Must be nice to have a bike handmade to specifications......

[Manonabike]

Maybe one day

 

[theloafer]

got mine a (tourer) made by local ....arthur caygill its my fav bike of the 3 i have now ride,s great and is comfy even after 8+hours in the saddle..... and worth every pound

 

[vernon]

Maybe one day

It will happen if you want it to.

It is a wonderful feeling when the bike of your dreams is handed over to you for keeps.

I'd dreamt of commissioning a Woodrup Audax or touring bike for four or five years. I'd asked about the cost of a frame only and did nothing about it. At the time Steve Woodrup was building far fewer frames that he used to. Fast forward to April last year. Steve invited me behind the counter and into the inner sanctum to see something that might interest me.

It did! It was the prototype Woodrup Chimera belt drive hub geared touring bike frame. It looked truly wonderful and was rivalled by some of the other Woodrup frames that were being built like the Maurice Woodrup flagship model with hand cut lugs. A seed of a plan of acquisition was sown there and then and I drooled when I was promised a test ride once it had been built and shown at the York Cycle Show. I still had nagging doubts about the hub gearing but researched the options i.e. Alfine and Rohloff and found that Rohloff offered much lower gearing that was more suited to my porky frame. I also wasn't convinced by belt drive but last year's summer tour changed all that.

I met a British couple who had Rohloff hubbed Thorn bikes in Switzerland. They were very positive about the hubs. In Germany I met a Dutch naval architect who was cycling along the Danube cycle route who had a belt driven rohloff hubbed bike and had had it for over 5,000km of touring. He patiently answered all of my questions and the die was cast....

In October I finally got to test ride the Chimera. I did a sixty mile ride and was smitten by the quality of ride, the lightness of the rig, the appearance of the bike and the silence when pedalling. I only had the finance package to assemble....

Deposit made in December after a few false starts on the money front and measurments were made and consultations took place. I submitted a coulour scheme for the framee and left them to it. Building started in January and Tony Woodrup would send me pictures of progress made by Kevin Sayles their frame builder who had returned to the fold after having an extended spell building frames for Thorn Cycles. I called in once or twice to see the frame and finally I took delivery in March.

It's a wonderful machine. I've yet to tour on it but I've done four 100km audax rides on it and a FNRttC where it attracted a lot of attention. I suspect that Mice, a rider from London is still smiling after I let her have a go in Hull. I have had one post build adjustment made to the handlebar position. I have had a shorter stem installed and the bar height raised by a centimetre.

Here's some links to drool at the handiwork of Kevin Sayles and a picture or two of my bike.

Kevin Sayles

Woodrup Cycles Photostream

My bike

 

[fossyant]

Had mine over 20 years.... made for me !!!

 

[ASC1951]

I had a bike handmade for me about 20 years ago, when I was temporarily flush with funds. Lovely to ride, but I'm a stock size so I could have got something just as good for a lot less. By all means specify your own components, but unless you want something really unusual there is little point having a handmade frame.

 

[biggs682]

true it must be nice , not sure if i will ever experiance it .

 

[Manonabike]

I had a bike handmade for me about 20 years ago, when I was temporarily flush with funds. Lovely to ride, but I'm a stock size so I could have got something just as good for a lot less. By all means specify your own components, but unless you want something really unusual there is little point having a handmade frame.

nteresting point.

I have already upgraded a 25 year old bike that I hardly rode when I first bought it. The components were my choice and so was the paint work etc. So, I would have to think what I would like to have..... I'm sure that would not be too hard

The more I read from people that had their handmade bikes the more I want one

Nice bikes guys....

 

[vernon]

I had a bike handmade for me about 20 years ago, when I was temporarily flush with funds. Lovely to ride, but I'm a stock size so I could have got something just as good for a lot less. By all means specify your own components, but unless you want something really unusual there is little point having a handmade frame.

I have a couple of other bikes with hand built frames neither of them commissioned by me. One of them is a Trevor Jarvis 'Flying Gate' which is an unusual frame configuration and it offers a different riding experience especially on the climbs where the claimed rear frame rigidity does appear to transfer more power from the pedals to the rear wheel. The other is a Dave Yates' Randonneur touring bike. The 'Gate was obtained second hand for £150 and I spent considerably more refurbishing it. The Dave Yates' bike was an Ebay bargain at around £200 for the new unused frame. I don't think that I'd have forked out 'full whack' for them at the times of purchase. One of them, the 'Gate offers a different riding experience. The Dave Yates Randonneur matches a Dawes Galaxy for long distance comfort.

Hand made frames, while sometimes not offering any superiority over off the peg alternatives, do give their owners the satisfaction of owning something that is more personal and distinctive. I think I've had my fix of bespoke bikes for now. The Chimera is value for money and compares well with the Santos Travelmaster off the peg equivalent. The satisfaction is the knowing that my bike was built for me and tweaked to suit my specific needs e.g. porkiness

 

[postman]

Vernon wrote.M y bike was built for me and tweaked to suit my specific needs e.g. porkiness.

So Vernon when you have lost x number of pounds/stones and are as slim as a pencil.Will the bike be sold as it will not fit your new frame?