BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
With another edition of the Bespoked handmade bicycle exhibition now wrapped up, BikeBiz has a gallery from the show floor, which you can view here.
There will be a fuller round up of some of the highlight pieces in the May print magazine, but in the meantime here are some of our handpicked highlights.
An infinately adjustable Hickman
On first looks, this moulton-esque mish mash of tubing may not have you reaching for the chequebook, however it’s the opportunities this design presents that intrigued us.
With a pivot at the headtube, the top tube is easily lowered or raised, while the seat likely has more fore/aft adjustment than you’d find even on one of Didi the Devil’s creations.
Why is this interesting? Creator Mike Hickman explained that from a bike fitter’s point of view, such a design could give customers a ready to roll perfect fit trial in next to no time, thus making it easier to iron out any niggles before the customer’s left the store.
There’s also potential for the cycle hire shop. With such a broad range of adjustment, could a design like this mean a one size fits all solution and less bikes in stock?
Keim Cycles woodcraft
Hailing from France’s Loire Valley, Keim’s unique wooden bicycles are built with several vacuum pressed layers of ashwood. In a process that takes 40 hours, these builds are said to have an incredibly high fatigue level and run silently on the road.
Frame kits begin at £3,300, weigh around 2.5 kilos and are made to measure.
Peter Charnaud’s full suspension wooden bicycle
Claimed to be a world first, Peter Charnaud’s full suspension rig is a blend of London Plane and Walnut wood, with aluminium billet used at pivot points. Have you spotted any wooden full sus rigs anywhere else in the world?
Sturdy Cycles
Look very closely at the front end on Tom Sturdy’s own TT bike. Different, eh? Look a little closer though and you’ll see a distinct lack of bolts, headsets and a few more welds than is typical. That’s all one piece, from the bars at the top to the fork and lower aerobars. What’s more, it’s all internally routed and he’s snuck a front light in there too. Top work!
