting a custom frame awesome. You can match up with someone of similar taste/personality, and get exactly what YOU want. But what I'm afraid of, is that the NAHBS (while doing a great service of bringing custom frame building to the people/media) is, or could go in the direction of creating even more of an incentive for a builder to do something outlandish, just to get some attention at their tiny booth in the sea of like minded competitors.

As beautiful as some of these things are, compromises are being made. And there's nothing wrong with that, just so long as you know and appreciate them. I just hope that the circus aspect of this sort of thing doesn't push the builders out there that take it upon themselves to design a well fitting, well riding, and functional piece of artwork, out to the fringe of the already niche market they are a part of. I try to keep in mind the origin of a custom hand built frame, when it was appreciated as the best sort of frame one could own. I also try to keep in mind how much a custom steel frame has improved over the years, with new steel blends, heat treatments, fillers and fluxes, and even modern components that help the frame become what could still be a high performance machine. The progression is there, however hidden it may become, beneath the marketing hype, and lets face it, the need for product differentiation.

(Thanks to Dirt Rag for the pictures. Hopefully my lack of making money off of them keeps this from violating some sort of copyright)

No, I'm not dead...

2010-02-26T15:04:00.003-08:00

I'm still working out the final details of Matt's big tire'd commuter/cross frame and fork. I've got all the shiny bits here already, and should be pretty awesome. More on that soon. I've also been trying to look up what all I have to go through to get a business license, insurance, and maybe even hook up a dealership status for some components to offer complete bikes when the time comes.

I've also had a winter project that is just about done. I've been trying to wrap that up, so it doesn't distract me from frame building once I start filing. It's a 200cc motorcycle kit from Kikker 5150. I've wanted a motorcycle since I was a kid. And now that I'm getting old and married, I figure I better get one before life gets any crazier, or I have to be a responsible dad or something. I figured I'd give this one a try, hoping the building would teach me a thing or two about motorcycles, plus they're pretty affordable.

All in all, I've definitely learned a bunch trying to work out all the kinks and problems. I figure it's about on the moto level of a mid to upper priced wallymart bike. However, if you strip them down, and re-build them from the ground up, doing every step correctly (not how local high-school Joe built it), and even replaced a few parts (that won't even work right no matter how much "tuning" you give them), you won't end up with a great bike. But if you do the work yourself, it will still be affordable, and it will be good enough to get you around for a while. I'll just have to keep in mind that the riding experience will most likely be better with a "real" motorcycle.

I've already sorted out all the mechanical issues keeping me from giving her a first ride, but a major electrical issue is keeping me from getting any spark. I was really hoping that the electrical would go together smoothly, because that's one thing I really don't know enough about. But hopefully I'll sort it out soon. And either way, the next frame will be coming together shortly.

(As it came, once I unpacked it. The handlebars and a pile of other parts are not in this picture.)

Sparkle Sparkle

2010-01-19T07:26:00.006-08:00

Man, it's been a while. But I've finally got Eddie's 650b hardtail and suspension corrected segmented fork done, painted, reamed, faced, chased, frame saved, stickered, and delivered. Definitely a learning experience, this frame and fork turned out pretty well. New things that I've learned include S-bend seat stays, chain stay and down tube (or really anywhere) gussets, and working with super tight clearances. All in all, a success!

Eddie went with me to the painter to choose a color, and we both discovered that he does metal flake paint! So on went a two coat "emerald green" that looks unassuming inside or on a cloudy day, but out comes the sun and BAM! She lights up like Oz's Emerald City. I've got some pictures, and even one with a high powered flash to simulate being outside. But really nothing does it justice like seeing it in person on a good day.

Now on to the next project. A commuter styled cyclocross inspired road bike of versatility and awesomeness for Matt. Just a couple more details to iron out, and then building begins! So untill I've got some build shots to tease you with, here are some of Eddie's bike. (more on my flickr site)

(With the flash to try to simulate the sun hitting the flakes... trust me, it looks way better in person)

Staying Busy + Good Book

2009-12-14T06:20:00.004-08:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a good while. While the swine flue did knock me out pretty good for a few weeks, lately I've just been busy catching up with life. I do think (even though this is a bit different for my blog) I should mention a book that I managed to read while sick. Shop Craft as Soulcraft was one of those books (for me) that seemed to put into words, things and ideas that I've been mulling over since people first asked me as a kid "What do you want to do when you grow up?" While not exactly my words, it seemed to express the deeper reasons that I've come to appreciate while deciding to get into bicycle repair and frame building, as opposed to following my Economics degree or Philosophy minor. Not that this book is for everyone, but I feel that there are a handfull of good ideas that even office dwellers can appreciate.

But not to get too caught up in a good book, I have managed to get some more work done on Eddie's frame. I went a bit out of order on this one, and chaced/faced the B.B. shell. That way, I could install some cranks, and check the exact tire/chainring clearance that I've fretted about since first drawing up the blueprint for this frame. There wasn't much room for error when threading the drive side chainstay between the tire and chainring. (only a couple millimeters on each side) So it was a great relief to see everything go from blueprint to finalized function. I've also got both seatstays with custom S-bends fitted and mitered. Just a couple braze-ons, weld the stays, make a seat stay bridge, and some finishing work, and she's getting close to paint.

More pictures here.

I Have the Swine Flue!

2009-11-20T12:54:00.003-08:00

That's right... after feeling like $#*! for the last week, I finally went to the doc. (hoping it would be another infection, so I could get some anti-biotics, and be done with it) But after some questions, and shoving a q-tip sort of device up my nose - farther than any finger has previously gone - my test came back with H1 N1. Woo hoo! I have no idea where I got it, (I swear I haven't made out with any pigs lately) but now I get to keep taking it easy untill this all goes away. And I'm allready borred out of my mind...

In other news, here's what I was up to with Eddie's frame: Chainstays were mitered, gussets were shaped, and braze-ons were brazed on with the help of some fancy new clamps from Sputnik Tools. (handmade in the U.S.) Let me say how excited I am to be using these! No more fiddling around with bending spokes to hold the braze-ons where I want them, eyeing things up to make sure they're straight and alligned, and heating with one hand and twisting with some pliers with my other hand if they didn't end up straight. Clamp on the tube, slap the braze on under the arm, and it holds it securely, centered, and alligned. I've easily saved 5-10 minutes per brazeon.

After that, drilled all the vent holes quickly and precisely with a fancy new drill press, thanks to my buddy Jason. Then I spent a day sanding, scrubbing, cleaning, welding, soaking, and a little smoothing. Now the main frame is all together, and alignment looking fine. I was worried about the clearance, threading the chainstays between the bigger 2.3" 650b tires and the chainrings. But it came out very nicely. I'm also trying something new with chainstay gussets, instead of a chain stay bridge. My brown bike has no bridge, but I figured the lugged BB was plenty of re-inforcement. With the lugless frame, I wanted to do something to keep that junction strong. And just for kicks, I made a bridge anyhow, and weighed it compaired to the gussets. (not that I'm worried about it, but the gussets ended up saving a few grams) But probably more relevant, they're going to be tough, and cool looking.

Dropping Out

2009-10-23T14:55:00.003-07:00

Well Burning at the Bluff was pretty awesome. My team ended up 9th in our class, and 36th overall. This, despite about 7 cold ass creek crossings per lap, and two guys dropping out before their third lap. (if you want a more thorough race report, I refer you to Team Seagal) But the point was to do my three laps, have a good time, and to get excited about getting back into racing. If you know me, or read this blog, you may know this past year has had some setbacks. Breaking my collar bone, surgery, bronchitis/nasal infection, getting married, and going to Germany, are some of the things that broke my momentum and my motivation to train hard for something. But after finally getting back into it (even if I wasn't super fast), I'm totally excited again. And Greg, I owe you one hell of a PBR for spanking my lap times!

Aside from that, I've got the chainstays mated to their respective sliding dropouts at just the right angle for 650b tire clearance. Now a couple miters, some braze-ons, and the main frame will be ready for assembly.

Steel Kickin'

2009-10-01T15:11:00.006-07:00

This fork has taken me a bit longer than I was hoping, but I do think it turned out pretty well. There were a couple times that I ended up doing second steps first, and then it would take longer to go back and do the first steps. For example, brazing the whole fork together, before putting the caps on the fork legs. It was harder to match up the exact angles, not to mention hard to get the file in there to make the miters as well as clean it up post braze. None of it has to do with the end result, just the fact that it may have taken me twice as long to get there. But all in all, I think my first go at a segmented fork turned out pretty well.

Aside from that, I'm officially on a three-man team to do "Burnin' at the Bluff" - a twelve hour mountain bike race. This will be my first race in three years, and I'm in no peak performance, but I'm hoping to catch the bug again, and make a serious (for me) solo attempt in '10. I've realized that - for me - having races to train for keep me motivated to ride more, harder, and generally keep me inspired to make these machines with as much attention to their use as to their aesthetic. As much as I love the renaissance of making and refurbishing "old steel frames," I really do believe that there is still room for steel in the cutting edge technology of the bicycle world. With modern steel, as well as modern components, even steel framed bikes can get down into the 15-16lb range.

Not to say that there is no use for other materials. However, with the market pushing those materials to the limits of weight and strength, I think the pendulum must swing a bit back the other way. This past year, it seems that I have seen a good number of bicycle companies making something just able to handle a 130lb rider coasting along on a smooth flat road, and no more. In the ever increasing push for lighter weight, frames must be made stiffer to not deflect enough to break. Aside from sometimes having a "dead" ride quality, that extra stiffness can lead to extra fragility, or brittleness. Many companies are now pushing the "high-mod" carbon as a way to edge out the competitors. Basically, that means making the carbon stiffer, so you can use less of it, thus saving weight. However stiffening up carbon makes it more brittle. And using less of it doesn't help either. Breaking seat masts, seat stays, head tube joints, and even top tubes being crushed when hit with a knee or a chamois covered posterior - after slipping when trying to clip in - all come in as things I've seen in '09.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's awesome someone with enough cash can walk in and buy a bike that doesn't meet the weight limit of the UCI regulations. I have heard a few stories of pro's having to go as far as gluing on weights, or even dropping an extra chain down the seat tube to meet those regulations. But keep in mind why the regulations were invented in the first place. To keep things from being pushed so far that they were no longer reliable, putting the rider at risk. Plus, when putting extra strength and stiffness in certain areas is being marketed as making you go faster, why spend that weight in lead weights, instead of making the frame or other components strong enough to handle the rigors of racing. Again, I'm not totally against, making crazy light bikes. It's pretty cool riding something less than 14 lbs. But if I'm not getting paid a salary, and getting a couple free frames every season, it doesn't make much sense for someone like me to ride one.

One step down...

2009-08-28T16:23:00.006-07:00

...many to go!

Got some good work done these last two days. The first miters were done for the front dropouts, as well as mitering the disk brake tab. Then it all went together with some brass. I think I was a little rusty after all the time off, so things went a bit on the lumpy side. But aside from a bit more work smoothing it out, it's tough as nails. (I guess tougher, as nails are usually a pretty mild steel) I will say I'm pretty excited getting this project going. So excited, I ended up waking up at 6:30 and starting into it today, just because I couldn't sleep thinking about how cool this is going to be. It's fun doing something as custom as a 650b specific mountain bike. Also, this will be my first try at a from-scratch, segmented fork design. After doing a little research, a little calculation, I called up my favorite aviation parts/supply company to order some stock 4130 steel tubing. It's pretty cool to see a few lengths of tubing that might have ended up building a piper cub, slowly turn into a rigid mountain bike fork that will have the crap ridden out of it.

(stock tubing... nothing special here)

(...but do a little miter work,)

(...check the angles,)

(...and now it's starting to look familiar.)

Paragon Machine Works

2009-08-18T09:12:00.004-07:00

All the bits are in, and while I iron out the last details before getting out the files, let me tell you how excited I am about some small chunks of steel. First off, I am in no way sponsored by, a part of, or even get discounts from: Paragon Machine Works. But what I am, is impressed at the quality and seriousness that is taken to make some of the nicest machined braze-ons, dropouts, and other frame bits available. Not only are they cooler, smarter, stronger, and or lighter, but they're pretty enough that many call this stuff 'frame jewelry.' Competitively priced, they're making the ol' "Made in the U.S.A." tag mean something good again. If only the U.S. car manufacturers were that cool.

The reason I'm talking about it so much now, is that I've used the excuse of ordering one thing from them, to order about $500.00 of stuff from them. The sliding dropouts that helped put them on the map have now expanded to pretty much everything except the main frame tubes. And every bit is given the utmost in design and detail. So I'm happy to say that with the U.S. made True Temper tubing, flux and filler from Henry James, and everything else down to the B.B. shell made from P.M.W. this next project will truly be a "Handmade in the U.S.A." bicycle frame.

And as always, more pictures here.

Sometimes Hard Work Pays Off

2009-08-06T10:17:00.004-07:00

Justin's frame is painted, reamed, faced, chased, frame-saved, stickered, packed, and should ship out today. Ok, so I was feeling pretty down on the whole 'hidden binder bolt' lately. It was just too much work, and a real pain in the neck. But now that it's all finished and painted, it does look pretty sweet. Not to say I'll do another one anytime soon, (or ever) but I think it is pretty cool. Thanks for being patient Justin. Hope it's not too stiff.

As always, more pictures here on my Flickr site.

Ok, Now Back to Work!

2009-07-25T06:49:00.007-07:00

Alright... so it's been forever since I've updated about anything really. But for those who knew, Melissae and I got married and honeymooned in Berlin. The wedding kicked ass. Seriously, I didn't know you were allowed to have so much fun at your own wedding. And not to brag, but I think we threw a pretty kick ass shindig for a pretty modest budget. But what really made it awesome, was the kick ass people that could make it. Cool friends and family make something like that much less stressful, and way more fun! Tons of pictures here if you're curious:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrismelissaefellet/

Berlin was also freakin' amazing! We're contemplating learning German so we can just move there. I've heard it a thousand times, but I was still blown away by the public transit. It puts Boston to shame. Anywhere in the city to anywhere else in the city - 2o maybe 30 minutes. I seriously wouldn't own a car. Well except maybe a Smart Sports Car. Yea, they have those over there.

