strange custom bikes

[bicycletricycle]

every time i see a strange custom on ebay i always wonder what the original owner looked like.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/56cm-Merlin-Extralight-Titanium-Road-Frame-Wondup-Full-Carbon-Fork-/171676191037?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27f8b2c93d

T rex?

[merlinmurph]

I would have loved to have heard the chatter in the shop over that one.

This doesn't make a whole lot of sense, either:
Seat Tube 53cm c-c 63cm c-t

[buddybikes]

Probably something for a large person that has bad back problem, like rods in the back.

We all aren't normal...

[bjf]

Probably something for a large person that has bad back problem, like rods in the back.

We all aren't normal...

I agree -- I have seen several people riding nice bikes in essentially a cruiser-like upright position.

[John H.]

We tend to forget that those are the people who buy custom bikes.
Those who are not well served by stock offerings.
I bet it fit the original owner quite well.
I would rather see that than a poorly made and poorly fit custom that did not work well for the customer.
Very recently I saw a custom made by a major custom player- when it was fit to the purchaser it had the saddle pushed all the way forward and 4cm of spacers.
That bugs me- the shop did a poor job with the pre-order fit.

[CSKeller]

Looks like most Zinn's I've seen...weird geometry that doesn't make sense.

[Louis]

Looks like most Zinn's I've seen...weird geometry that doesn't make sense.

I'm sure they make sense for the person riding them.

We can't all ride frames with classic proportions (whatever that means, because what was considered normal xx years ago isn't what we see on the roads today).

[ultraman6970]

Spech sold a lot of those bike with humongous front tubes, doesn't surprise me see this one, what surprise me is that merlin actually made it. My old master builder would have refused even being paid to build such a bike, actually he refused a lot of projects like this in his lifetime.

Bike is so weird that probably nobody can even be fit in it. Probably cutting the front tube can help.

[velotrack]

I wonder how tough it was for the original owner to sell that thing to someone else...

[Cicli]

My old master builder would have refused even being paid to build such a bike, actually he refused a lot of projects like this in his lifetime.


This type of attitude really bothers me. If a bike gets someone out riding and let's them enjoy their life, do it.
I know a custom builder that specialized in bikes for special needs and such. I bet that's very rewarding. I would be proud to have built something that afforded someone to enjoy cycling.

[bewheels]

This type of attitude really bothers me. If a bike gets someone out riding and let's them enjoy their life, do it.
I know a custom builder that specialized in bikes for special needs and such. I bet that's very rewarding. I would be proud to have built something that afforded someone to enjoy cycling.

To your point, and to add a bit of irony on this subject, one of the founders of Merlin went on to make frame/vehicles for folks that need special set-ups. One Off Handcycles (http://www.oneoffhandcycle.com/about.html)

...

[buddybikes]

So if I have back surgery then decide to have a bike built for me, people "in the know" will laugh at me due to bike setup?

Get real.

[El Chaba]

I can't count how many times I have seen some weirdly-configured bike leaning against a country store awaiting the return of its owner. I am expecting to see somebody with outlying fit parameters, but instead I am almost invariably surprised by how normal they are proportioned....They are just HORRIBLY fitted....The custom bike niche is 10% about perfectly nailing down a proper fit but 90% about enabling horrifying fit.

[David Kirk]

I've made some bikes that in isolation look 'off' but make good sense for the rider they were built for and their physical situation and when these bikes allow a rider who couldn't get out on a 'cool' looking bike to ride and enjoy, I smile.

I too see odd bikes leaning against the coffee shop wall and I too have watched a rider climb on one and think "wow that fit is awful." At the same time I've seen a 'normal' looking rider walk up to a race bike with 20 cm of bar drop, climb on and ride away with their hands barely even reaching the tops let alone the hoods or, god forbid, the drops and I wonder how they don't run into their garage door when they get home for not being able to reach the brakes. Both fits are just as bad but one bike is fashionable and one isn't. Neither rider should have been sold the bike they have. But.....they are riding and in the end that is the most important thing in my book. In a perfect world they would each have bikes that fit perfectly and they would ride longer and quicker and in more comfort....but they are riding and that can't be bad.

dave

[mktng]

Conan

[8aaron8]

I've made some bikes that in isolation look 'off' but make good sense for the rider they were built for and their physical situation and when these bikes allow a rider who couldn't get out on a 'cool' looking bike to ride and enjoy, I smile.

I too see odd bikes leaning against the coffee shop wall and I too have watched a rider climb on one and think "wow that fit is awful." At the same time I've seen a 'normal' looking rider walk up to a race bike with 20 cm of bar drop, climb on and ride away with their hands barely even reaching the tops let alone the hoods or, god forbid, the drops and I wonder how they don't run into their garage door when they get home for not being able to reach the brakes. Both fits are just as bad but one bike is fashionable and one isn't. Neither rider should have been sold the bike they have. But.....they are riding and in the end that is the most important thing in my book. In a perfect world they would each have bikes that fit perfectly and they would ride longer and quicker and in more comfort....but they are riding and that can't be bad.

dave

+1 Dave always brings a great perspective, more people riding is a plus in my book as well

[BumbleBeeDave]

So if I have back surgery then decide to have a bike built for me, people "in the know" will laugh at me due to bike setup?

