Pictures hit my inbox this morning of the forks in progress, thank you David.
Things are starting to build speed and momentum as we move through the prototyping. The braze-ons and main frame fabrication should be through tack up this week. I will be in Portland towards the end of the week for inspection, and to help work out any bugs so that we can hit this with one pass on the samples.
I am looking forward to the trip in many ways. I will be meting many of the people face to face who have only been email and phone calls, I get to see “my” designs in progress and it will be my first of many trips to Portland in the coming years.
You may have also noted the not so subtle shift in the name from Masu to Rambler, there is a bit of final work on the issue, but it looks to be the way things are heading as we close in on the final product.
Looks good Rob! With the PBP crown and Paul Racers this will be a very nice bike. On my bikes those have about 60mm of clearance for tires. You will be able to run a true 45mm tire with fenders.
Thanks, bikes like your customs are what have driven me to keep this venture rolling. As you know, this style of bike can really be an eye opener on the type of fun(ction) you can have on just one bike. With the upcoming crop of true 40-45mm tires covering the range from knobby to slicks, Panaracer, Schwalbe, kenda, Grand Bois, VeeRubber, Bruce Gordan and I am sure I am forgetting a few, all have tires in this range. I know that my offering will be at the front of the line for these style of frames.
I hope to bring all the function of this style of custom bike, with the look and handling of a traditional french frame, and the pride of American construction at a price-point that will still be in reach of the blue collar enthusiast who wants to make the leap to a greater percentage of cycling transportation in their life. The price will be a little higher than your average Surly, but IMO the value will more than support the cost
I was just reading about the Bruce Gordon tires, those look like a great tire for mixed terrain rides. I am going to get a set of the Resist Nomads in 45mm for my newest custom, a touring bike.
I’m sure hoping for your success, that kind of bike is sorely missing in the Industry today.
I took a look at the BG tires while a NAHBS. They are a very nice looking tire, and I will be picking up a set for “evaluation”. My contractor is using a set of the Nomads for fit testing on the 700c, they were the closest to a true 42 that I could find in 700c. I plan on riding as many of the current options as possible so that I can share honest feedback.
As things get moving, and there is a bit of cash flow, I plan to inject some money into a high quality 70x 38 and 42. Something along the lines of a JB green of GB type tire, I think it will be a huge deal for this type of bike, to have really nice tires availible
Rob, that looks fantastic. This is going to be an amazing bike!
Much as I like fish motifs, I think Rambler is a great name–hope it sticks. Looking forward to seeing the first Ocean Air prototype.