Monday, July 30, 2012

Garage sale updated; in packing mode

For folks on the waitlist: I won't be building anything further until I'm set up in Utah. I hope that will be under 3 weeks, but I have a lot of packing, transporting, unpacking, and drywalling/setting up to do in the new shop.

For folks who need parts: No parts orders until August 15th. If you need something quickly, you'll need to visit (gasp!) your LBS.

For folks who want to order a frame or bike: I'm happy to speak with you via phone or email, but don't be too surprised if I don't answer immediately. I promise to get in touch with you in late August if not earlier.

If you need a repair/mod, decals, repainting, etc
: Please wait to ask me about these things until mid/late August.

I've updated the garage sale page. Local bike folks and builders - there are lots of items (True Temper tubing, misc. tools, some bike parts) available that are not on the garage sale list. If you would like to come browse, please drop me a line and I'll be happy to make you some great deals.

Thursday, July 26, 2012

2012 Afghanistan-Leadville-Afghanistan results

No, Mike didn't ride from Afghanistan to Leadville, or back. He flew back and did the Leadville 50, taking 7th in the singlespeed class. And he sent over a couple of pictures before he flew back. Thanks, Mike (and not just for the pictures!)




Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Shop cleanout part 1 - that's a lot of S&S bikes...


When S&S sends you a set of couplers, they also send some little stainless discs that you can braze into the inside to seal off the rest of the tube from the coupler. I usually throw them away (I like to leave the tube open so I can get framesaver into it, plus the discs are like 20+ gauge or something and just burn to a crisp when you're brazing them unless you're a HUGE stud with the torch/56% - which I'm not) but sometimes I would just toss them into the bin where I keep flux and flux brushes and other "dirty" crap that I don't want touching other stuff.

Wow, that is a lot of random little stainless discs. I think I do 3 or 4 coupled bikes a year, and over 8 years, that's a decent number of bikes, and quite a collection of useless super thin stainless steel circles. The nasty flux goo is quite gross. I need to be less of a slob!

Monday, July 23, 2012

Repeat Ad Nauseaum - the Framebuilding Bubble

This topic comes up about every 2 years, but here's the latest version over on ERichie hates protractors Velocipede Salon.

For what it's worth, we get the same threads every few years on whichever of the framebuilding message boards is hot at the time (as an aside, when people tell me the MTBR board that I moderate is "boring", I tell them "good." We don't want no drama.)

What's interesting is not particularly the random chatter about the usual topics:
-"There are too many new builders"
-"Nobody makes any money"
-"It's too easy to start being a builder now that it's cool and you can learn all about it on teh interwebz"
-"We should start a guild/society/etc"
-etc, etc.

No, that stuff is basically boilerplate. What is interesting is that the reason the discussion began is that some builders aren't participating in the forums like they used to. Which, to be fair, is totally normal. Internet forums about any specific topic that isn't politics or religion pretty quickly (in a few years) run through all the possible permutations of "what is the best handlebar for my 29er" or "what flux do I use", and then people lose interest.

The same challenge exists for blogs, of course, unless you go all meta like I'm doing here. There are only so many pictures of a toptube welded to a headtube that people want to see in their lives and after you've been building for almost a decade and blogging for more than half that time... it gets hard to come up with new material.

So hey, maybe tomorrow I'll do a recipe. Hah!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Race "report" from Luis: Breck 68


No, not the tour divide (all race reports kind of pale in comparison to Eszter's). But still a long race in my book.

Report: up, down, up, HAB, up, HAB on top of HAB, down, tears, lots of pain, lots of fun too. I love the riding up there.

7:40 singlespeed, though for some reason the promoters decided to add 15 minutes to my original time, oh well, doesn't matter. Solid mid-pack overall, 9 out of 12 singlespeed LOL. Can't complain, first race in CO without too much "training". Hopefully I'll have legs for the full hundo next year.

Oh yeah, here's a pic...

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Unsolicited Brown-Nosing From Jonathan

My ego has never been more inflated.

Hey Walt.

Sorry for the delay, but I wanted to provide you with some sweet feedback on my new road frame. Feel free to put this on the blog. People need to know that you’re a genius with building road frames, too! I’ll send pics soonest!

So my new Waltworks road frame is officially the 40th bike that I’ve owned in my 40 years of existence and it is proving to be the nicest road bike that I’ve ever thrown a leg over.