The city was cool, the history even more amazing. The people were cool (as long as you were attempting to use their language and not demand they spoke yours), the food was great... well except for this plate I accidentally ordered due to not quite having my food words down: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrismelissaefellet/3743052736/in/set-72157621761373254/ The beer was great. Although there was fewer kinds of beer than I was expecting. They pretty much had three kinds. Weiss - White, Hell - Light, and Dunkel - Dark. And sometimes they'd have a Heffewissen. Seemed like the hundreds of kinds of totally different beer is more of something we do. They were good though, and on average more bitter than what we're used to in the states. Oh, and talk about bitter, their coffee is awesome bitter! Even they're supprised when you order it black.

But really, enough playing around. It's time to get back to work. I finished up Justin's frame yesterday. Had a bit of a freakout when I didn't cut the seat tube slot wide enough and it wouldn't clamp the post. But seems everything is in fine order now. I think it turned out pretty darn cool. Although the hidden bolt thing just seems like too much work for not enough gained. So more learning experiances. So it's off to paint Mon. or Tues. And now on to the next one. Eddy, let me know those final details so I can get started.

Prolonged Update...

2009-06-16T21:58:00.005-07:00

So I haven't posted in a good while. While I have made some progress on Justin's frame, I've kept more busy with planning a wedding than I had imagined. This Sunday is the day, so things around here have been pretty hectic. Really not all that horrible, but it has most definitely eaten up most of my free time. I'll get some pictures of the progress up as soon as I can, but I just wanted to say I'm not dead, or have quit what I'm doing. And I may be busy for a bit more, as we're going to Germany after the wedding.

But once things settle back down to normal, I'm looking forward to tearing into things again. All Justin's frame needs from here is the brake bridge and final cutting of the seat binder slot. Then it's off to paint, and time to ship it out. Then it's time to start on the next project: A 650b specific mountain bike with custom suspension corrected steel disc fork, able to be swapped out at will with his suspension version. I'm actually kind of jealous, as I've wanted to make one of these for myself. I just haven't had the time or funds to do so. Maybe if he's nice, I can take it for a test ride ;)

Comming Together

2009-05-05T08:48:00.003-07:00

Well after 9 miters, 11 brazes, and countless hours of work, the front triangle and chainstays were ready to be joined. And after a solid day of cleaning, sanding, cleaning, fluxing, tacking, checking alignment, and brazing, it was in fact together. And it was good. The brazes came out pretty smooth, so not too much *extra* work to smooth them out afterwards. And alignment is not too shabby. The worst part is that the non-drive chainstay ended up getting brazed just a hair further towards the middle of the bottom bracket. But the only way you can even tell is that the wheel is slightly closer to that side. But the wheel is straight, and should track quite nicely. (I guess I only checked the alignment after tacking in the jig. I didn't think to check the exact position of the joint. Yet another lesson that needed to be learned.)

But overall, I think this is going to turn out quite nice. Short chainstays will make it lively and stiff. Tube selection will be light, but not noodly light. And of course customness will make it awesome! Just need to do some custom seatstay action, cut down the seat and head tubes, and a few finishing touches, and she'll be ready for paint.

All the pictures, all the time: Click Here

Good Weather and Hard Work

2009-04-26T20:42:00.006-07:00

Lately, things have warmed up here in St. Louis, bringing in the flocks to the shop as well as low electric bills. The bike trails are hitting critical mass, and street lanes are getting flooded with both cyclists and people on bicycles. So in the spirit of last year and commuters dusting off their bikes everywhere, I'm posting the sequel to the original "Do The Test" video. I know I'm preaching to the choir, but share the video with a friend or family member, and maybe raise some awareness. I wouldn't mind hearing a few less honks or choice words on the way to work, but I definitely would like to at least make it to work.

But in other goings on... The weather really is awesome. We were sitting outside a couple evenings ago, and just decided to stay there. So we busted out the tent and some sleeping pads, and camped on our back lawn. Working in my workshop is always more cheerful when I can open some doors and get some fresh breeze in. Justin's frame is coming right along. I even have some H2O bosses on the *correct* side of the seat tube! The fork is done, the tubes are mitered and set to go. Just need to spend a good day prepping and brazing this baby! Then it's some smoothing of the welds, making some chainstays, and a few last details, and she'll be ready for paint. Maybe a couple weeks to go? We'll see how long those last details actually take...

Smoothed out fork crown

Smoothed out seat tube collar. This took a lot of careful filing to get the edges rounded off like this. Trying to keep the lugged crown and seat tube collar matching with the overall smooth filler brazing feel this bike will have.

Tubes all ready to be a frame...

And as always, check out more pics here.

Rainy Vacation, and New Things

2009-04-10T14:39:00.003-07:00

The last two weeks have been busy and trying, so the lady and I were going to go for a nice backpacking trip in the rain. We even bought the last couple things we needed for a totally waterproof hike. But the morning that we were scheduled to head out, they were calling for some severe thunderstorms at night. I was all for a good hard rain, but didn't really need to find out how conductive my titanium plate is. So we ended up just pretending, and loaded up the gear and had a good 8-10 mile hike in the rain. I'm not exactly sure, as our map wasn't very good, and the trail wasn't marked very well, so we got lost on a number of occasions.

But thanks to a good compass, and what map we did have not falling apart in the rain, we were able to make it out, and not turn a backpack simulation into a survival trip. And we did get to see some cool things, including deer tracks, a large cat tracks tracking the dear tracks, and what appeared to be either a beaver or a fresh water otter. He took off too fast, and I couldn't get a good look at him. And we stayed comfy and dry the whole time. This whole era of waterproof breathable materials is just too cool. So after we make it back, turns out the whole thunderstorm thing was a bust. But oh well, it was a great hike, and nice to re-charge the batteries.

So with the fresh start, I got to building today with the same outlook. The botched seat tube gave me an opportunity to take a different direction. The dropouts have a double curve detail (that I just hope will show up well after paint), and the *new* seat tube collar will have a curve detail that goes along with the fork crown. I even threw a little "FB" in there for fun. It's still got some finishing touches to go, but it's pretty close. The fork blades are all evened up, so they won't hold the wheel in crooked, and they're drilled and ready for the final assembly of the fork. And once I get done with the new collar, braze it in place, and drill the waterbottle mounts on the correct side, this thing will be just about ready for a big day of fillet brazing. So I might be running a tad behind schedule, but should be smoother from here on out.

It Was Bound To Happen...

2009-03-24T16:48:00.004-07:00

...And it finally did happen. I botched a tube. Not even just any tube, a true temper fancy heat treated seat tube with some custom carving and brazing, taking a good solid two days work, by yours truly. And it was a pretty simple way of botching it too. I drilled some holes in it. Nope, it wasn't messing up a miter that had to be spot on to keep the alignment. No, it wasn't messing up and using the wrong butted end, or not inspecting the tube to find where the butting was, or what way it curved. No, it wasn't mis-aligning the re-inforcing collar, or putting it too high or low to reinforce the top tube properly. No, I did all of that just right. I just drilled some perfectly centered, round, and spaced just right for a waterbottle cage holes exactly 180 deg from where I wanted them.

I guess I was pushing too hard, and trying to get too much, too quick. I measured exactly how high up the tube I was going to put the bosses, found my centerline, punched and drilled. And that's when I looked at the collar and noticed it was facing the wrong way. Skip one step and two days and a chunk of cash goes down the tubes (no pun intended).

So unless Justin wants a water bottle mount instead of a rear wheel... It's time to start over with the seat tube.

The miter for the fork dropouts.

The good news, is the fork is coming along nicely.

The fancy seat tube collar that looks like it won't see the light of day.

Gettin Things Done

2009-03-15T19:43:00.003-07:00

Man it's been a long week. Things at the shop are picking up big time with the spring weather rolling in, and I've been pulling some late night work hours frame building. Probably not sustainable, but man I've been getting $h*# done lately. Did a little hand painting on Mike's frame to fill in the lug work. That turned out pretty sweet. And Justin's frame is coming right along as well. The chainstays are drop-outed and mitered for the BB shell, down tube is mitered and drilled for H2O bosses. I even mitered the bosses themselves, to sit more flush with the tubes. Sometimes, even I think I take things too far. The top tube is ready for head tube, and I've been working on something different for the seat tube, which is coming along nicely.

Of course, more pics on my Flikr Site

Oh man...

2009-03-06T14:28:00.003-08:00

It is really nice out! Worked from get up to the afternoon, then had to sneak away for a couple hours of saddle time. Oh it is nice to feel some miles in my legs again.

Even though it's a week later, NAHBS was great. Went to a bunch of seminars going over everything from metal tubing properties, to fitting, to insurance for a small guy like myself. Oh yea, and there were a couple cool looking bikes that happened to be there also. Everyone has been asking me what, or which one(s) are my favorites. That's like going to an international food fair and saying what was the best thing you put in your mouth. There were so many styles and flavors there; each one as cool as the last, in it's own right. I just liked to see the variety, and the attention to detail pertaining to the builders' own style. I tried to take some pictures, but I figure the photo journalism guys did a better job than I did.

Here.
and Here.

It was cool to meet some guys face to face, pick their brains, bounce ideas off of, and just hang out. Henry James had some great info and tips, and is just a plain nice guy to hang out with. I also meet up with an old aquantiance from Gainesville, FL. Lex of Villin Cycle Works. He's come a long way in the time I've known him, and definately knows his way around frames. A couple pics of something different he did for the show: (he's got his normal stuff on his website)

Aside from that, Justins bike is comming along. Been pretty buisy between nailing down exactly what we are doing with this one, and thing picking up at work. But, the plans are set, and miters are being made. Think it should be pretty sweet. Check in later, as I get more done.

Going to NAHBS

2009-02-25T18:05:00.002-08:00

In case you haven't heard: This year (this weekend), NAHBS is coming to the mid west. While I'm not quite ready to get a booth, I will be attending to meet some of my favorite frame builders and suppliers face to face, and go to some of the seminars. If you are also going, and want to meet up, have a beer, whatever, let me know. Otherwise, I'll post how it all went down and put up some pics when I get back. Take it easy, and hopefully you enjoyed the good weather we had today.

One Down, Many to Go! (FB Business Update)

2009-02-20T10:08:00.004-08:00

Mike's frame is back from paint, and I think it turned out pretty sick. The white really brought out the details of the lugwork. It's all chased, faced, reamed, turned, and ready for parts. I should be getting those soon, and giving it a personal test ride before shipping this one out. Now on to the next one...

I figure I should also give an update as far as the progress of my business. I know some of you are interested in purchasing my frames, and I've been saying I'm not too far away from hanging the shingle - and I'm still planning on it. I appreciate any interest I've been getting, and I still have your info for when it comes time.

This past year has been pretty crazy for me. A broken collar bone, surgery, a couple good viruses, and trying to plan a wedding have definitely pushed back my schedule more than I wanted. But I do feel that I've been learning exponentially with every frame, and have been getting more efficient at building them. They are turning out more and more aligned, and so far I haven't had any complaints. As it stands right now, I've got four more 'buddy' frames to nail down my methods. After that, I feel like I will be more than ready to get a business license, and start listing some prices and options.

I have five people that have already contacted me, which I will contact to see if they are still interested. So, from this point, I potentially have a build list of 9 frames (possibly with forks). Working a day job of at least 40 hours a week, I've been able to get these done at ~2 months each. Some things have held me back, but things like not building a fork or not getting the bubonic plague should have me ahead of schedule. So being up front, if you're not already on any list, I'm looking at up to 18 months of being busy (possibly less). My aim is weather I'm ahead or behind of schedule, keeping people updated and informed. I'll contact you one to two frames out, so you have time to figure out what you want, and eat enough ramen to afford getting another bike. But, if you have any questions, and I haven't contacted you yet, feel free to shoot me a e-mail. Here's the next few on the list:

Justin - Awesome road bike of stiffness! (with fork)
Eddie - Cyclocross frame (unless you've changed your mind)
Matt - Possibly Cyclocross frame

At It Again

2009-02-12T14:33:00.003-08:00

Finally over this bug. And it only took two and a half weeks and a bottle of pills. Finished up Mike's frame and dropped it off for paint today. Only hitch in the project was somehow I messed up and put the front derailleur braze-on mount too low. Not sure how/why, but that's definitely a lesson learned. So a little extra time popping it off and re-brazing it at the correct height, and it's good to go.

Next up, Justin's road bike. A fillet brazed frame and a custom fork to make it handle nice, this one towards the lighter and definitely stiffer end of things. More pictures as they come in.

Hurray for Anti-Biotics!

2009-01-30T13:28:00.003-08:00

Just got back from the doc today (after being flat on my back this whole week), to find out I've had a naisal infection along with bronchitis. Woo hoo! So no new work has been going on in my shop. I have finished posting pictures on my Flickr from our vacation to NY and DC, including: a 60ft frozen waterfall, choppers from the O.C.C., one of the five remaining Wright Brothers' produced bicycles, D.C. icons and a protest that gave the inaguration a run for it's money in terms of how many showed up.

I did not include one thing though. And this is for my friends at Team Seagal:

That's right, an official O.C.C. energy drink for "Bikers" not athletes. I'm sorry to say that I don't share the same drive to purchase and taste every energy drink known to man, so I do not have a full report on this beverage. But I figured the least I could do, was to take a picture that such a drink exists.

Now hopefully my meds work, so I can have some energy myself. Just a couple hours of finishing touches to do on Mike's road bike, and then it's off to paint. Next up, a road bike for my buddy Justin in CA. And after that, a frame for Eddie (cyclocross?).

Fellet Brazing goes to Washington

2009-01-20T16:22:00.004-08:00

Got some time and internet to report from VA, after going to DC today. I (along with 2-5 million others) helped cheer in the 44th president, and say a dieu to the Bush family. For the insanity of the whole deal, I thought things actually went pretty well. There were the obvious crowd issues, but everyone I witnessed was in a good mood. People were helpful and polite. It was pretty amazing to see a crowd working together like that. A metro ride that took 3 times the normal amount of time actually got the whole car joking and telling stories.

The standing around in twenty something degrees all day, with not enough room to sit down didn't go all that bad either. The sun was out, and the group had a nice wind breaking effect. Jumbo-trons were spaced out well enough that most could watch the goings on, and I don't think I've ever witnessed so many port-a-potty's. I didn't bring my camera cord, so I won't get pictures up until I get back home.

Take it easy

Post Edit:

(Walking from the Metro through DC to the mall.

(Sea of heads and one of the many walls of port-a-johns from our view point. Trust me, this does it no justice for how many people, or port-a-johns there were that day!)

