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Back Into Frame Building :) - Pics Of A Custom Frame I Built .. And M


IOLO

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hello all....

as some of you know i needed a big fun very random trip ....

so in mid april i flew to vancouver, was homeless ... bought a crappy old dodge van and lived in it for the summer...

i rode trials alot, and downhill at whistler, and skateparks.dirtjumps etc too...

i also drove south along the coast to near LA, then came back inland with some friends over a month...

i then traveled round Vancouver island and the sunshine coast too...surfing and riding lots

then i made my last trials video...(iolo in canada)

then i moved into a small lorry (climbing the property ladder :) )

then went on another amazing trip south and east to Wyoming and then north through the rockies and back to vancouver..

a huge amount has happened in all that.. without sounding stupid, it really has been the trip of a lifetime, and im still on it !!! :)

then i was well and truly skint !!!!!!!! well below skint i suppose...

so had to find work for the winter..

im now living in my lorry on a small island called 'quadra' off the coast of Vancouver island.it feels quite remote. (yes its so f**kin cold i had to build and install a wood stove into my van.)

and im working for a custom bike building company called 'naked bicycles'

im sure those who know me will realise this is basically my dream job.... after running iolobikes.com its been really nice to learn alot and refine skills too.

naked bikes has alot to its name ! considered one of the best bike builders in the whole of north america. also won alot of awards for show bikes..

sold bikes to quite a few famous people (including Lance Armstrong ! yes !!) and produced bike for shimano to display new stuff on at shows..

two main big projects for me lately have been designing and building a road frame myself for a friend in my spare time.

and at work we have been putting in effort to get a full bike worth over 1200 can dollers finished, its basicalyy the most bling custom bike in the world. haha

so heres some pictures of the frame iv just made,,

i cut holes in the front to make it less boring than a usual road/touring frame

and made my own lug for the front end.

also polished the hell out of the stainless dropouts so they look chromed. (just wanted to see if it could be done)

and after 11 and a half hours of polishing, yes the dropouts were done. hahaha (holy crap !!)

i also put an internal cable guide in the top tube for the rear brake. this goes in on the second big hole though the tube, then out in the usual way.

im really proud of it ! for my first frame build in a few years . throwing some Pearly dust into the first two layers of clear coat paint made the whole thing look way better too.

so heres some pics....

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more to come 1 sec...

forgot to mention the frame is nearly all TIG welded with a bit of brazing, but TIG is way nicer !!! haha

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and a couple more....

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to see pictures of the super bling expensive bike go to ......... http://www.flickr.com/photos/nakedbikes

this bike features an upside down headset , so the fork crown clamps like the stem would.

so... we could put a headlight inside the stem. (one piece bar and stem)

also features super bling wooden mahogany grips and pedals ( with mother of pearl inlay)

and a rear mud gaurd made of stainless and stretched rubber (with rear light )

has wooden rims built onto chris king hubs etc...

ohh and alot of chrome and polishing here. and a good few layers of clear paint.. and some more polishing.

and our website is . . . . . . . www.timetogetnaked.com

all comments welcome.. and sorry its not trials...

though we do build trials frames.. as well as bmx, dj,freeride, dh, road, timetrial, touring, etc etc... everything !!

im sure im be building a trials frame int he future when i have funds..

miss you all in the uk.

iolo.

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That fantastic work - It's inspiring to see some proper artisan bike building and this is a cut above anything I've seen recently :). Couldn't justify the cost of anything other than the stuff the far east churns out the way I treat bikes though - time spent polishing is time that could better be spent riding :)...

If there's anything in a long travel XC hardtail with a nitrided finish I'd consider it though :P...

Edited by psycholist
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yea tom , i did start the freight bike courier service in manchester

did it for a year or so.

was hard going,,, but a really good experience .

massive thanks for comments !!!

:)

i just need to save up lots and then hopefully at some point i can order a titanium tubeset for a trials frame. :)

miss riding with everyone in the uk... see you soon,, well sometime,, erm at some point. :)

iolo.

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haha erm thanks....

dont worry its not all traveling about meeting people, riding lots and making nice bikes..

theres a fair amount of being in debt, eating cheap noodles and riding alone involved ! haha

:) still wouldnt change any of it !

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haha erm thanks....

dont worry its not all traveling about meeting people, riding lots and making nice bikes..

theres a fair amount of being in debt, eating cheap noodles and riding alone involved ! haha

:) still wouldnt change any of it !

I may not have phrased it quite right, if you want to make more frames and make some more money fixies could be could be worth a look into.

I bet the good bits cancel the bad bits out by a mile though :)

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yea thanks for the advice, theres quite a bit of money in the fixie trend.

but without being harsh,.. we kinda HATE IT !

plus we are booked up for a LONG time with , full sus mtb, single speed hardtails, dirt jump frames and road/ touring bikes..

we are very happy to make fixie frames, just not that into pushing marketing at frames that match neon sunglasses, or bikes with handlebars 5 inches wide.

function comes before fashion, even if your gonna put holes in frames for fun, haha.

iolo.

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YO!

Sounds like you are having a pretty amazing time! Those frames look pretty awesome!

I am also pretty envious of what you have done, but I guess you had the guts to actually go ahead and do it!

I will have enough money to come and see you soon, would you be up for some company? Got a spare bed in your van? ;)

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