For decades, I’ve been riding harsh aluminum or dead carbon frames that never really fit right. I’ve got long-ass legs and a short torso. I’ve either run a ton of seat post or really short stems that always made my road bikes very uncomfortable. 58s and 60s always left me hanging.

After riding my Waltworks 29 hardtail in various configurations over the last 3 years, I knew that Walt had to build me a road frame. My hardtail is the absolute coolest bike to shred tight, east coast single track. It climbs and wheelies and fits like a glove. I wanted to have a road bike that climbed like a demon, but felt stable on descents and cruised the flats without causing me neck pain. I knew Walt could work his magic.

First off, the build quality is superb. Super neat welds all around. Even the powder looks nice. Can’t beat black!

I knew going steel would result in a heavier bike (I’m a recovering and often relapsing weight weenie) than I’m used to. My Cannondale System 6 was 15 pounds. My new bike is closer to 18.5. Can I feel the extra weight? Sure, but the bike is so freaking comfortable that I can lay down the miles for hours, feeling super efficient. I’m running a 62 cm seat tube and 57 cm top tube! I feel so dialed into this bike that I immediately felt at home with it. Every previous road bike would take 5-6 rides to dial it in to a state of being acceptable.


I made 1 adjustment after 2 rides on the new frame (seat height). The bike does everything we talked about. It feels crisp on the climbs. I can stand and jam on the pedals and there is no lateral flex that my massive 250 watts can produce. Yet the plush True Temper pipes soak up road chatter and Pittsburgh’s notoriously choppy roads. The bike is smooth as silk yet can be hammered.

No neck or back pain after 3 plus hours in the saddle. Looking forward to a few centuries before the summer is up. So what’s not to like? Yeah, she’s “heavy” for a road bike in the days when 14 pounds is the norm. I could still race it if I wanted to, but I’ve never been into racing road. The sheer comfort outweighs any weight penalty.

I’ve got the bike built with a mix of Sram Force and FSA parts. My Mavic Kysrium ES wheels are super snappy. A set of tubulars would make this bike even smoother. They might be in my future.

I’ll quit rambling. I gotta get home and ride my new road bike. Walt really did a great job on this frame. A full-sus could be in my future. A trifecta of Waltworks? Oh man that would rule!

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Bored on Sunday afternoon?

Go read Eszter's now-complete blog entries about her 18 days on the Tour Divide.

Seriously, it's awesome. 100 times more awesome than this blog (especially lately). She even has pictures.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Garage Sale Update 2 - more wheels!

Special update, because I'm trying to help out Celeste who changed her mind on wheels.

Brand new (literally never mounted) XT 756 hubs (6 bolt, quick release front and rear) laced to Velocity Blunt SL 29er rims. DT Champion spokes, brass nips, all black.

$200 plus shipping. You can't beat that! Drop me a line if you want 'em.

Garage Sale Updated

I've added some new things, including some FREE stuff, so check it out.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Pic from Robert


Rack mounts, Rohloff, nice cushy squish seatpost (with a Brooks on it - a combo I'm not sure I've ever seen). Ready for some serious dirt touring!

Monday, July 09, 2012

You lose some, you win some.

Here's what remains of a frame after I forgot to tighten the head tube portion of the frame fixture. Super sweet 3+ degree difference between the head tube and the seat tube - perfect for riding in left-handed circles! Yes, I salvaged the BB shell for my upcoming Bakfiets project.

Doh. I was in a black mood for hours. I haven't done that in YEARS, but the impending move is apparently making me act like (more of) an idiot.

But then I got this email from a customer (who can remain anonymous unless he wants to chime in):

Walt,

I took the bike out yesterday and went twice as long as originally planned because I couldn't stop grinning!! I love my bike! I have never felt like a bike was just an extension of my body until now. Even though you probably don't need any, feel free to put me down as a satisfied customer reference.

Take care and thanks for choosing to build bikes for a living!

Saturday, July 07, 2012

Moving sale part 1: TITANIUM!

I have had these sitting around for about 7 years - back when I thought I would eventually want to make titanium frames. That never happened and I've concluded that it's stupid to have them sitting around (or moving them to another state) so I'm selling the whole lot. They are in great shape, albeit a bit dusty, and the finish quality is excellent. Some in original packaging from the mill, some not. All are Asian-origin 3/2.5 and .9mm wall thickness. Buyer pays shipping, I'll ship 'em anywhere on earth.