(Me and the lady)

(Celebrating afterwards at Dogfish Head with a sampler of their fine brews. I believe my favorite was the award winning 90 minute IPA)

(And topping it off with one mother of an IPA, their limited edition 120 minute IPA, with 20% abv and 450 calories. No Millers lite here!)

Custom = Pain in the Arse!

2009-01-09T20:30:00.003-08:00

Ah, it's good to be full steam back in the shop again. I've got probably another week (hopefully) until Mike's frame is ready for paint. I've thrown in a couple things on this frame I've been wanting to try out, and have come to learn a lesson or two.

Making custom stuff takes a while. There's no templates, pre-cut bits, designs you download... nothing. There's not even a good tool for doing what you want to do half the time. From idea to product, someone has to do all the legwork. And in a one man shop, that would be me. How it's going to work, the steps and order of it, how it's going to look when it's done, and even if it's a good idea in the first place. I find even though I only have one or two good days of work in my shop per week, if I ever kept track of how many hours I spend figuring stuff out in my head, I'd need to charge time and a half. But that's not to say I don't enjoy it. Which brings me to my second lesson.

Making custom stuff is awesome! The freedom is exhilarating. With no templates comes... well, whatever I feel like. I like looking at some of the ideas that I've followed through with, and thinking about how there's not a bike out there that has that exact detail on it. It teaches me much in the ways of construction, as well as patience. If I ever get to do this for a living however, I would have to stick with either some normal methods, or charge a crap-ton to make it worth my while. But it's not to say I can't indulge myself now and again. Or even come up with ways of making a couple cool details a more easily replicated trademark of sorts. Either way, this is cool.

New Year, new frame, new ride...

2009-01-02T17:22:00.003-08:00

Happy New Years' to everyone out there. I hope 2009 treats you well. So far, I have to say this is a good one. I've already had my first (post clavicle fracture) mountain bike ride with my good friends of Team Seagal. It was a great ride, even though it will take me a bit to not freak out on fast loose rocks and roots. But I was just happy to have good company and be out on my mountain bike again at all. Also for this year, I've brazed everything but the seat stays for Mike's frame which will be the first of hopefully many more frames this year.

All the brazes came out pretty well, with just a couple minor globs to file smooth. Definitely improving with every frame. And I'm also happy to say that the main frame and chain stays came out about as aligned as a frame can be. No post braze alignment needed this time. Just need some seatstays, custom STI stops, finish work, and paint. Then she'll be ready to ship to her new home in Florida. Justin, it's time to start getting me the final details of your frame!

Merry Christmas, and happy holidays!

2008-12-24T18:48:00.002-08:00

Hope your Christmas, Hanukkah, Quanza, Festivus, or whatever you are celebrating this year is a good one. Safe travels, good times, and make it through in one piece.

More building updates soon...

Report V: A day of gettin it done

2008-12-12T14:04:00.003-08:00

Last week I ended up getting pretty sick, so not much was done in the building. But yesterday I finished up the rear dropout miters, filed the fit of the chain stays into the bottom bracket (which took most of the day) and cut the chain stay lengths and mitered them out. Also finished the fork legs in terms of getting them exactly dialed to the same length. So today, after drilling a handful of vent holes, and prepping all the surfaces, I could finally do a lot of brazing. First, the silver flowed around the water bottle bosses, and the braze on boss for the front derailleur, then into the lugged crown as the whole fork went together. Then out came the brass for some rear dropout brazing.

It's funny how days of work finally go together in a matter of hours. Right when I start to feel like I'm taking too long to get anything done, it all goes together. There are some matters that I still have to work out (get faster at) before I'll ever be able to do this with any sort of dollars per hour ratio. But it is still a great source of enjoyment and challenge for me.

As of right now, I've spent thousands from my own "savings" and have yet to show a dollar for it. I've had (and have) more cuts, scrapes, bruises, and some pretty good burns than I care to count. With my day job to fund all of this, I'll often go for months at a time without any real "days off." But at the end of the day, when I climb up the stairs from my basement workshop, smelling of steel shavings and acetylene, and crawl into the shower to wash off the three days of dirty cotton clothes and facial hair that have surrounded me, I can't think of much I'd rather be doing.

And as always, more pictures on my flickr site

Report IV: Sparking one up

2008-11-21T06:11:00.005-08:00

After a visit to the doc last week, I still don't have bone connection. But he gave me the all clear to start going on easy rides, and putting a little weight on it. Still no mountain biking, or heavy lifting. But oh well. Should be connected in another four weeks from now.

On the plus side, the frame building is back and going. I've done most the miters, finished the lugwork, bent the fork blades. And the big news, I sparked up the torch for the first time in months, and brazed in the fork dropouts. It makes me smile doing this again. Also, I'm not as rusty as I was afraid I would be. They actually turned out pretty well. On the down side, it's already the time of year that my fingers hurt from cold while I'm torching in the garage. Geez, I missed out on the fall.

Holy lugs:

And, as always, more pictures on my flickr site.

Report III : Seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

2008-11-11T06:55:00.003-08:00

Well the last couple of weeks seems to have gone well. Every day I can move my arm more, and it feels less 'disconnected.' I'm back to doing repairs in the shop, and have even started riding to work again. I don't know until I have my next appointment how much the bone is/has grown back. So for now, I'm putting most of my weight on my good arm. (which is kinda weird with the balance) And man, after two months of doing nothing more than the average American (walking to the car and the bathroom) the five miles to work and back is a good hard ride! After a few days, I felt like I was training hard again. My legs are sore, and I am wiped out. Not only that, but the last time I was on a bike, it was hot. Now lately my lungs are burning with dry thirty-something degree air being shot down my chest. I don't know what you people did to the weather, but I want my fall transition back.

But the big news is I have finished my first (post crash) miter! It went a little slower than before, but at least it went. This bike is going to be a classic lugged road frame and fork for my old friend Mike in Florida. Should be quick enough to be a fun zip to work, but comfy enough to ride all day. I've also finished my race wheels that I was going to use for the 12 hour at Burnin'. It's cool. Next year awaits.

Endurance Race Report II

2008-10-16T08:50:00.003-07:00

Finally getting around to reporting on the new stuff. I went in last Thursday to get the bandage off, take x-rays to make sure everything went well, and I thought I was going to get my stitches out. Turned out I had 17 staples holding me together. That was cool. I went around for ten days having no idea because I wasn't aloud to take off the bandage. It did explain the weird feeling I had when I put pressure on it. So they took those out, and put sterry strips on, just to make sure I wouldn't rip myself open.

The x-rays looked good except one chunk of the bone that was misplaced is still misplaced. Doc said when they tried to move it back to place, it had fused to the artery that supplies my left arm. It ripped open, so they had to get a vein guy to repair it. Ended up just leaving it where it was. But the rest of is is lined up, touching each other, so it should be good when it heals. I got out of the sling, and have some exercises to do 3 times a day.

I also went from Percocet to IBprophen, and now only take it when it starts getting sore and achy. The sterry strips came off, and looks like it is healing up pretty nice:

The only thing that's weird, is I've got an area of numb skin. Feeling it out, and putting some dots, I connected them to trace out where I can only feel pressure. No touch, no cold, no hot.

Probably not a big deal, even if it never does fix itself. I don't know if they even could fix something like that. But I figure if it never does get better, maybe that will be a free spot for a new tattoo.

Well take it easy, and enjoy this awesome weather we're having.

Endurance Race Report

2008-10-07T07:32:00.003-07:00

The race has begun, and it's a long one. I'm one week in, and it will be a good number of weeks to go. The race to getting my life back to what it was.

Tuesday 9-30 5:30am:

I woke up to go into surgery, wearing the required "loose fitting and comfortable clothes." Style!

Surgery was running late from "equipment malfunctions," and I didn't get into surgery until noon. So Melissae and I spent the morning watching King Pin and reality shows on hospital cable. (as I got overly hydrated with my IV drip) Finally go into the surgery room, and I remember seeing the bright lights and the doctors going over their cutting equipment one more time. My wheeled bed didn't even come to a stop, and then I'm waking up in a different room with bandages and an icepack. Guess things went well.

I ended up having a bad reaction to the anesthesia, so the rest of the day was spent making sure I was ok to go home. I won't go into details, but nausea and a catheter aren't fun even when you're on Percocet. Speaking of which, that stuff is pretty fun. Here's me having a wild ride:

The next couple days were 4 hour intervals between pills and naps. But after that, I feel a little less pain, and a little more mobility every day. They had to cut away the stuff that had started to attempt to heal the two bones together, in order to re-position them for the plate and screws. So I'm pretty much starting over with the bone healing part. But I already feel 10 times better than before. I don't have that floating disconnected shoulder feeling anymore. My bandage comes off this Thursday, and I'll know more after that.

Take care, and if you're going to Burnin' At the Bluff, do an extra lap for me. I want to hear all about it.

I'm getting chopped up!

2008-09-29T20:19:00.002-07:00

Yep, talked it over with a second doctor. And even though he said it would stick back together, and I would be able to 'live a pretty normal life,' I weighed the pros and cons, and scheduled a surgery with him. Started to have second thoughts, but I think this will be the way to go. Just sucks that even he said if I was going to do the surgery, I should have done it sooner.

Tomorrow is cutting day, so I'll report back when I'm not all drugged up. Take care while I'm gone.

And after 4 weeks....

2008-09-25T14:07:00.004-07:00

I'm still broken. That made me more surprised than this panda. Aside from it still hurting, and clunking around in there, I'd never have known. But thanks to modern technology, I can know that it is, in fact, still broken. Along with that, the inner part is pointing more upwards than it used to, and there is no new bone development. The good news is that doc says I no longer have to be in a sling... or anything for that matter. (?!?!?) And he says I still don't need surgery. I'll just be malformed, and should see him in another few weeks. So no improvement, looks worse than before, but it's all good. After hearing him brag about only having to do surgery a few times his whole career, I made an appointment to get a second opinion.

Here's my fancy new x-ray from today's informative meeting.
(I outlined the bone ends as best I could figure out)

Pictures From Ivan in St. Louis

2008-09-18T18:22:00.005-07:00

Finally getting around to putting up the pictures from last Sunday. We woke up to find that just about any low spot around town had flooded during the night. And it was still raining...

This was the end of our street. The cars on the right had been parallel parked during the night.

This is a different view of the same street. Beyond this is normally a large field and a dog park.

This is another street in our neighborhood. The two cars in in the background had tried to make it out of the flood, only to stall and be stuck there waiting.

Yet, later that day, the Tour Of Missouri finished it's last (slightly shortened) stage (due to flooding) in downtown St. Louis.

In other news, it's been about three weeks, and I still haven't attached my two pieces of clavicle. Starting to think I should have just gone and had surgery...

Clunking Along

2008-09-04T19:31:00.002-07:00

Just had the follow up with the doctor today. He says I won't need surgery to get it to heal properly. Which I thought was weird because the two halves of my collarbone have yet to join. It's an odd feeling with them clunking around inside my shoulder. But according to him, in the next week or two the area will start to calcify, making the whole region stiffen up. Then it will hold the bones while thickening and growing new bone in the gap. Sounds weird to me, but this is one fracture I haven't dealt with. I did also find out that it was not a clean break. There was a bit of the bone that broke off when it split. But I guess when the area calcifies, it will hold that in place too. I wish I could post the x-ray, but it's a digital one. And I guess it's a file way to huge to just e-mail me, and I'm sure they don't want to be bothered by re-sizing things just so I can show people. What happened to the good old days when you got sent home with x-ray? Oh well.

Aside from that, I blended in this past week with all the racers crashing in the Gateway Cup. Everyone keeps asking if I was in one of the crashes. On the plus side, there have been plenty of people to commiserate with. One regular customer separated a couple ribs from his sternum, and separated his collarbone from his shoulder. No broken bones, but painful none-the-less. I've also had a good number of people, old and young, to share broken bone stories. Many bike related, and some not. I will say that helps out when I'm feeling down and honestly a bit stupid. Even when you're being careful, $#!** happens. One guy I met broke his getting out of his car during a dark rainy night, and his black lab decided to meet him before he got to the house. Tripped him before he even knew the dog was there. Oh well, I just hope I've got enough to last me a good while. I'm already getting restless, and it's only been a week.

Out Of Order (a bit lengthy)

2008-08-30T15:47:00.003-07:00

Well Fellet Brazing is out of order for the next 6-8 weeks. Due to a dumb mistake in a training mtb ride - at Castlewood of all places - I've managed a wipe out hard enough to snap my left clavicle in two.

It was to be a nice easy paced ride of ~4 hours or so, just to get in some good off-road miles in preparation for the 12 hour race. But I met up with a nice guy - whom, after the adrenaline wore off, I can't remember his name. (Jeff maybe?) With company to push the pace a little, and me finally getting the hang of the new steed, I was getting ahead of myself with the downhill velocity. A fast, loose terrain was being well managed with new found confidence, until a small (newly assigned) log was in the path. Not a problem, just pick the bike up a bit, stay loose, and let the tires tap and float over like they always do. This time it was different. The log had rotted into a few still-hard sections, which after contact with my tires, went tumbling along with me. One section got quite intimate with my rear wheel, bouncing, rolling, and re-directing it more and more. I tried to shake it loose, but to no avail. I was finally sent over the bars, crashing into rocks and brush with more velocity than I cared for.

After catching my breath, I noticed my left arm didn't function properly. That's when it hit me harder than the granite had. I broke my collarbone. A quick check confirmed that while it hadn't protruded yet, it wanted to. After using my spare tube as a sling, Jeff(?) walked my bike out, and I walked myself. Thanking him for his help, my new friend put my bike in the car, and waited to make sure I would be OK. Driving to St. Mary's, I decided many of our St.Louis roads could use a fresh coating of pavement. Once there, the triage nurse couldn't understand the pulse-by-finger-clamp machine, until she verified the old fashioned way that my pulse was 46 bpm. The look on her face was priceless until another nurse asked if I was an athlete. After explaining yes, and that 46 was possibly a tick low, but not enough to worry about, we got on with the process. I got to see the new digital X-ray machine (which the tech was happy to show off), got my million dollar arm sling, and drove home in a gown. (Well after waiting at Wallgreens for some fancy Ibuprofen)

So now, I wait. Wait until I can ride again. Wait until I can build again. Wait until next year, when hopefully I will be getting ready for a 12 hour race. Sorry to all this will affect, the list still remains. The blog won't say much about my building for a while. But, if I come across anything interesting, I may still come up with something to talk about. Take it easy, and good luck to those who will race. And if you get a chance, head out to check out / support the Gateway Cup this weekend.