Get real.

. . . that's exactly what happened on this very forum for some time when it was still the Serotta Forum. There was a vocal minority who actively derided any bike that didn't look "right" to them . . . and "right" always meant slammed way-long stem, high saddle, and huge amount of saddle to bar drop. In other words, a racer's setup. Too often these jerks insulted the owners without ever seeing any photos of them or really knowing anything about what specific bio-mechanical needs they might have to be able to ride comfortably.

The attitude was also evident way too often that any rider who could not fit a bike with the "right" look didn't really deserve to have a finely made custom bike. By extension, this usually also turned into a slam at Ben Serotta because Serotta sometimes made these specialty bikes that were called "faster backwards" by certain self-appointed sages.

It was pretty sad. Now I get a laugh out of Specialized's Roubaix and all the other companies that are making bikes with taller head tubes specifically to deal with the reality that not every rider has a spine like a rubber band and arms like an orangutan. The only really important hing is to get somebody out enjoying a ride, and if it takes an unusual fit setup to let them do that, so what?

Fortunately that crowd left.

BBD

[e-RICHIE]

. . . that's exactly what happened on this very forum for some time when it was still the Serotta Forum. There was a vocal minority who actively derided any bike that didn't look "right" to them . . . and "right" always meant slammed way-long stem, high saddle, and huge amount of saddle to bar drop. In other words, a racer's setup. Too often these jerks insulted the owners without ever seeing any photos of them or really knowing anything about what specific bio-mechanical needs they might have to be able to ride comfortably.

The attitude was also evident way too often that any rider who could not fit a bike with the "right" look didn't really deserve to have a finely made custom bike. By extension, this usually also turned into a slam at Ben Serotta because Serotta sometimes made these specialty bikes that were called "faster backwards" by certain self-appointed sages.

It was pretty sad. Now I get a laugh out of Specialized's Roubaix and all the other companies that are making bikes with taller head tubes specifically to deal with the reality that not every rider has a spine like a rubber band and arms like an orangutan. The only really important hing is to get somebody out enjoying a ride, and if it takes an unusual fit setup to let them do that, so what?

Fortunately that crowd left.

BBD


Then how do you explain this thread?

[bicycletricycle]

hmmm,

nothing wrong with funny shaped bikes if they fit, everyone should have bikes that fit!!!

i was just saying that i like to imagine what the people looked like who needed such a special bike.

i wasnt trying to bash anyone who needs uncommon geometry.

oh well.

[e-RICHIE]

hmmm,

nothing wrong with funny shaped bikes if they fit, everyone should have bikes that fit!!!

i was just saying that i like to imagine what the people looked like who needed such a special bike.

i wasnt trying to bash anyone who needs uncommon geometry.

oh well.

I hear ya' bt.
Someone's out riding who may not have been.
And a tradesman in the hand-made sector made some money.
That's a plus.

[donevwil]

My wife could easily ride that frameset assuming it has a somewhat typical ST angle. 5' 11", all leg, short torso, throw on a 400mm seatpost and a 120mm -17 stem and it's right there 'ish.

[beeatnik]

My wife could easily ride that frameset assuming it has a somewhat typical ST angle. 5' 11", all leg, short torso, throw on a 400mm seatpost and a 120mm -17 stem and it's right there 'ish.

Yesterday, while I was trying to get some exterior shots of a local estate, I had to pause to let an elderly couple ride by as I was standing in the middle of a narrow road. They were in their late 70s and fully kitted. The friendly lady rode by first and made it to the end of the street about 50 yards ahead of her husband. As she rode by I contemplated her set up; she was on a hybrid (flat bar) but looked pretty athletic. Then I looked at the set up of her slow and not-too-friendly husband. He was on a "comfort" road bike (drop bars) with around 2cm of steerer above the headset and in completely upright riding style (90 degree back angle). This couple probably illustrates a few of the realities, myths and pitfalls of bike fit, aging, marriage and chauvinism. Oh, here's the house:

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8669/16639609836_a847634263_b.jpg

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8618/16665537915_a8e09546c9_b.jpg

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8584/16045606283_b8cd00cc8d_o.jpg

[bicycletricycle]

i like to think about what ill be riding when im 70, mixte? tricycle? maybe an electric tricycle depending on how rough a ride i have. As long as it keeps me out in the fresh air.

[BumbleBeeDave]

hmmm,

nothing wrong with funny shaped bikes if they fit, everyone should have bikes that fit!!!

i was just saying that i like to imagine what the people looked like who needed such a special bike.

i wasnt trying to bash anyone who needs uncommon geometry.

oh well.

Everyone should have a bike that fits them and lets them enjoy the ride!

BBD