Reasonable offers considered, buyer pays shipping. I want these gone!

Here's what I've got:

-24 pieces of 19mm x 0.9mm straight gauge 3/2.5 ti, lengths from 46 to 53.5cm. This would typically be used for seatstays. Identical to this. $40 per pair, or $450 for the whole lot.

-10 pieces of 22.2mm x 0.9mm straight gauge 3/2.5 ti, 46cm length. Chainstays. Same as this. $40/pair or $350 for the lot.

-24 pieces of 31.8mm x 0.9mm straight gauge 3/2.5 ti, 58-62cm lengths. These would be either seat tubes or toptubes for most people. Same as this. $45/piece or $1000 for the lot.

-8 titanium seat binders. Mitered to fit 31.8 tubes, take an M6 bolt (bolt not included). $5 each or $30 for the lot.


Want it *all*? $1600 plus freight.



Tuesday, July 03, 2012

650b - where's the love?

So I've been chatting with a potential customer about a 650b full suspension bike recently, and 650b is very much in the news lately with Nino Schurter absolutely killing people on his Scott 650b (and yes, yes, I know as well as you do that it's the rider an not the bike) - but I'm confused a bit, for a couple of reasons.

1. Boulder is pretty much the epicenter of bike geekery and me-firsterism, so there were Gates belt drives popping off their cogs and 5' tall people on 29ers here like 10 years ago. If it's trendy, I'll see rich Freds at the trailheads with it strapped to the roof of their Eddie Bauer Outback. I haven't seen a single 650b in Boulder. Ever. Not one, unless you count a frame that a friend of mine built a few years ago, and the FS bike I built for my friend Martin. No Jamis's, no Haros (both have multiple dealers in Boulder), no custom stuff. And I would have seen them, because I'm the kind of person who could see a swimsuit model on a Pacific and only notice the cable routing.

2. I *never* get asked to build them. In the 5 years or so that 650b has existed, I think I've built half a dozen. And most of those were back in the very early days of the wheelsize - the current guy I'm doing some design work for is the first in a couple of years, probably.

3. Fox is making a 650b fork this year - but it is 160mm travel, which is something I have NEVER been asked for in 650b. I don't even know of any production bikes that you'd use such a fork on. Maybe they figure the market is for freeride/trail bikes?

So my question is - is anyone buying the bikes? I am someone mostly known for 29ers, so perhaps people don't think to ask me about 650b (for the record, I am a big fan), or perhaps Boulder is too deeply invested in 29ers right now for the Freds to get 650b. But it's downright weird to me. When 29ers came out, they started popping up everywhere, not so (at least here) with 650b.

I hope I'm wrong, because I think that having a size between 29 and 26 is a really good thing for a lot of people - but man, I have a hard time believing anyone is buying these things based on what I've seen here.

Monday, July 02, 2012

A sad day...



Nick no longer has room to store my track bike, and with the Boulder Velodrome torn down and the imminent move to SLC, I have nowhere to ride it.

So, Barney has to go. He's for sale, for cheap cheap cheap. Want to use him as a cool fixie and ride around town upsetting the squares in their cars? Great. Want to go race on the track (assuming there's one near you)? Also fine with me.
Here are the details:
-74/74 head and seat tube angles
-11.6" BB height
-185mm head tube (1 1/8)
-55cm effective toptube, 585mm front-center
-59cm (to top of seat tube) seat tube, takes a 27.2 post
-38cm chainstays with the wheel all the way forward

Parts list:
FSA headset, Thomson 120mm X2 stem and elite post, ITM bar
Cheap square taper track cranks with 48t (I think) ring
Paul Components/Halo Track rim wheelset, with super cool 22c Tufo semi-tubular tires, all in great shape.

Note that I will only include the fork shown if you are ~150# or lighter (ie my size). If you're bigger (the frame is fine up to 250#) I will offer you a choice of a new custom steel fork or an Enve track fork, your call.

$1000, or make me any vaguely reasonable offer. The bike is in great shape and a fun snappy ride, I just don't have anywhere to ride it anymore. Happy to disassemble and ship, might be willing to sell the frame alone/part it out.

Bike mowers are silly

...but Jeff made this awesome video anyway. Check it out.

Random Picture Monday

Thanks to Marco for the great shot.



Also, a big congrats to Aaron Weinsheimer for a solid finish in the GDR aboard his Waltworks 29er!