My bike is cooler than I am!

2008-08-22T15:31:00.002-07:00

So even though it rained yesterday, and it was supposed to rain today, when I woke up, it looked like there might be a quick window of no rain for a mountain bike ride. After waiting this long, I couldn't take it anymore. So I suited up and headed to Castlewood to break in the new stead. It has been a while from the last time I actually had a mountain bike (let alone rode one as such), and I was going at it alone. So, I decided that would be an easy trail to brush the rust off the fat tires.

I changed the geometry of this frame to make her a bit more aggressive, and that she was. It took a trail or two just to figure out that she really wasn't my old frame. But after that, I started to push the corners a bit more, and charge through the more technical sections. Which (due to being so rusty) got me into trouble. I had a few near misses, and a couple good crashes. I meant to beat her into submission on our first ride, but she let me know I wasn't the one with the upper hand. So now I've accepted that we'll just have to figure out each others' strengths and weaknesses, and learn to work together.

By the end of the 17 miles I ended up doing, the frame was getting splattered with mud as brown as my darkest tan, and I was getting bruised as red as the new paint she got. And as our colors merged, I was beginning to get the hang of her and the new geometry. Even though we never became one together. It was good enough for her first ride. Overall, she was just as laterally stiff, yet vertically compliant as I would have hoped for. And I think once I find my new bike handling limits, and dial in my fit, this new mistress will be my most favorite thing to ride. I mean, I love you Melissae.

I tried to take a picture, but my batteries died. So no eye candy today.

Finally!

2008-08-19T09:14:00.002-07:00

It is done. (well, done enough to ride. New wheels to come.)

More later.

Now I ride.

Progress and Regress

2008-08-14T12:54:00.003-07:00

The mountain bike frame just went out for paint this morning. Good old Les over at Powder Coat Specialists said he could get it to me by tomorrow. You don't get that kind of turnaround anywhere else. (I should note that I don't get a deal through him, nor am I affiliated with him. He's just a good guy who works for a living.) All in all, I think it turned out pretty well. And I did *solve* the alignment issue from being too hasty before. I brazed a small bit inside the dropout, filed a bit, and now the wheel is held where it should be. I think the solution worked out pretty well, and unless I said anything, nobody would have known. But of course it would be much better to have gone through the steps ahead of time, and not had to 'fix' anything. Again, yet another lesson learned, and why I'm not taking orders quite yet.

I also put out a big order to build this baby up. And I will say that this will probably be the lightest, and pricey(est), mountain bike (possibly any bike) I've owned yet. (more posts and pics to come) I just figured I've been putting together dream bikes for enough friends and customers that I wouldn't mind sharing the fun. Now for the next couple months, I've got to flog this thing over every dip, burm, rock, rut, and mile that I can to get ready for the 12 hr "Burnin' at the Bluff" race.

On the negative side, I noticed while doing the last steps, that my welding hoses are leaking. I don't know how long that they've been going, but it's another $58 before I get going again. Luckily, I'll have time to get things situated before I'm ready to start any torch work on the next one on the list. A lugged road bike for my Florida buddy Mike. (I still need those fit details man!)

More pictures here:

Something Wicked This Way Comes

2008-08-02T21:01:00.003-07:00

...at least I hope it will be a wicked ride. If it all works out, it should be.

I just realized I've got about two months to get ready for the 12 hour mountain bike race, and I haven't ridden much this year. That's what happens when I get caught up with working at a busy bike shop, and then building bikes when I get home. The whole fun of being into this sport tries sneaking out the back door. So these next two months are going to be dialing in this new steed, and getting some serious miles in to get ready for it. I put in 50 miles in yesterday and I can feel the long nasty winter in my legs. So I've got to keep up with it, or I'll be hurting in October.

The parents came over for a nice visit this last week, but I still managed to get some work done. Finished up the seat stays, as well as the disc mount. Brazed those up, and now it's just a couple bridges, braze-ons, and smoothing it all out. I will admit I skipped a step, and now the rear wheel won't be held perfectly strait. That's what I get for being in a rush to get this done. But hopefully it shouldn't throw off the handling enough to mess things up, and it's definitely a lesson learned.

Here's a sneak preview of my (hopefully) race-worthy mountain bike:

Back in Action! -or- I've got Gas!

2008-07-23T16:20:00.007-07:00

Howdy! Finally have some work to report. I've got air in my tanks again, so I was finally able to braze up the front triangle and chain stays. I have to say that these have probably been my best brazes yet. Not that there is no room to improve, but I'm pretty happy with the results. Hoping to finish up the seat stays, braze-ons, and do the finish work on her in the next couple weeks. Then it's starting all over again with a (lugged?) road frame for my Florida buddy Mike.

Would your lady let you do this in the bathroom sink?

Good brazes = good heat control, and less time to file smooth afterwards.

Head tube and seat tube were left long for the braze. They'll be cut down afterwards.

On a side note: I don't know if anyone else has been dealing with more aggression on the roads lately, but I've had a few run-ins with some angry drivers lately. I hope these have been isolated cases, but I get the feeling that higher gas prices add to an already hasty drivers impatience. Either way, ride safe and legal out there. Please don't give people any more reason to hate cyclists. Even if you get away with it, they might take it out on the next one they meet.

I've run out of hot air!

2008-07-11T14:38:00.002-07:00

Official Address to The Nation (of people that keep up with what I'm up to) :

Progress has been forward moving, but frames are not going through the rapid growth that they once were. I fear that we have grown accustomed to growth at an unsustainable rate, and now things are cooling off. Of course we won't know for sure until we have already gone through three frame cycles (or cycle frames), at which point we may find that we have gone through a frame building recession. Hopefully, if we put our heads down and push through, we will make it out the other side without too many losses.

As far as the current frame cycle is concerned: All the miters for the main triangle (compound miter included) are finished up. Water bottle bosses are drilled, cleaned up, and brazed in. Melissae even pitched in to do the torch work on them! The chain stays were mitered and brazed to the dropouts, and their other miter for the bottom bracket are getting close.

But all this progress came at the cost of running my oxygen and acetylene tanks dry. Raising (oxy-acet.) gas prices, the falling US dollar, and using my credit to make large purchases lately (diamond rings) have left the FelletBrazing Co. on hard times. Rumor about the government stepping in to subsidize or even take over FelletBrazing has been spreading, but by the time something of that magnitude were to occur, serious drops in production would occur. If this were to happen, a stagflation could arise.

Therefore, my good friend Brian and I got together to come up with a stimulus package to keep this small business economy on track. He had some air left over in his tanks that he wasn't going to use. So while it may not be as much air as if I were to fill my tanks full, I hope that it will stimulate an increase in production, giving a much needed boost. Some debate this as a temporary solution to a greater problem. However, we must do anything that can be done to help the growth of this frame building economy. God willing, we will make it through these hard times and rise again!

(check out the new build pictures here)

New goings on in the shop

2008-06-30T06:28:00.004-07:00

Howdy everyone. Things have started to pick up around the shop again lately; some good work is getting done. First, I'm starting to make some templates of commonly used things like dropouts, so I don't have to spec it out with the calipers and make a new blue print every time. This way, I'll just get out the corisponding template to whatever dropout I'm using, set it at the right spacing, and trace it out. Time saved for me, means more bikes getting done, and that much closer to being able to make it worth my while selling them in the future.

My 26" mountain frame has been coming along. I've got all the miters done for the main triangle except the second part of the compound miter for the down tube that buts up against the bottom bracket shell, as well as the seat tube. The reinforcement ring is brazed in place. So now I've just got to put the water bottle bosses on, and that part will be ready for assembly.

Also, I've got the seat tubes bent for tire clearance. This is the first time I've done bending other than for fork blade rake. It was interesting to bend a certain amount, in an exact spot on the tube, and have both of them match. I think it turned out pretty well, and would include it on other people's frames without worry.

(The drawing shows the clearance of the chain stay. The left tube is the chain stay; the right is the seat stay with a similar bend in it. Look here for more pictures and explanations.)

Brownie

2008-06-24T07:08:00.003-07:00

It's amazing how spoiled one can get with a faster bike. After riding my road bike for so long, my townie suddenly feels slow. 28c tires, Mr. Tuffy's, having only one gear, and not exactly the lightest component spec. But you know, I love every pound of that portly girl. I've been stopped at least a few times by people wondering what kind of bike it is, what's the little fender thing on the front, and who made it. (the 'fendette' is proving to be way more popular than I expected) Even though I'm not beating my record on the way to work, it's just fun to ride something that does it's job, rides well, and people love to look at it. And it's even more fun to think of how I made it.

As far as the actual ride itself, I'm stoked to finally have a disk on the front. The fork does have more flex than say a mountain bike fork. But overall, not bad at all. And luckily(?) I've been able to test it out in some emergency slam on the brakes at full speed situations already. I haven't been caught in a full on downpour (yet), but in a slight rain, the brakes and fendette are pretty awesome. The spray that pops up in front of the fork from only having clip on (rear coverage only) fenders is curbed quite nicely by the lugged-looking fendette. Beauty and function!

This being the first version of this particular bike, there are a few tweaks I would make for next time. But then again, I always want to tweak something better for next time.

(The 'Fendette' works! and people love it!)

Mechanical side note: The crown race was in fact widened out by the old fork not being exactly to spec. Once I got the new one, it pounded on quite precisely.

Big Flood in the Midwest!

2008-06-22T20:15:00.004-07:00

Hey all, in case you've been living under a rock. (or just don't have much to do with the Midwest), there's a big flood right now. I've got some pictures on my flickr site, but if you can get down to the river to see for yourself... It's crested a good ways up the huge stairs in front of the arch. Quite spectacular.

In other small news: I've got brownie up and running again. I've had a few good rides on her (and am meeting some nice folks along the way), and I'll say it's good to have her back. I've also got a few miters done on the next mountain bike. So it's good to be back to work. (mostly) Still have tons of planning to do for the big day, but I can't keep slipping behind schedule on the frames. More, and more pictures to come.

Stairs in front of the arch. There were more people here than looking at the arch itself.

Parking garage north of the arch by the landing.

Mission Accomplished

2008-06-17T07:08:00.005-07:00

Greetings friends, I haven't posted in a while, but this time I have a great excuse. I've been planning a nice trip with the lady in which to propose to her. Through much research of the local rock formations necessary to gain entrance to this land, as well as much recon into the different locations to accomplish this goal, I had a plan so tight you couldn't see the light through it. We were going to ride the Katy Trail to Hermann, and stay at the Hermann Hill Vineyard and Inn. A masseuse was scheduled to give us an in-room massage after a long day's ride, and after some local food and libations, there was a hot tub on our own personal patio, looking over the river that was to be the last seen location of two single persons.
Well, that was until some weather started rolling our way, and not only kept us off of what would have been a muddy tail, but the lightening kept us off our bikes all together. But the day of the mission was still good weather, so I took the lady for a day hike to get her good and worn out, in order to make necessary the massage later that evening. While we were hiking, the Inn called to let me know that the hot tub had broken, and wouldn't be fixed by the time we arrived. That being the plan of attack, I needed another location quick. Luckily, I had programmed every eatery in the town of Hermann into my cell phone, and went down the list until I had reservations at a quite fancy European cuisine restaurant. Things were still shaping up for a good trip.
Upon arrival to the Inn, we were informed that we were switched rooms in order to accommodate a handicapped individual that would have had a easier time in the room we reserved. Luckily, this room did have a working hot tub, and with some last minute correspondence, the masseuse was re-directed. The massage was great, and everything was shaping up for a fancy engagement dinner. When we found the "Europa Restaurant" that I had reservations for, here's what we saw:

And while I didn't manage to get pictures of the inside, it only got worse. The warm stuffy air and dead silence, interrupted by a creaky carpeted floor and a portable fan by our table in the living room gave one the feeling of someone else's grand parents' house. We were one of two couples that ate that night in an awkward whispering silence, being served by a scruffy young man terrified of eye-contact. Not so suddenly, the idea of the waiter bringing out the ring with the dessert didn't sound as romantic. So after a tasty meal that was serenaded by the waiter randomly walking over to a piano, playing something he had come up with, and leaving without a word, we made our way back to the Inn.

After a nice soak in our own hot tub to wash away the weird vibe, we sat in front of a fireplace in bathrobes. And while this was now about the fifth time the original plan had been revised, that was where the proposal took place. I am now happy to announce that Melissae Diane Stuart and I are to be married. (whenever we get to working out all the plans for that day)

(More pictures of the ring on my flickr site if that's what you want to see)

Things going slowly...

2008-06-06T21:39:00.003-07:00

Hey everyone, I know I haven't posted in a while. And mostly it's because my mommy told me that if I didn't have anything nice to say... well, I just haven't had anything nice to say.

Last week, I got Brownie back from paint, and it came out quite well. A few bubbles in the paint, but hey, I'm not complaining. That day, I was going to cut and face the crown, frame save her, and take some pictures. Well after cutting the crown, the race just plopped on. Instead of having to be pounded and pressed, I could just slide it on with my fingers. It's a brand new Park Tool cutter, I triple checked the specs to make sure I used the correct sized 1" standard, and something came out wrong. Right now my theory is that I had previously pounded this race onto the fork that I built and cut at UBI, and possibly their cutter was old and worn. So it left the race a tick on the big side, wallowing out the race I pounded on, and now it won't fit anything else. I've been too frustrated to check, but I hope this is the case. It's definitely the easiest to solve with a new race.

In the mean time, I've started on my mountain bike frame. After just about completing the blueprint for her, I sleepily spilled my coffee all over the drawing, ruining everything. I started over, got it finished (again), and started inspecting my tubes. Then I come to find out my top tube is actually a down tube (making it too long, where I would have to cut off pretty much all of the butted section). And my down tube is some sort of oversized beast (~35.2mm, instead of the 31.8 that it was supposed to be) But I figure this out after I hastily started cutting the down tube. After talking to the folks at Nova, they were nice enough to take back the top tubes, and send me the correct ones (even though the order was a couple months ago). But - and rightfully so - I'm stuck with these beastly down tubes. It's ok, I guess I'll have an extra stiff frame. I guess this was supposed to be my race bike anyhow.

