porn

weld porn...amazing how many folks like to see puddles of solified metal post weld....

paahts.....get yo paarhhts heah!

chain tensioners, 500 pcs, with stainless hardware.....thank god for automation!

shiny tasty goodness...

so I was jamming along with a plethora of parts this week, to include less bike and more off the wall stuff like some support struts for a boat (with billet cleats), plates for some kind of food processing press, and more odd stuff. Somewhere in there managed to get some bike stuff in, but it seems odd that I cannot move in a straight line lately!

Our aluminum chip pile is impressive, have filled two 55 gallon garbage cans with chips so far...that is alot of material going to the recycler! ouch!

The funny part is all the bits in my hair and clothes, its like mini bedazzling!

Kevins, Jeremy's, Bill's, Holly's, Heidis, Kehrsey's, Jules, and MY bikes are going to paint today....well, maybe tomorrow..new painter, new finishes...should be cool!

hmmm, new drops....hmmmmm....

well, been a few since my last post, a sign of the insanity that abounds here lately.

Making chips is the name of the game, new dropouts, chain tensioners and yours truly suffering through this crappy economy. Poor me, poor us! ha ha..

The drops in this pic are going on Heidi's bike, Heidi is John's better half and the bike will feature carbon seat stays, ala 'mono' to a true temper OXPLAT mainframe. The polka-dot rims are the real cool part, they are reflective!!! Stay tuned, this thing goes to paint today.

titanium, carbon....light...sexy...

Okay, so the addition of some carbon into the line is here, spent about 16 hours yesterday knocking out number one. This bike is John's, and features some of the most amazing connectors on the market, period. What you don't see is what really makes it. Stay tuned for more...

just in time for family guy...

okay, just got off the shop floor after a marathon of a day, but the end result was a ti/carbon frame, first of hopefully many...will post pics later.
time for family guy and bed!

inmate racing....

okay, so I cannot be the only one to notice the associated press report on France's cycling tour that is specifically for inmates and prison personnel! its amazing! I especially liked that the inmates and the guards, escorts, and even judges dressed in the same white cycling duds! I don't want to be touchy feely, but perhaps that is a great way to recoup some lost pride and sense of accomplishment...wonder what the repeat offender rate is there?
On more productive fronts, yours truly is driving along with frames and bits as usual. Sold my car, thank god for a generous girlfriend and UPS. Please don't email me and ask for sponsorship or discounts, but feel free to call me and ask if I can build you a bike! (or two or three....).
Getting some interest in the edwin drops, particularly the slider, time to get that advertised more and recoup some of that money that went into developing it I guess!
Well, better get back to making stuff and not playing on this blog!

take it with you....

so this incessant rain is good for one thing...productivity! managed to get the sns bike for marty J all wrapped up for the plater...stay tuned, can you say neat (and nerve wracking...that should be wrecking...).

We are going to intro our own version of the coupler that will be retrofittable and lighter and lower pro than the sns...stay tuned.

Enjoying some fine tunes from Morrisey and the Housemartins today, and amazingly NOT depressed!

loathe the lathe...

ahh, another day of standing in front of the lathe making bushings for a rear axle on the handcycle project. What started off as a 2" round piece of solid 7005 aluminum has turned (hah ha, pun there) into four press fit bushings..bored out to 28.6 and turned to press into the rear of the frame.

The rain lately is making it easy to stay inside the shop, only bummer is that the rain comes in the door and I have to shut it or get soaked!

On other fronts, sold my car, so I am truly green now, did this before when I owned cyclesmith, wasn't too bad really.

Not much else to report, more pics coming of Marty's frame, I am excited to see it!

leap of faith...

I was out riding yesterday and was reminded about the first time I rode one of my bikes. I clearlly remember how I was just cruising along on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail up above the University of Utah and not really thinking much except how much fun I was having. The whole reality of it all set in when I was flying down city creek, a steep turny, rocky bit that I really enjoy...that is when I thought about how I was the manufacturer of the frame below me...crazy! I felt confident and blown away at the same time. That frame lives on the wall with several others now, sad thought, but clearly the frames have gotten better since then, but just like that day on city creek...I still have moments where I remember who made my bike. Who made yours?

what season is it?

I think we missed a few months here, wow! rain, thunder? amazing! its like fall without the colors, need to get out and ride today! and so do you, stop reading this blog and ride!

what day is it?

isn't it funny when you cannot recall what day of the week it is? I cannot be alone in using things like the fact that the post office is closed as a meter of what day it is...anyone else? ha ha..
today holds promise of more fun in the sun (the artificial one that is...all the UV goodness a TIG torch can provide..but I digress).
Spent yesterday in the suck I call Salt Lake, picking up a nasty product called Hysol with my buddy and mentor John. This stuff is what holds the skin on airplanes together, and I imagine that is good enough for edwin's new carbon bikes huh? ha ha...going to have to rip a toilet out of the spare bathroom to allow for room to add a heater and drying/curing heaters..is this carbon really worth it? we'll see.
Special thanks to Jules for being such an awesome listener when I am sweating the craziness of this business, you have earned a bike for sure.
Stay tuned for more edwin presence, after that backcountry debacle it was evident it was time to look at more local based advertising first, park silly market is looking good!

factory?

what to make?? hmmm, bikes, dropouts, spacers, stems, seatposts....and of course other widgets...suggestions?

lucky to have so many cool folks around..

new dropouts are finally taking shape, only I managed to get caught up in doing carbon stays too, so it gets more complicated...but lighter. What is a fledgling bike company to do? gotta stick out and bring innovations that actually are INNOVATIONS and not just more anodized crap that we laugh at later. Times like this, when I am flat broke (times...who am I kidding, been that way for over a year!) I get scared and think about companies like Fat, Ringle, Rhygin, Ted Wojick, Carumba, White...where did they go?

Stay tuned for the good stuff, things like low pro no slip slider drops, called the 'flex' and carbon stays, and eventually a more 'carbony' bike...the prospect of glue is neat...and much more preferable to having blindspots from tig all day! ha ha.

Keep an eye on the website for new content when this batch of frames gets done, and thanks for being so supportive. Remember that there is always room in my fridge, for beer (and food)!

Selling my car to cover bills for this month...anyone need a new car? (no extra charge for the dog hair)

public rant and roll....

okay, so here is the first of what will be many public rants! ha ha...lets see, what to report? currently juggling multiple projects:

handcycles (2)

11 framesets (three full suspension)

proto frame for marty j...hello copper!

Oh, and the addition of the new cnc mill, haas mini mill....very exciting, very expensive, ouch.

Getting tired of the battle to make enough to pay bills, grow the shop, and the complete lack of a paycheck...perhaps I should be making guns or something?