here are some early process shots as i set up the tools for the old time-y frame i’m gonna make. the client wants it merckx era correct. that’s when i started walking this path. i have all the components still from when every bicycle was made using these materials or similar parts. it’s a bit of a dance because my head isn’t in the past but i do think a lot of what we have now is just watered down crap and made for the market. don’t mistake my point of view for a cry to return to old ways. mine is an internal conflict having lived through various decades and watching as my trade spirals down that rabbit hole of pandering to the lowest common denominator. jeez am i an opinionated eff according to my opinion. that’s a rhetorical question. for the tech nerds following these posts are the tubes and bb shell i’ll use – the shell was carved on friday, scroll back in my feed to see that operation – and the lugs are some loose fittings versions i use to ensure all the interference fits are righteous. once i get past this here task i’ll dip into my stash and get the actual lugs to be used. that there will be a trip. read: a mother lode of prep work and hand-filing to reshape the little guys. but ya’ know, tradition ‘n shit.
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