So lesson for the week, check everything twice as soon as possible, and be ready to handle when things still don't go right. Oh well. Next week we're going to a bed & breakfast, so I probably won't get a whole lot of building done. I plan to get back to it afterwards, as I'm behind schedule. In the mean time, here's some teaser shots of Brownie:

Brownie is Ready For Paint (again)

2008-05-22T15:07:00.003-07:00

I finished up the disc fork this afternoon, and I think it came out pretty well. And I'm finally unveiling the fendette. It's an idea I've had for a while, and felt like experimenting with. I've got the strap on fenders that cover the rear of the wheel, but there was always a small amount of spray from the front. So it should help with that. But of course I'd be lying if I said it was totally for the sole purpose of being functional. I figured I'd style it a bit and do some lug-work type edges. So let me know what you think.

I also decided on the cable routing. With the comment from Sandbox, I definitely won't make a fork like this for anyone else until I get some serious miles on it. But with using fork legs with thicker than usual wall thickness, to better handle the stress of the disc brake, and also using the shortest cable guide braze-on I had to minimize the stress riser, I'm not too worried about it. But still, a risk I don't want to put on anyone else.

I also put some eyelets on the seat tube for a pump mount. I've never really liked the pump on the down tube (mainly looks), and using the normal eyelets, it was getting in the way. So, I'm experimenting with this to see if it's out of the way in both the visual and functional. If this doesn't work, my other idea was the seat stay. Who knows, it's just fun to be able to put things wherever I feel like. The more I do, the more I'll know.

Downtube Stickers and More

2008-05-17T19:30:00.003-07:00

We got slammed today at The Shark, so I don't have it in me to say too much today. But I figured I would put in a quick post of the latest goings on here at Fellet Brazing. I've made some great progress on my disc fork, and pretty much just needed to clean up a couple spots on my brazes to be ready for paint until I realized I never put any cable housing guides on it. It would be pretty easy to just zip tie the lines, but what's the point of having a custom fork if you just have to jimmy-rig it when you're done? So it's not done, but here's a sneak preview:

You don't even want to know what kind of tight clearances I had to deal with on this one.

I also FINALLY got my down tube stickers in from Victory Circle Graphix. It was only about a month after I was expecting them, but it's still not a bad deal, and quality seems pretty good. Hoffmeyer and Marc, just swing by sometime and I can put them on for you, or let me know if you want me to just drop them off with you. Either way.

Disc or Disk?

2008-05-12T06:40:00.004-07:00

Just thought I'd put up a quick post of some goings on with the fork. And in case you're wondering, it seems that it's both disc and disk. Depending on what company, what component, and sometimes even within the same description, it's spelled both ways. As someone who has a hard enough time spelling as it is, things like this don't help.

High tech uni-directional circumferential modifier.

Home-made tubing bender at work.

Disc/k tab miter. This one was fun to do.

Dropouts and disc/k tab brazed up. More to come.

O Fortuna!

2008-05-09T06:54:00.003-07:00

Last night, the lady and I went out to dinner at Tortillaria Mexican Kitchen and then out to see the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra play Carl Orff's Carmina Burana. The tortillaria has changed since last time I was there. Now it's more of a sit down and be waited on sort of restaurant. I kind of liked the old go-to-the-counter-and-order way of doing things, but I'm a bit biased towards the hole-in-the-wall type of Mexican joints.

After opening with Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D minor, the symphony did a great job with Orff's Carmina Burana. A large screen displaying the translation, the soloists all but acted out the storyline. They brought in some humor and expression to add a bit of liveliness to the script, without ruining the overall effect like these bozos. At the time of writing this, Saturday is sold out But if you get a chance, tonight and Sunday still have seats.

In other news, my disc fork is coming along. The most time consuming part is the miter of the disk tab to fit up against the curve of the fork blade. But I'm hoping to get some good work today, and at least braze the dropouts and the tab. Then comes the crown prep and making sure both blades are exactly the same length or else the wheel will sit crooked. Hopefully Saturday will be in good weather so everyone can get out and have a nice weekend.

Painted, and Ready

2008-05-05T08:55:00.005-07:00

Hoffmeyer's bike is all painted, stickered, reamed, chased, and faced. A dose of "JP Weigle Frame Saver" was added, and Hoffmeyer picked it up yesterday. This will be a geared road bike that should be stiff enough to handle short sprints, but smooth enough for some long miles that he has planned. Clearance around 23c tires, with room for 25's, this should be about as useful as this guy and his folding dump pouch bags. (but not as dorky)

Aside from the constant learning curve to make frames that are aligned, fit well, and do what they were intended to do, this frame will undergo the closest thing I will get to an engineering stress testing machine. Hoffmeyer's brute strength has snapped, stripped, and cracked more parts than most downhill racers I've known. And he also puts more regular miles in than I ever could. So as long as this frame is holding up, I'll never have a working proof of what these frames can handle.

As always, more pictures on my Flikr site.

Off To Paint and Other News

2008-04-29T08:33:00.004-07:00

Hoffmeyer's frame is off to get painted at Powder Coat Specialists up on Midland Blvd. Should be done Friday. I'm going to take a break from "the list" and whip up a couple projects for myself. A lugged-crown disc brake fork for Brownie. Then I can finally get her up and running again. And also a new hard tail mountain bike that I hope to race in the 12hour "Burning at the Bluff." This will be the first mountain bike frame I've done, so I figure I'll experiment on myself before putting someone else on one.

After that, it's back to the list with Mike - a buddy of mine from Florida. He's getting fitted and used to the setup right now, that way I'll have a good idea of what geometry he'll need. And if I remember right, he'll be wanting a lugged road frame. But the details can get ironed out as I'm getting my next projects done. Also, I just got word from Victory Circle Graphix that my down tube stickers should be getting finished this week. So I should be getting those sometime early(?) next week.

Another Rainy Day Off

2008-04-25T10:41:00.004-07:00

It has been a heck of a week! With the coming spring, work at the Shark has been non-stop. The repairs are piling up, and there are more empty spots on the floor than we can keep up with bike builds. We even stayed till midnight Wednesday night just trying to get some bikes built up. The volume of that place amazes me. I'm still used to the small shop way of business. But it's cool. It's a good opportunity to keep learning, and staying busy passes the time.

(sorry, small rant:) I don't know about you guys (and gals), but it seems I've been getting buzzed, yelled, and cursed at more often lately. I don't know if the arrival of spring has more cyclists out there, pissing off more motorists, and raising tensions. Or maybe I've just had a rash of bad luck. Either way, when you're out there, be careful and stay safe. Also be mindful and respectful of the laws and other users of the road. Don't give anyone a good reason to hate you (or the rest of us).

Well, it seems every time I get a day off these days, it rains and pours. On one hand, I really need to get some much needed miles in. But on the other hand, I've been getting some good work done on Hoffmeyer's frame. Yesterday, I did some finish work, aligned the dropouts, and brazed up some seat stays. Today, I've smoothed out those brazes, mitered up some chain stay and brake bridges, and brazed those in place. Just need a little finish work, slot the seat tube, and this baby is ready for paint!

Rain, Earthquakes and Flooding

2008-04-20T07:22:00.003-07:00

The end times are nigh! Well, maybe not, but I'm finally getting around to posting. The first part of the week, I was still getting over whatever it was. So I didn't get much done. Then I lost some sleep when the earthquake woke us up. I probably would have rolled over and passed out, but the lady has never been in an earthquake before, so we sat up talking about it for a bit. I haven't been in one for a little while, but am still somewhat used to the whole thing growing up in San Diego. Nothing too bad, but I still remember one in particular that shook hard enough that things were falling off counters, smashing on the floor, and pictures were coming off the walls. I just remembered being frustrated that that one also woke me up in the middle of the night. Ahh earthquakes, hardly ever considerate.

But luckily(?) it was rainy and gross on my days off, so I got some good work done. The fillets are slowly being filed and sanded smooth, and the seat stays are mitered and ready to go. I've just got to check/align the chain stays and things should be ready to rock. A few more details, and she'll be ready for paint. I'm hoping to be done by the end of this coming week. Hoffmeyer, just let me know sometime about the paint. Gloss white right? I haven't heard back about the down tube stickers yet, so that may have to be put on later. But otherwise, things are coming together.

The bottom bracket junction has been one of the longest steps. So many curves to smooth out.

Seat stays looking good.

Dropout miters on the seat stays went quicker than the chain stays. I think I'm getting used to working with them.

Getting there

2008-04-13T09:02:00.004-07:00

I've been feeling a little under the weather, so things have been slow goings. I did manager to get Hoffmeyer's frame brazed up. (well mostly) Still missing the seat stays and the such. And I'm starting to clean up the fillets. I do think I am getting better at laying down a good fillet. (always more to go for perfection though) And there's still learning from every miter, and every braze. I will say the top tube holder worked like a champ, and once I have it dialed in, I think the new brazing sequence will be quite nice.

Hopefully, I'll be feeling up to getting some good work done this week. It shouldn't be too much longer, but all those final details keep catching me off guard with the time required. But I guess things haven't been going that slowly. This friday will be one month after the tubes showed up at the doorstep. Man I love having two days a week off!

Ready to Cook!

2008-04-10T19:57:00.004-07:00

Today was the long and monotonous task of hand mitering the chain stays. So I decided to do a step by step photo sequence of what exactly goes into it. (At least that way I could take a break now and then to snap a picture.) If you're really curious, you can check it out here. If you're not all that curious, here's a picture of the end result:

I've also got all the vent holes drilled out, the jig is set, and the torch is itching to be lit. But for now, I'm too bonked. So first thing tomorrow, the tubes will be sanded, scrubbed, and fluxed. The brass will be cleaned, the regulators set, and the fillets will be laid. After that, depending on time, I may start in on mitering the seat stays, or I may just do a bunch of finishing on the welds. Either way, they both need doing.

MMmmmmmmmiter...

2008-04-08T09:45:00.002-07:00

I haven't been posting too much lately. It feels like things have been kinda crawling along. My miters are definitely getting better. But they don't seem to be getting much quicker. It's fine for now, as this is still part time. But if I ever hope to make a full time living at this, I'll have to get faster. Part of it, I know, is me just being a perfectionist. I could definitely whip up some quick (and probably good enough) miters if I just went at it. But something about the way I work won't allow anything less than totally dialed. I suppose that's a good thing in many ways, but that does mean there's more practice to be done before I can do this at any reasonable speed.

I've finished the miters for the front triangle, so that's ready to go. And I've made good headway on the chain stay miters also. I'm hoping when I get my days off later this week, I'll be able to finish those up, and braze the whole thing together. After that, it's getting the seat stays mitered & brazed, the stay/brake bridges, a few other touches, some prep, and she'll be ready to send off for paint.

No Free Lunch, or (It's No "Breeze")

2008-04-03T19:33:00.008-07:00

Another day off, and some more headway on Hoffmeyer's frame. I got the ends of the chain stays mitered, cleaned, and the new "Breezer" style dropouts brazed in place. (Step by step pictures over at my Flikr site.) I went for this style of dropout for a few reasons. First, they're supposed to be stronger, and I figure this frame has to be pretty beefy to handle Hoffmeyer's habit of chewing through equipment. Second, I haven't used these before, and wanted to see how I liked working with them. Which brings me to the third reason: I was under the impression that they threw together pretty quickly. Aside from the name, they looked like a snap. Cut the stay to length, clean, and braze away. Well, almost. They have a way tighter curve than I figured, which required a pretty good miter. Plus, after having to work in the wider rear, and good angle to them (and their required miters), I think it ended up taking longer than the slot style to get it right. So long story short, I'm happy with them. I just need to always keep in mind that nothing about frame building is easy or quick. But nothing good comes easily.

On a different note, I am getting better at my heat control, and flowing the braze where and how I want it. I put on the cable stop for the rear derailleur, and the braze came out perfect. No cleaning, filing, or even sanding. Not that it's a huge deal, but it's just nice when you know you're actually getting better at something. Now, to keep practicing, so I could do that with every braze...

Work and Play

2008-03-28T19:31:00.000-07:00

I've had my days off this week, so that meant getting more work done. Hoffmeyer's frame is coming along. I've got a few miters done now; one and a half more and the front triangle will be set. But before I finish up the last bit, I've got to braze in the H2O bosses and the top tube housing stops. That way, any slight deformation of the tubes from brazing those in, will be accounted for when brazing the frame together. I've also got the new dropouts all spec'd and angles figured out for the chain stay miters. I'm using "breezer" dropouts this time around, which ends up putting the stay spacing a bit wider than typical, and makes for a stronger joint. (things this frame needs to handle this guys' record for being hard on equipment) I haven't used these dropouts before, so we'll see how much I like them for future use.

Here's a few pics of the miters: (I don't know why, but there's something sexy about a hand mitered joint.)

I also finally got my fork jig, top tube/seat stay jig attachment, and disc brake tab fixture! I will say, even if he does occasionally misplace an order, Don Ferris (owner and one of the two tooling machinists at Anvil Bikeworks) makes some damn nice frame building tools. It does take a good while (as he hand machines and proofs each tool), and it does cost an arm and a leg, but they really are nice. So next up after Hoffmeyer's frame: A disc brake fork for "Brownie" - my single speed disc braked townie.

(Note: this fork is not actually assembled, I just threw the parts in there to illustrate how the jig worked)

The top tube holding attachment mounts right up to my jig.

Then it flips over to be a seat stay holder. No more spoke and cable rigging for keeping things in place!

Spring on the way... maybe?

2008-03-25T08:24:00.000-07:00

Well I'm still watching those videos, but I figured I'd make a quick post about the coming spring. Yea, I know... I'm just being hopeful at this point. But I know it's on the way. I had the pleasure of riding to work twice this last week, not having to wear a full jacket and pants. Man did I miss that feeling. Being able to move freely, not getting at all clammy, being able to brake and shift without bulky gloves on. Man it's nice. (Except for that whole day of hard pellet snow flurries, stinging your face. Where did that come from?) Anyway, I'm not the only one that's been noticing. I've seen some other commuters out there, that I haven't normally seen. So it's that time of year, when people are getting the itch, needing to get some outside time.

And it is on that note, that I thought it would be fitting to post a link to this video. I'm sure it's made the rounds already, but I thought they did a pretty good job of showing how it can be easy to miss noticing a cyclist, while driving in a bunch of traffic. I know I'm probably preaching to the choir here, but pass it on to your non cyclist friends/family. And as the weather gets warmer, and there's more of us out there, I wouldn't mind it if drivers were looking out.

