Bicycle Bonanza!

   I hadn't been writing a whole lot during the past few months, quite simply because very little had been going on. Well, that situation changed drastically in the last couple of weeks, as it seems more people have been wanting to get out and ride, while there is currently a shortage of new bicycles throughout the nation's shops. Not only has my stock of finished bikes taken a (welcome!) hit, but customers have brought in the bikes they have for repairs or improvements - all at my safe, side-door drop-off, of course!

   This all started for me after a visit from a past customer, Chris, who had me do some work on his Lemond bicycle about four years ago. He recently purchased a Colnago VR-1 "Ferrari" frameset in a bargain deal, but it was a bit large for him, so he asked me to include it on my blog/craigslist/Facebook sales pages for him, hoping it would get a bit more exposure. He also wished to sell his Lemond to help finance the building of a new bike, for which we are currently searching.

   One of my circle of teacher/cycling-mates stopped in with his practically new Trek Emonda that needed some major help. He was out riding on one of the trails and a stick popped up into his wheel and lodged between his spokes and the driveside stays, crushing them both. He was lucky to not go flying head-over heels when the bike came to a an abrupt stop, but he was now looking at hundreds of dollars in carbon frame repair!

   He needed me to disassemble the bike for shipping out to the repair specialists in Colorado. His high-tech bike had hydraulic disk brakes, of which I am definitely not an expert, nor do I honestly care to be, but I was able to leave all hoses attached, pad and secure the levers to the frame and I hope that causes us no issues when everything is returned to be put back together.

   Just a couple days later, I was contacted by a very nice woman named Elizabeth, who was having a friend visit for some cycling along the Delaware River and wanted a bike with some "climbability". She had seen the listing for the Patelli bicycle I've had around for a while, and I was really hoping that was the one she wanted, though I had concerns its gearing wouldn't fit her needs. I thought Chris' Lemond would be the most logical purchase.

   Turns out Liz is a VERY serious (and knowledgeable) cyclist, logging in multiple thousands of miles a year. After some test rides, she decided she wanted both bikes, and we then talked about maybe switching to a compact crankset on the Patelli to help on the hills. I gave her some idea of what would be involved, which she enthusiastically okayed. She also dropped off an older Nishiki touring bike of hers that she wanted to give to her daughter, so she's having me do a refurbish job, replacing some of the worn and rusty parts, as well as remove and replace the flaking decals.

   A short time afterward, my friend Ron sent a message asking when he might be able to stop by with the Monteverde bicycle I built for him - oddly enough, right at the time I was working on Chris' Lemond. Ron wanted a tune-up, but he also mentioned that he had been having some issues reaching his brakes from the drops. 

   I immediately thought of adjusting the lever position on the bars, but he still wanted the ability to ride comfortably on the hoods. I suggested switching from the vintage curve of his 3T bars for some compact bars which have a shallower drop. Luckily Soma makes some really nice aluminum bars with a polished finish, instead of the ubiquitous black bars now on the market, so we ordered a set.

   Not finished with reunions with past customers, Andy, who had bought a Ridley Boreas  contacted me about a trade-in for a custom-built vintage bicycle. He had seen the Pinarello Treviso project from many years ago and hoped I could hook him up with something similar. I showed him the Olmo San Remo frameset (photo below) hanging in my rafters, and it fit the bill perfectly. In the meantime, Andy had made some changes to the Boreas but had saved the swapped-out parts. I'm in the process of piecing that bike back together because someone has already expressed interest in it!

   My neighborhood friend Brad easily wins the title of most frequent customer, as he has had many bicycles among several family members in my shop for work over the years! He dropped off two bikes for tune-ups, and I found the drivetrain on his mountain bike to be completely worn out. I realized finding new chainrings for his decades-old Shimano crankset was going to be more expensive than just buying a new crankset. He'll also need a new cassette, chain and bottom bracket, but it's still cheaper than a new mountain bike!

   During a couple visits Matt and I had been swapping parts between his All-City and the Klein. We got one bike finished, but found the other would have to wait, as it required a couple of unforeseen parts purchases. We have a lot of fun during our visits - including informal competition to see who drops Allen wrenches less.

   Saturday evening someone purchased another of the finished bicycles hanging in the rafters, and I had to partially disassemble that and package it for shipping to St. Louis.      

   Finally (as far as what is currently in my shop), someone in Brooklyn responded to my listing of the Somec bicycle I recently completed. Because his uncle had one just like it, and he had always been envious, he immediately sent full payment via Paypal, including a little extra with a request for delivery.

   It was an amazingly pleasant drive Tuesday morning with little traffic, even across Manhattan! The drop-off was quick and safe, after a brief chat through face masks, then I was heading off to do a loop ride from Ringoes, New Jersey, over to the Delaware and Raritan Canal area, down through Princeton and back.
   Three other people have contacted me the past couple of days about helping them search for vintage bikes or frames, after finding out I've been kinda wiped-out of my stock of finished machines. I couldn't find anyone interested in buying just a month or so ago, now I can barely keep anything around!

   I joked with Dave, when I received a message today that his repaired Emonda frame was on its way back to me, "Just in time - I was tired of sitting around doing nothing."