Back to Work.

2008-03-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

Well, I just finished up my first week at Big Shark, and I have to say I'm pretty happy so far. Most of the people seem pretty cool, and there's definitely some guys there that really know their stuff. So it will be cool to keep expanding and learning from them.

I haven't posted much this last week, as whenever I'm online lately, I've been doing the "SellingCycling" program for work. It's interesting. There's a couple good tips that I might not have thought of, and then there's some flat out corny stuff that I'd never tell a customer. Like when I show someone a bike, they seem to like it, but they want to look around because this is the first store they've been to. I'm supposed to say something along the lines of "What's in the way of you getting this bike right now?" Then, I'm supposed to fix whatever that is, and then ask again if they want to buy it today. Maybe that's what it takes to be a great salesman in numbers, but that's too pushy for me. But after talking to Mike, he just wanted the employees to learn the good tips, not become pushy. So that's good. Because sometimes, this guy is a bit much:

Aside from that, I've got Hoffmeyer's tubes inspected, marked, and am starting in with some miters. Once I've finished up this selling program, I'll have some more time to take pictures and post some of the build as it's going on.

River-Flood Trail

2008-03-21T11:03:00.000-07:00

I figured I'd take a tour of the flooded river today. So, off I went for a nice (windy) ride to the Chain of Rocks Bridge.

Bonus points if you know where (in the city) this is.

And hats off to you good sir. Looking east from Washington Ave. To the left is Eads Bridge. This statue is normally not under water.

Good luck finding parking in this town... (parking lot for Presidents Casino, north of Eads Bridge)

High water, looking from the Chain of Rocks Bridge. You can't even see the 'chain of rocks.' Below is the same view from when it's not flooded.

(from a few weeks ago) To the left you can see where the water gets rough. This is the normal sight of the 'chain of rocks.'

N Leonor K Sullivan Blvd (underwater), looking at Eads Bridge from the North, to the left is(was) parking.

Watch you step. (Arch on the left)

Hoffmeyer's Tubes Are In!

2008-03-19T06:19:00.000-07:00

That's right, they finally arrived! Intact, everything I ordered, and only five days late. And after all this, they just left it on the doorstep while it's raining. No doorbell, no knock... I wouldn't have even known they were here if I didn't go out the front door, on the way to work. I might have to build a bench/box for them to put packages in, as I'm not totally stoked about leaving hundreds of dollars of steel tubing on my porch all day... in the rain...

Anyway, I finally have something to do other than staring at fonts, and trying to get this down tube sticker looking good. (man, computer work is not for me) And with a couple (that's right, more than a single) days off coming up, it'll be time to get cracking! Oh, and Hoffmeyer, don't forget to drop off that fork sometime. Man I'm stoked to start building again.

Comment Option Fixed!

2008-03-17T08:31:00.000-07:00

I just found out I had the comment option on the default setting, meaning you could only comment on my blog if you were a member. I fixed that, so all you anonymous and non-Google member people that have been storming the gates, trying to comment... well now you can. So go now, and let me know what you think about the down tube sticker design. One idea already is to get rid of the pointy parts on the "L"s, and possibly more, to better match the two words in their 'pointynes.'

Down Tube Stickers: (Input Wanted)

2008-03-16T11:59:00.000-07:00

Well, I decided to not waste time sitting around until Hoffmeyer's tubes get here, and keep pushing forward. I've come up with some sticker ideas for the down tube. Here's the most promising so far. Like the head tube stickers, I'll have some white ones, and some black ones made. The white won't have an outline, that's just so you can see it on a white background. Anyone and everyone that has anything to say about the font, look, idea, whatever... I'd be happy to hear it. Good, bad, even if it reminds you of those fish tacos that didn't sit well last week, I want to know.

DHL is Killing Me!

2008-03-14T09:46:00.000-07:00

Well, I was going to have a good start on Hoffmeyer's frame before this weekend. That is before his tubes entered the black hole of DHL tracking. They're not exactly "lost", but somewhere between where they left California and here, they've been to Utah, Arizona, Utah again, Kansas, and supposedly they're in Missouri, on the way here. Normally, it takes two or maybe three days for my tubes to get here. But it's already been a week. It seems that just about every time I have to deal with DHL, something goes wrong.

A while back, when I was ordering my jig, it went out DHL. Because it was gong to arrive in a huge crate, I was going have it delivered to my house, figured out when that was going to be, and arranged to have the day off. It didn't come. I called to find out what happened, and they didn't know where the package was. After calling and calling, it turned up in the warehouse. Apparently it never got on the truck. So I arranged to have it dropped off when I would be able to be home. It didn't come. After calling, they said it didn't get on the truck again. A third day of this, and more phone calls eventually led them to discover that the package was a large one. That meant it was left at the warehouse so the truck drivers could fit and deliver all the other ones, then they would come back to deliver it. But by the time they had finished the first round, it was time to go home. Eventually, I had them deliver it to the shop I was working at, and borrowed a friends van to get it home. When the DHL guy was delivering it, he was amazed it had taken so long to get this thing delivered. Then he found the problem. (he says) The downtown DHL facility is (according to him) "horrible." If it went through the one he normally worked at, he would have had this to me a week ago. *sigh*

Sorry to rant and rave... but it's pretty sorry when there's this much confusion in a company. I know nobody is perfect, but when you do something for a living, it seems like you should actually do it. Hopefully Hoffmeyer's tubes will show up soon, and unscathed. And I will probably start stocking up at least one tube set ahead of time. That way when this happens again, I'll already have something to work on until things are sorted out.

Camping! (post edit)

2008-03-10T12:28:00.000-07:00

So we decided to go backpacking last minute on Monday, and headed to Cuivre River. We got a late start, so we ended up hiking in about 7 miles in, before getting to camp. The last hour was dark, so we ended up night hiking with our headlamps. Most of the hiking trails were in good condition (a little muddy at times from the last snow, but not bad). However, many of the trails are also open to horses, and man those things tear up the trail! Between the melting of the snow, and the high-weight/small-footprint factor, these things were like hiking through a bog!

By the time we got there, set up camp, cooked dinner and had a little fire to keep things warm, the chill was definitely setting in. I checked before we crawled into our tent, and it was about 18F. Between my lack of a cold (enough) weather sleeping bag, my shoes (in a stuff sack) and camelback crowding in with me for the night, I didn't end up sleeping much. We did hear some howling wolves(?) and hooting owls. I woke up at one point, freezing my arse off, and tried to look at the temp with one cold, sleepy, half awake eye. It seemed like it was reading 22F. But as it was already 18F when we went to bed, and it was 16F when I woke up, this doesn't seem likely. I think it may possibly have been 12F and I couldn't read the tens digit right. Either way it was freakin freezing!

The next morning was a cold icy start. Everything was covered in ice crystals, and the muddy trails were frozen solid in perpetual knee-killing unevenness. It was pretty tempting to crawl back to the slightly warmer sleeping bag and wait until the sun warmed things up. But, we headed out for the ~6.5mi hike back.

Along the way, we tracked some large dog prints (maybe the wolves?), and also some huge cat prints. And eventually found a deer that had been eaten not too long ago. There was still fur clumped on the ground, and some of the bones were still red. I'm guessing it was one of the first kills of the season, possibly by whatever made the huge cat prints. Either way, not something you see every day. All in all it was an awesome trip. And now with the batteries charged, I can plow back into frame building, and soon plow into working at Big Shark.

Marc Makes My Frames Fast!

2008-03-09T15:49:00.000-07:00

So after a few rides to dial in the components, work out bugs, and all other good stuff, Marc, Eddie, and I rode to Alton to give the new frame a final test before Marc's race. You can read the ride's review from the good guys at Team Seagal. Thanks to the guys letting me draft a good deal, I hung on and was able to watch Marc fly along for close to 80miles getting ready for his crit race he had today (the next day). How he does this is beyond me.

The race started out chilly, and didn't warm up much. Pretty quickly Marc (team of one today, racing for Concordia Seminary) and some guys from SLU strung out the pack pretty well. Here's Marc chasing down one of the SLU guys.

A three man breakaway was able to slip out. But here's Marc taking off the main group, looking back to see if these two guys could help form a chase group.

The chase group dropped one of it's riders as they closed in on the breakaway. Marc and this guy did a good job of working together. Eventually, the other guy was dropped as well.

Marc did a great job lurking on the back of what was now a four man lead group. He had a good position to draft, catch his breath (for a bit), and try to sprint for a podium. As the sprint got out of the saddle and really got ignited, a sudden stitch in his side kept the cursed forever domestique from getting the podium. But he did have a great race, secured a solid fourth, and said the bike worked awesome. So congrats man, you're the first rider of a Fellet Brazing frame to place in an official race.

Marc's Bike (pics)

2008-03-07T15:59:00.000-08:00

Well this week has been busy for supposedly having it off from work. We did get Marc's bike painted, built, and ridden. He likes it lots! He says it tracks strait and true, and accelerates like a rocket. You mash the pedals, and it shoots off like crazy. (that part I can attest to, as I took it for a quick spin) I love it when a design works out like you wanted.

Well almost, I will be honest and say there was a calculatory mishap in the chain stay length. It ended up a bit closer than my numbers said it was going to. Everything still works, but the semi-horizontal dropouts end up putting the rear wheel into the front derailleur clamp before it drops out. So once it's in, everything's dandy. But you have to squish it a bit to get it in or out. Major lesson learned on that one. But will be corrected next time, and as far as either of us can tell, that's the only issue.

I also got all the tubes and such ordered for Hoffmeyer's frame, so that should start happening next week sometime. It will be another fillet brazed road bike. Nothing too extraordinary, just made to fit a guy with a crazy long torso.

Post edit: I should also note that Marc picked the paint job (although I'm definitely digging it), and the steer tube was left long for the first ride or two just to make sure. I am also thinking of a down tube sticker, as this one (aside from the colors) ended up looking a tick on the plain side. I thought I was a fan of the inconspicuous, simple design. But I think I (or people) should have the option.

Snow Biking in St. Louis

2008-03-06T08:42:00.000-08:00

If you ever want to ride Forrest Park's bike path without any runners, bikers, or rollerbladers getting in your way, wait until the mid-west decides to drop 8in of random snow. Sunday, it was in the 70's, then Tuesday, it dropped to mid 20's and snowed all day. The snow was thick enough, and coming down fast enough, the plows couldn't keep up. Accidents were all over the road, many stayed home, and I went for a ride around the park.

First, I finally got Marc's frame done, and needed to get out on the bike again. Second, I had a ton of gear to test out, and it was a great day to do it. The Lake winter boots worked like a champ (note, I do have last years model, so they're not exactly the one in the picture). I do think a Pugsley would be awesome for this, but I still can't see getting/building one for the few days a year that I could actually use it in St. Louis. But I will say my mountain bike still worked pretty well. Aside from snow getting hub deep at times, and leaving weird tire tracks with foot scrapes on either side where my feet were pedaling through the snow, I could keep chugging along. And chugging it was, I averaged 4.72 mph for two and a half hours. Of course part of that was I had to get off and hike if the grade got too steep. But man, I tell you it was a blast. I had the "trail" to my self. The only thing I saw was a few foot prints where people were hiking or running, and I think I saw one section of bike tracks. But aside from that, just a few people at road crossings that either gave me a big smile and friendly hello, as I crawled by in my granny ring, or people giving me dumbfounded looks of "what the hell would make you think that was a good idea." There didn't seem to be a middle ground. But I'll tell ya, next time it snows and I have the day off you'll know where to find me.

Being Unemployed is Hard Work! (lots of pics)

2008-03-04T10:39:00.000-08:00

Sorry to any regulars that have been waiting for anything new up here. The past few days have been a long hard push to get Marc's frame done today. We braved the snow, and Les at Powder Coat Specialists was nice enough to go into work today, and hopefully have it ready to be picked up tomorrow. (there's just nothing like going local) This way, it will be able to be build it up in time to get some riding on it before his race this Sunday.

Everything came out pretty well, I think. I've definitely learned more even from the last frame. The only thing that didn't turn out awesome, was my numbers came out a bit short on the chain stays. I drew out how long they needed to be for the wheel to come out of the semi-horizontal dropouts and not hit the seat tube. I gave it about 1-2mm of clearance on the drawing, but that was the only thing that didn't translate perfectly into real life. After I welded the chain stays on, I went to put the rear wheel in to check for alignment and position for the brake bridge. It bumped the seat tube, and didn't quite have enough room to slip into the dropouts. It would have worked if you deflated the tire, but that would suck. But with a bit of file work on the dropout, it will get in and out. So, not as awesome as I'd like, but it will work. And now I have one more valuable lesson under my belt. Thanks to Marc for willing to be one of the early buyers.

Aside from all that work, I haven't been up to much at all. The lady and I did sneak out for a ride on Saturday when it was hovering a bit above 60F. We rode the Riverfront Trail up to the Chain Of Rocks Bridge. It was so nice out, just a little breezy on the way back, but I can't complain. At least it wasn't full of snow, slush, ice, and salt. The next day it got up to the 70's... and today we're getting 6-7 inches of snow. Yey St. Louis!

Big Shark Just Got a Little Bigger

2008-02-25T15:04:00.000-08:00

Well, it's official. I've accepted an offer from Big Shark to start working there mid march. The commute will be more like 5mi instead of the 15mi that I have now. I do have to admit, when the snow, ice, and slush have made things less than fun, I've wimped out and borrowed the ladies car. I'm not proud of this, and driving to work definitely doesn't do much for keeping me relaxed and happy. And, I think I'm just ready for something new. The shark handles some high end bikes/sales, so it will be interesting to learn more about dealing with that kind of customer/sale. I will also no longer be a store manager, or deal with the joys and hardships that go along with it.

I've put in my notice to The Touring Cyclist that I'll be leaving, and I've got myself a little down time between jobs so I can charge my batteries before charging into a new position. This will definitely go along way to get Marc's frame done in time for his first race of the season. I'll also be able to take care of the things that have been piling up around the house for months now. Hopefully, I can even sneak out for a camping trip before I get back to being so busy that something like that is next to impossible.

Stickers are in!

2008-02-23T14:03:00.000-08:00

And I've got tons of them. About a hundred black, and a hundred white. They came out great, and are sized for 1-1/8" head tubes, but still look good on 1" (or bigger if you go that way.) The people I went to are great to work with. Seems that they gave me a few more than I ordered. I'm not sure if that's just because it was easier for the machine to do whole pages, so they didn't bother making less, or if it was taking a tick longer than they said. It took a little over two weeks to have them done, and a few more days to get them shipped. (which was all in all a few days longer than they quoted, but I still think that's quick for some wicked awesome custom stickers) The price was good, the guy was nice and easy to work with, and I ended up with more than I asked for. So yea, I would definitely work with these guys again.

Oh yea, and did I mention I have hundreds of these things? So uhhhh... if you want a couple, I could probably spare one or two.

Post edit: So I didn't put up pics last night because I went to the Prints Gone Wild exhibition fair at the Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis. It was kick ass, and it's going on tonight also. So if you don't have plans, check it out.

Fire and Ice

2008-02-21T06:00:00.000-08:00

Well, Wednesday was another cold day off here in St. Louis. The high was somewhere around 21F. That's ok, because I needed to get some quality work time in on Marc's frame. I was happy to have a heated basement to do all my file and prep work in. But doing the other chainstay, I had to constantly go back and forth between the work bench and the jig. (which is in the garage) Then with that done, it was a bunch of prep work (sanding then alcohol scrubbing inside and out) for each joint to be done. And finally it was go time.

I propped the garage door open, so it could ventilate, and lit the torch. I was amazed how much more heat I had to apply because the tubes were 20 degrees. Whenever I got a good pre-heat going, it would be sucked into the rest of the freezing tube. I didn't think there would be much of a difference considering the difference between the melting point of the brass rod (900F), and room temperature. It's amazing how much another 40-50 degrees will affect things. Anyhow, a lot of gas and three brass rods later, the main triangle was all brazed up.

I was feeling a bit hungry, so I stopped for lunch. That's when I noticed it was about 4pm. Man do I get sucked into this frame work. I figured since I was already bundled up, now would be a good time to test out the new camping stove I got. It worked quite well. So well in fact, I think I should rig up some sort of heat reflector system for my frame jig. That way, on cold days it could keep the frame warm. Just kidding... hmmm...

Afterwards, I checked alignment, and started doing some finish work on the welds. After doing that for a few more hours, it was time to call it quits and have a brew. And now that I've got some sleep and food in me, it's time to go to work. Ahhh... livin' the life.

Good Old Fashoned Elbow Grease

2008-02-19T05:54:00.000-08:00

So I've been at a crossroads in my mind about how to do the miters on the chainstays. I don't have a fixture to hold them at the right angles I need them at, and I don't have any sort of mills or hole saws. Their odd shapes make it hard to check the angle and position of the miter with the same methods that I use to do the main triangle miters. I probably would have buckled already and paid out big for Anvil's chainstay fixture, but the Don is backed up and I don't know how long it would be before that ever came in. So long story short, I've been waking up in the middle of the night with cold sweat, trying to figure out how I'm going to do this next step. (just kidding... well not entirely)

But with a new sense of vigor, (Marc e-mailed, telling me how soon his first race was) I decided to just plow in and figure it out. The first step of attaching the dropouts worked out with a 2x4, cut in half, and carved out for the approximate angle and shape the chainstays would have. Then that whole thing was rubber-banded together, measured for proper position and geometry, and brazed on up. Actually worked out pretty well. But then the hard part came of the miter for the bottom bracket shell...

I was coming up with all sorts of wooden contraptions for ways of doing this, but none really worked. Finally, with that much needed kick in the pants from my good friend Marc, I decided the hell with it, I was going old school. People used to make these two-wheeled things without fixtures, mills, or even jigs. I was already ahead of game in that regards. So with my trusty file, and everything on the jig setup, I started a long task of seeing where it was hitting on the bottom bracket shell, taking some off of that point with a file, check again, file again, and repeat. I figured this would take forever. But it only took a few hours on each one. So long story with a short moral. Don't be afraid to dig in on a big task. It's probably not as bad as it looks from the outside.

Wheel Building and Lasagna Eating

2008-02-18T05:56:00.000-08:00

Last night Lt. Col. Austin Travis of Team Seagal hosted a lasagna cook-off. And I have to say, lasagna is about my favorite food. So the lady and I showed up with my family's recipe, only to go head to head with five different and amazing versions of this mana. A vegetarian version, a pork version, a spinach version, a cheesy version, and a sausage version. The winners: everyone who got to stuff themselves silly with these amazing dishes. Although Gino Fellino did eat the most - two servings of every variety. And Nico Toscani should get an honorable mention just because he held his down like a champ. (even after some strait moonshine, chased with 12oz of beer) I meant to get some pictures of the cook-off, but I never remember to get my camera out at social situations.

Today, Nico Toscani should be (may be?) breaking in his new wheelset I built him up. And just in case you can't tell by the pictures, yes, those are Chris King single speed disk hubs double butted up to Salsa Delgado Race rims. I have got to stop building nice wheelsets for people. Every time I get done, my own wheels look a little older, and a little less nice. But hey, they're still holding strong and true, so I need to quit my whining.

Now it's time to get some work on Marc's frame before I have to head into work.

Smiling in the Cold

2008-02-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

I got some work done on Marc's frame yesterday. The Dropouts are on the chainstays, and everything is filed smooth and pretty. I started on the miters for the BB shell, but without a fixture, it was going to be damn near impossible. So I started making one out of wood, but before I finished, I was getting wiped. So that's the next big step. And it will probably take a bit of time to get it right, but I'm hoping to work on it more than one day a week soon.

Aside from that, I had a great ride in today. Low to mid 20's when I left, but this time I wore the gear for it. I even had a bit of a tail wind, now and then. It was so nice, I figured out part of why I've had issues with my balaclava lately. If I smile, my cheeks push the fabric away from my face enough to get a bit of a draft near my eyes. I'm really going to have to work on that.

Oh yea, and happy Valentines day!

I've been thinking a lot about a career as a clothing mannequin lately.

Day off at last!

2008-02-13T06:31:00.000-08:00

As I sit here sipping my coffee, trying to wake up, I am once again reminded how people need more than one day off a week. It's been a long week at Bridgeton. There's so much to go through, sort, and organize to get to the point of being a well running shop. Mix that with a long commute and horrible weather, and it really takes it's toll. Although I do admit I've wimped out and borrowed the girlfriends' car a few times. Especially the day after my stupid cold ride. It was like someone blew out my pilot light. I'd get cold easier than normal, and it would take twice as long to get warm.

Anyhow, the week is up, and it's time to get some real work done. Marc's frame has been waiting patiently in the basement, wondering when it will be worked on again. And although there's a few things I have to do around the house, I am definitely getting some frame time in. Maybe this evening, when I'm too tired to get any good work done, I'll post some more pics of the progress.

I also wanted to thank my good buddies from "Team Seagal" for posting a link from their blog. I believe Mason Storm is next on the frame list, after I finish Marc's. Before I officially get my business license and sell these things, hard core riders like Mason will be punishing them to the brink of extinction. This is a guy who stripped out two track hubs just by pedaling so hard. He chews bottom brackets for breakfast. (don't ask how they taste) I figure if the frame can go head to head with guys like this, they're ready for action. Ok, time to file.

Post write edit:

The internet tried to kill me. (warning: long post)

2008-02-11T06:32:00.000-08:00

So I've said many a time, that computers are great, as long as they work. But once they don't, I really hate them. Well, I should have known to never trust their advice without double checking. Of all people, I ended up being caught by relying on electronics more than common sense. Let me explain:

Saturday night, an arctic blast blew through the St. Louis area, dropping temps down into the mid 'teens. When I woke up Sunday morning, I checked weather.com to get my daily what to wear when I ride in report. Now I can't blame them for sure, I may have typed in the wrong zip code, clicked the wrong report, or possibly, they just had a typo. So instead of double checking when they said it was 43F (seemed quite warm for lately), I just figured "there's the mid-west for ya." Freezing one minute, warm the next. So I dressed a little warm for 43 degrees. (Arm and leg warmers, standard cycling shorts, jersey, and a wind proof vest, wind proof gloves, cycling cap underneath my helmet, and my Lake winter boots) I figured that way I could take off layers as I warmed up and hit more sun, and so I took off for my hours' ride to work. At first blast, it sure seemed colder than 43. But I was in the shade, I hadn't got moving yet, and maybe it was a heavy, damp, soak into your skin kind of 43. (I was already making excuses for the infallible weather.com) After a few blocks, I decided our low neighborhood must have had the cold air settle in it, and once I got out, and got the heart rate going, I'd be fine.

Now here's where I'll interject with a quick story about wind proof clothes. It's amazing how low the temperature can be, and still stay comfortable when you're riding a bicycle at a good clip. Without any real sort of insulation, it just keeps your warmth from flying away with the wind long enough so you can keep it built up next to your skin. When you're really working, it's surprising how little insulation is too much, when it's underneath a wind shell. On the other hand, if you don't have enough insulation, it also takes a good amount of time before the real cold soaks through. Especially if your brain doesn't think it's actually cold.

So the further I went, for some reason I was getting colder, not warming up. My face and ears were just hurting (being the only real exposed skin), and I was starting to decide that they must have been wrong. That usually happens below freezing (for me), but maybe it was a damp windy above freezing that just felt cold. I mean, they said it was 43. It couldn't be that far off. Once I was getting to the outside of town, my fingers were starting to hurt, but luckily I had left a slightly warmer pair of gloves in my backpack because I had been too lazy to take them out. Plus a second set of gloves is never a horrible thing if say, the temperature gets lower than I was expecting by the end of the day for the ride home. So I stopped, put those on, and kept on going. After a couple more miles, my whole body was getting stiff. And at that point, I realized that my pain in the butt water bottle valve wasn't a pain. It was freezing shut. This was not at all 43 degrees.

Luckily I left my rain/wind jacket in my backpack, along with my helmet cover in case I hit any sprinkles. I put those on, and kept moving. That helped a bit, but every time I would stop, I was loosing heat that just didn't seem to come back. But every mile was another mile closer to heat. Finally though, I got to the point that even the five miles left were just going to be too much. I threw in the towel and called Brian my co-worker to tell him where I was. It went to voice mail... shit. I left a message telling him to take the road that I was taking, not the freeway, and hopefully I'd see him. Another mile and I couldn't keep going. I saw a gas station, and stopped in for a coffee. The lady was nice enough to let me stay inside and drink it. About the time I started thawing out, Brian called me wondering about the odd message I left. I told him about where I was, and what road to drive along. I didn't know exactly where, but I knew how long it would take him to get there. So a few minutes before that, I thanked the lady at the gas station, and hit the road again. I didn't want him to drive right by and miss me. This time, it only took a few blocks before I was cold again. Every few yards and I was looking over my shoulder hoping to see his happy yellow pickup. Finally he passed me, pulled over, and for the first time, I ditched out on the rest of my ride.

Later, after checking the weather, I found out that the high for the day was about 21F. So I was probably somewhere around 18-20 degrees when I was riding. It took all day to really warm up, and after getting home, I took a shot of whiskey, and took the hottest shower I've had in years. And when it was time to curl up in bed, this was probably the first night I didn't have to push Melissae as far away from me as I could to stay cool. So yea, the hard learned lesson for the day:

Desktop Computer ~$600
High speed internet ~$40/mo.
Time to start up said computer and check the wether: 5 min.
An old fashioned thermometer ~$5-$8, and it only takes one second to read it.

First Impressions: Uninformative Bliss

2008-02-07T09:32:00.000-08:00

So as I finished up wrapping the handlebars on the new steed, I noticed the snow drizzle had stopped. Things were shaping up to work out just fine for a first ride to test out the geared road bike. But by the time I had the saddle adjusted, riding clothes on, and bottles filled, the drizzle had returned in the form of tiny pellet snow. It didn't matter, I was going for a test ride. After throwing on my fenders, I took off. The first few miles was pretty dry as all the precipitation was in those tiny face blasting pellets. Then it looked like it might even stop, only to return as a cold wet drizzle. Then small flakes took their place, only to warm and melt again. Sometimes it was hard to tell if the stuff was frozen or not, as it melted as soon as it touched anything solid. But it didn't matter, I was riding my bike: the frame I hand built, on wheels I hand built, assembled and tuned by hand... aside from drawing the tubes or machining the shifters, I can say this is about as satisfying and 'custom' of a bicycle that I can ride. This was going to be my first good hard test of the geometry, steering, handling, etc. Of course between the slick road to keep me from railing any turns, and the random direction gusts in the wind to keep me constantly fighting to hold a strait line, I ended up home with not much more of an idea about this bike than when I left. But I did have one hell of a smile on my face.

After a hot shower, I did get a little work done on Marc's frame before I started bonking. Both chainstays are slotted, shaped, and ready to weld on the dropouts. I do have to come up with a way to hold everything together at the right angle. I can't use the BB shell and frame jig like I did on my lugged frame, as there is nowhere for the chainstays to fit into. I will probably use the frame jig, and rig up something to hold the stays at the right angle and distance. I was hoping to get that step done yesterday, but by the time I had the slots done, I was shutting down. I don't know if the cold ride or the season in general is catching up with me, but I didn't even feel up to riding in today. So I'll take it easy, and hopefully nip it before I actually get sick.

My New Frame!

2008-02-06T06:25:00.000-08:00

I got my new frame (geared road bike, click here for the build pics) back from paint yesterday. Because I had to work all day, I didn't get a chance to build it up. But I did Frame Save it, and install the headset. (note: the link takes you to Amazon, but that is just to get you a picture. Go to your local bike shop and have them get you some!) Let me tell you I am totally stoked on this one. There are a couple spots that the braze wasn't totally perfect, or I couldn't file two pieces absolutely flush with each other, and the paint made it slightly noticeable. (I swear it was smooth!) But you have to get pretty close to see it, so I'm OK with it being my own frame. A couple lessons learned. (1) I will probably make the lugs out of two fillet brazed tubes of proper diameters and angles. This would avoid any extra work trying to make the pieces lay flush, and getting the silver to fill any seams.. well seamlessly. (2) Never underestimate paints ability to show off a tiny imperfection that seems just fine when the frame is bare metal. Man that Mr. Paint is just one of those friends that will make you look good if you're on your game, or be the first to kick your kidneys and laugh if you fall down.

And on the topic of the paint. I'm pretty happy for the most part. I took it to Powder Coat Specialists, here in St. Louis. I wanted to keep it local, and I had heard that he does bicycle frames somewhat regularly. The color is exactly what I wanted: a not shiny black (he called it 'Satin Black') Also, there were some tough spots on the frame that he made look better than I would have even hoped for. (a couple tiny pin holes in some non structural welds like the lug add-ons that I couldn't file, and since it was non structural I didn't want to re-heat it just to get rid of them) There are however a few spots that are less than totally awesome. A (tiny) spot or two the paint is pretty thin, and you can start to see the metal underneath, and another (inconspicuous) spot, the paint seems to have small splatters. (which doesn't make sense to me when it's a powder coat, maybe they're tiny bubbles?) But you really do have to go searching for the imperfections, and for ~$100 bucks for the frame and fork, and a few day turnaround, I am fine with it. All in all, it really is pretty good for the money, and if you don't have a few hundred to drop on a paint job, I would call him up. Les is a great guy to deal with, and it really does look pretty good. But if you're really looking for that perfect paint for your classic or new masterpiece, there's just nothing like paying extra, and waiting (a few weeks?) for something like Joe Bell or Spectrum Powder Works.

I'm almost tempted to put a Batman logo on the headtube instead of my own. That, and I'm thinking I should have brazed on some fins onto the top back of the toptube, and detail the edges of the lugs with a red pinstripe. Oh, and I'd have to wear all black, put pointy things on my helmet, and maybe a cape!

....or not
For the most part, I'm pretty damn happy with how this whole thing turned out. And it only took me... yea, I don't want to think about it. Time to ride this thing.

I think the hexagons in the bottom bracket shell are one of those nice details that bring everything together... of course nobody will ever see this. But hey, I know it's there. (and yes, I know this picture is upside down, so is the frame)

Yea, this is where I need some bat fins! And maybe a jet engine sticking out the back.

And of course, a chain hanger. I do believe in these things, and if you ever get a frame from me, it will have one. Sorry, that's one choice you don't get to make. (except maybe for a mountain bike, I guess I could let those slip)

Ok, enough of this. Time to build this baby up and hopefully the rain will let up enough to go for a ride today.

Snow more

2008-02-04T19:15:00.000-08:00

We got a good snow fall the other day. (Thursday) Somewhere around 9 inches in the city. Which for St. Louis, is a lot. I had to run some errands, and on one stretch of road, I saw three pileups. First a three car crash, then a two car crash that turned into a four car crash when someone slid into the cop car that was blocking traffic for the two cars. They knocked his bumper off, and pushed him into the other two cars. Then another car that slid off the road. I'm not trying to be mean here, but man, some people really have no clue when the pavement isn't warm and dry. But, just like the mid-west, it started melting pretty soon, and today was mid 60's, and the white stuff is snow more. (ja ja ja)

My frame is painted and ready, but I won't be able to pick it up until tomorrow. Hopefully I'll have it built up by Wednesday, and take it for a ride on my day off. They were only able to do a solid color, so I have to decide if it's worth masking off and painting the lugs like I was going to have them do. Either way, I'm stoked to have it done and be able to get some good road testing/abusing/commuting miles on it.

Marc's frame is coming along about as good as to be expected for how things have been lately. The front triangle's miters are all done, and now I'm getting ready to braze the dropouts to the chainstays. After they're done, then I can do the chainstay miters for the bottom bracket. I got just about done with the miters for the dropouts, when I decided that there needed to be something different. The front fork is going to come from his crashed Fuji. (as it was about the only thing salvaged from the wreck) Plus, it was a carbon fork that he didn't have to buy, the geometry was going to be pretty much the same, so why not. But aside from the fact that it is going to be a fat carbon fork on a steel frame, the look was just different. So... I did a little something with the chainstays to make the dropouts kind of have the same motif going on:

Ok, so it's not exactly the same, but hey. I think it's pretty cool, and it should be at least closer to matching now.

Warehouse Woes

2008-01-31T06:33:00.000-08:00

So Monday was the last day at Richmond Heights. We cleared the last pile of stuff, cleared out the last trash, and even swept the floor. I even had to turn in the key. It kind of felt like when I was selling my beloved car, and handed over the keys. Watching my car drive away that day, most likely never to see her again was this real mix of satisfaction of completion, and loss of a good companion. Locking up the store for the last time felt the same way. I had worked there almost every day for two years, trying to grow our customers, get in the right inventory, and best handle all the bumps along the way. I had helped make that store what it was. And then she was taken from me. I know they want me to take over the Bridgeton location, but she's no Richmond heights. The customers won't give me that 'Hey, how have you been?' smile. I can't ask people how their riding has been coming along, knowing the struggles they've been dealing with. I won't be able to ask if that new saddle helped their soreness, or if that new angle on their stem stopped their back pain. No, my customers are once again strangers, bringing with it all the excitement of a first date, but leaving out all the familiarity of the long term relationship. Either way, good or bad, it is sure the end of one era, and the beginning of another.

After the last truckload left Richmond heights, I threw my bike in with it, and caught a ride to the warehouse. The last few days have been sorting through an entire store's worth of stock, organizing it, splitting it up, and shipping it to all the other locations. It's sad to see your entire store sitting in a pile in the middle of a warehouse. And I will tell you one thing. The next time you deal with a company - whether it be a large local business, or a corporation - think of the guys in the warehouse that make this stuff possible. That is some hard, tedious, and never completing work, and it takes some hard people to handle it. I've only been working in the warehouse for a few days now, but between the sorting, the shipping, the receiving, just to sort it and ship it all over again... I can say this is not my line of work. So to any warehouse workers reading this: You're awesome! And to any non workers out there: Just think about these guys making your life so much more efficient, and everything that goes into it. I swear, every time I've had a new job, I learn a whole new appreciation for those who do it. I almost think everyone should be required to have a new job every year until they land their career. Seems like you'd have so many less people treating waitresses, customer service people, laborers, and all the other jobs that don't have inherent esteem, like total crap, and like they're somehow less than human. Not saying that every one of those people is out there doing the best job they possibly can, (because I know some do not) but just think twice before talking about them like they're expendable drones. OK, ok, I'll get off my box.

On the plus side, going through a warehouse for a bicycle shop that has been open for 35 years, there are some amazing treasures in there. I found a Campagnolo Record (the pinnacle of Italian engineering) 8 speed front derailleur, brand new, sitting in a box. Granted this isn't the elusive Record 8 speed "Titanium" rear derailleur or shifter set, but hey. For a place that doesn't even sell campy stuff unless you special order it, this is a pretty good find. (oh, and don't ask, I already bought it) Other finds include: A medium Campagnolo waterproof jacket, 9 campy speed titanium cassette lock ring, and a less than common schrader to presta valve adapter. (just in case you only have a fancy silca pump, but your kids mountain bike has schrader valves??) There's tons more, but these are just the ones I had to mention. So at least, in all this mess, there's still come cool things to discover.

Stickers!

2008-01-27T06:04:00.000-08:00

So stickers for the head tube badge are officially being made. I sent out the graphic and they should finish them, and be able to send them here in about two weeks. Right now, I've ordered twenty black stickers, and twenty white. I didn't want to get too many off the bat, as I'm still not totally convinced that they logo may change at some point. That, and I may change over to some sort of lost wax casting to give it a 3-D coolness. Any comments are welcome (good or bad), as I'm always trying to think of how to make my logo better.

Cold day off

2008-01-24T19:53:00.000-08:00

Well today was my "day off." Which meant doing whatever has been piling up during the week, and try to get some good work done on Marc's frame. Today I had to ride all around town running errands. Today never got out of the 'teens, so I was getting some good testing on my cold weather gear. I never stopped anywhere for too long, so I was outside riding half the day. My Lake shoes seem pretty good as long as I am riding. I think that the stepping down of the pedaling pumps the blood through my feet. But if I had to stop for a long light, my toes did start to get pretty chilly. But as soon as I got pedaling, they were OK. For some reason my balaclava (a light-weight Sugoi model) has been acting up. If I start going fast, or the wind picks up, a gust will come in between my eye and cheek bones, and chill the heck out of my ear. Also, if I pull it up over my mouth, it doesn't want to stay that way for too long. Maybe it's getting stretched out? Either way, it's good for in the 20's, but I may look into getting something warmer for at least the longer rides in the cold.

I did meet some interesting people out today. At one particular light, a guy in a car gave a quick tap on the horn. I look to see if he's angry that I'm taking up the last remaining two square feet of pavement, but instead he taps his faced in fist to his heart, then gives the 'atta go' uppercut in the air. I gave him a smile of appreciation and nodded a bit. Then riding away, I realized he couldn't see my smile through the balaclava. Oh well, maybe he still saw the nod. At another light, a cyclist was in the left turn lane, and a car turning left from his right. (should pass in front of him, then go down the road in the opposite direction that he has been going, yea you got it) So the car instead turns behind him, wedging his way between the cyclist and the car waiting in the non turn lane, pushing the cyclist further out into the intersection... It's stuff like this that make me want a helmet cam to catch that action and their license place, and mail it into the local authorities. (which would present another problem, as they don't give a hoot) I mean, there wasn't even a point for him to do that. I caught up with the rider, who told me just the other day, someone forced him off the road. He got more and more into the gutter until he had to try to get up on the sidewalk. But being loaded up (commuter) on a road bike, he got the front wheel, but slid along with the rear, blowing out his tire. It's this kind of stuff that makes the US suck.

Car - "This is my road, get off!"
Bicycle - "Not only is it legal for me to use this road, but I'm paying the same taxes you are to fund it. So really, it's our road. Not to mention there's enough room for both of us."
Car - "Roads are for cars, ya sissy!"
Bicycle - "Huh?"
Car - "Don't confuse me boy! Or I'll come down there and learn ya one with my size twelves!"
Bicycle - "That doesn't even make sense... I'm late for work now."

I got more miters done on Marc's frame, and did all the braze-ons for the main triangle. This thing is starting to come together. Another day off, and hopefully I'll have the miters all done for the main triangle, and for the dropouts in the chainstays. Another day off, hopefully I'll have the chainstay to bottom bracket miters done, and just maybe if that goes quickly (haha), I'd go ahead and braze up the whole thing. (minus the seatstays) But with one day off to do everything in the world, chances are that will be yet another day. I've decided that it just really isn't worth having one day off per week. I think the only way I'd ever want to do such a thing, is if I was single, didn't have any outside interests, and was very excited about my job. Right now, I only kind of have one. And with moving the store, and dealing with all that crap instead of working on bikes, the excitement factor is definitely waining. I just really need two days off.

Busy Times

2008-01-21T16:01:00.000-08:00

Well what can I say... the S&!# finally hit the fan at work. My shop (The Touring Cyclist) is closing down my location. (Richmond Heights) They let us know Saturday, that by the end of the month, we had to be moved out of the store. Starting then, we had 12 more days left. Monday, we probably moved out half the store. But I imagine it was mostly the easy stuff. We still have to go through all the tiny accessories, clear out all the tools, (some of which are freakin' heavy. I'm not sure how the loading will even go for those) then the best part of taking down all the racks, wall grid that has been there to hang stuff on, benches, fixtures.... yea, it's gonna be a blast. Luckily though, I still technically have a job - they're moving me to manage one of the other locations. But my commute went from a pleasant 2.1mi, to a good rides' ~15 mi each way. The entire way to work is slightly up hill, in either direction there are some good hill climbs, and (this time of year) in the snow. So I really will have a grandpa story to tell. "When I was your age, I used to ride 30 miles in the snow, up hill both ways to work! I don't want to hear about your piddly nonsense!" Sigh... I can't wait. But for now, at least I will get to further test out some cold weather gear.

Well, as far as the frame building, I'm going to take my latest frame in to get powder coated, hopefully Tuesday. It's a geared road bike, with some custom lug work, internal top tube routing for the rear brake, with a bit quicker than standard geometry. It's something that I've been wanting to do for some time now, and it seems that it's just about to be finished with. If you want to see the build process, head on over to my flikr site, and look through the old pictures. As soon as I get it back from paint, I'll be putting some up here. Also, I've been talking to Don Ferris (maker of my jig), and I think I've solved a few issues I've been having. This jig works a bit different than the last one I used, (an old Henry James model) and it ended up changing how my brazing sequence will go. I used to make sub assemblies, then piece them together. But now, I'll have to tack the front triangle, and chainstays in one go, take it out of the jig, check alignment, finish the brazes out of the jig, clean, finish, check alignment one more time, then slap the seatstays in to lock it all in place. It's too late to do that with Marc's frame, (as I already have one braze done) but I should be able to account for that, and have a good end result. But I guess from now on, this old man has to change his ways.

New Project: Marc's Bike

2008-01-17T13:50:00.000-08:00

Now that I'm back from vacation, it's time to dig my teeth into the next project: a road-criterium frame. He already had a pretty good fit on his last frame - which was destroyed in a crash - but a few tweaks should make it more than a "good" fit. The tubes came in before I left (Dedacciai COM 12.5 - Oversized), and I was able to get the seat tube joined to the bottom bracket shell. I also got a few miters ready for the next step: the main triangle. This frame I'm joining the tubes by fillet brazing. (Yes, that's why I use my last name for my bikes. It's quite the clever play on words. So clever, in fact, it needs this explanation just so you can wrap your mind around such a complex association. Fillet - Fellet... genius) So anyhow, I'll get some more practice with that. It will be slow goings with working between shifts at my "real job" (bicycle shop manager), but I'm hoping to get it done before things thaw out here in STL. Plus, I'm still getting used to using the new frame jig, but so far, I have to say I like it a lot. So I just have to turn this:

Into this:

...well sorta

I also got a few toys for Christmas, that I'm looking forward to trying out. The first is a stem jig, so I can start making custom of any length/angle. I'll be busy trying to get Mark's frame done, so he'll get off my back, but as soon as I get the chance, I'll be making one for both my road bikes. That way I don't have to use a dreaded shim. (just because I don't have a 1-1/8" steer tube on my forks apparently makes me completely out of date)

The second is a pair of winter riding shoes. Last winter I had darn cold toes on many of my commutes, and a little frost bite the days when it got single digit on me. I figured it would be worth keeping my toes, and giving me one less excuse to even be tempted to borrow the lady's car one cold morning. I have the 2007 version, but as cool as the '08 version is, it doesn't seem like they made it any warmer. So far, I have to say these things are Soooooo... much better than what I was using last winter. (some road shoes with covers) That's obvious. But so far, with some wool socks, I've kept my toes toasty on long rides well into the 20's. (I've ridden in the single digits with good luck, but they were also short rides, so I can't say for sure.)