brands with the most style

[bicycletricycle]

I have been helping a friend get a new bike, he, like me, is a product designer which makes one extremely opinionated and difficult to please. Finding a frame that he likes has been interesting.

It started me thinking about what the best styled brands are, production or custom.

I started by showing him

Chapman Cycles (personal favorite and local)
Speedvagen coolest kid in town probably
Geekhouse (local but also pretty "cool" if you prefer a bright 80's palette)
Cielo, really think they do a great job
All City, the fades can be a bit much
Specialized, best of the big brands?
Moots, make bead blasted frames for long enough and it will be a style
Ibis, nice carbon frames with simple-ish, small-ish logos
Ritte, best paint job on a chinese open mold?
Breadwinner, I really like these, Logo remind me of Tournesol
Mercian, fancy lugs with barber pole paint for life
Sachs, red works, ask ferrari


What do you guys think are the best styled / coolest brands? and why?

maybe we could have an art school crit.

AKA we can all tell everyone why they are wrong :)

we could add a worse styles brand as well i guess.

[Corso]

I’ll open:

http://www.houseind.com/objects/velo/housevelobicycle

The why part: I’m a creative director who was on the boards before computers took over. I learned type by hand rendering. I appreciate and respect what House does.

[1centaur]

Not sure you will get agreement on metal bikes vs. carbon bikes, so maybe they should be in separate style categories.

Balance of colors, shapes, and graphics, including the bike brand name, is important. One reason I like Zanconato bikes is how nice his name in that font looks on the down tube.

As a carbon fiber fan, I have to say that Specialized road bikes look singularly awful to me. Every time I read a glowing Tarmac review, and there are many, I look at that bike and wonder if I could stand to look at it in person. White paint seems required to undo some of the visuals the molds compelled.

I also have noted that Pinarello ads use a strange 3/4s from behind shot of the F8, probably to hide that unsightly extra wedge of seat tube that juts behind the seat post and looks unintentional.

[bcroslin]

Cielo gets my vote for cool steel bikes and Colnago for carbon. BMC has a very Swiss industrial design look of form over fashion.

[pinkshogun]

As a lugged steel fan, I second Chapman Cycles. Great guy and great bikes

Since this is about visual style here is the link:

http://www.chapmancycles.com/

[joosttx]

Catella

[rpm]

No way this list should leave out Firefly and Tom Kellogg.

[buddybikes]

art school - Firefly - Tyler has degree in this field. Just walk into their workshop and see the paintings on the wall and their interior industrial design, your friend will go nuts.

Unfort the wait..

[AngryScientist]

i would throw Winter cycles and Llewellyn in the mix. both make a fantastic bike with a real eye towards the aesthetic side.

[vav]

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRg9JQEVDKfn9Yb5nK8wE0ZYdCMQMvsZ Lpq8mxL8DaGOxySuEsV0utDnk_C

http://www.hampsten.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/boar-202.png

http://trackosaurus.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/old/images/SmellThebaconTracko.png

[happycampyer]

When I think of bikes that are distinctive and yet immediately recognizable as representing a brand, the absolute top of my list go to Vanilla/Speedvagen and Firefly. I would put Baum up there, too, but ever since they settled on what seems like a single paint scheme, I think that took something away.

The original Richard Sachs paint scheme (red or otherwise) is iconic; the rebranding with House Industries (with the tessellation of the "RS" on the seat tube) is an amazing makeover.

Brian C's bikes are amazingly well thought out and put together. He's something of a young Peter Weigle, who should also be on the list (although not sure one can get on his list).

For carbon, I think Nick Crumpton has a very distinctive style (especially the patchwork carbon finish).

And as vav notes, Steve Hampsten maintains a very understated style.

In terms of production bikes, I think Colnago is one of the best styled brands.

[gomango]

No way this list should leave out Firefly and Tom Kellogg.

Nor should this list leave out Chris Kvale for that matter.

[Exonerv]

I was not familiar with the House brand...but found the care instructions for their wool jersey to be amusing.

http://www.houseind.com/clothing/mens/

Care instructions: Cycle regularly, hang to dry, repeat often, do not bleach or strava. Skinny Euro sizing. We suggest ordering a size up. 100% Merino wool, chain stitch embroidery on front and back.

[MattTuck]

Food for thought.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-39XqWljfkOM/VWaECVT3vQI/AAAAAAAAHmA/NvRBXod9HYY/w920-h518-no/IMG_20150527_225535996.jpg

[OtayBW]

For this guy, BMC....

[DRZRM]

I think your list is good, and most of the additions I'd +1. Personally I'd add Zanconato and Firefly for bikes I own. Winter, Ellis and Kirk for bikes I don't. And while I personally favor metal frames, and I know nothing about the quality of the bikes except what I've read, I think the Argonaut brand has always been cool.

Additionally, I own two Independent Fabrications and love them both, but their move from Somerville, sort of like Fat Chance's move to NY, took some of the brand's cool out for me.

[blessthismess]

VAV is right, gotta have Landshark on the list. Great bikes, awesome and unique paint jobs.

[Aaron O]

Picchio
Grandis
Galmozzi
Cinelli
Spectrum
Peter Mooney
Weigle
Vanilla
Dave Kirk
Lotus
Moulton (not Dave)
Ephgrave

[jmoore]

Bianchi - celeste on steel

Baum - great paint schemes

[stephenmarklay]

i would throw Winter cycles and Llewellyn in the mix. both make a fantastic bike with a real eye towards the aesthetic side.

I have seen Winter bikes in person. Wow.

[stephenmarklay]

I think your list is good, and most of the additions I'd +1. Personally I'd add Zanconato and Firefly for bikes I own. Winter and Ellis for bikes I don't. And while I personally favor metal frames, and I know nothing about the quality of the bikes except what I've read, I think the Argonaut brand has always been cool.

Additionally, I own two Independent Fabrications and love them both, but their move from Somerville, sort of like Fat Chance's move to NY, took some of the brand's cool out for me.

I moved out of Somerville and I am still cool :)

[stephenmarklay]

Picchio
Grandis
Galmozzi
Cinelli
Spectrum
Peter Mooney
Weigle
Vanilla
Dave Kirk
Lotus
Moulton (not Dave)
Ephgrave

Hard to leave out Dave Kirk. I have seen some really cool looking bikes from his hand. I would be super happy to ride one.

[stephenmarklay]

Food for thought.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-39XqWljfkOM/VWaECVT3vQI/AAAAAAAAHmA/NvRBXod9HYY/w920-h518-no/IMG_20150527_225535996.jpg

Danger Will Robinson. I am cracking up.

[ceolwulf]

No one has mentioned Pegoretti yet? You guys are slipping ...

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/27/401be62ba50aaadf1b48319dc0c01733.jpg

Jaegher is near the top for me ...

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/27/ba59cb320ebbdd68858514ffb14c699c.jpg
http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/27/dae4b3f7d6b79c463049fa324f82f38b.jpg

For carbon take your pick of elegant Bianchi ...

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/27/b7c252113fd7144521d663d886099832.jpg

Or coldly logical BMC ...

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/27/29fc99b62054dc50a8e0639863344205.jpg

[chasea]

I like no frills race bikes made of welded metal.

Gaulzetti and Rock Lobster.

[cmg]

Bishop bicycles. They're all beautiful

[bicycletricycle]

bishop and winter both make some seriously drool worthy stuff, both experiment a lot and to me this makes them a bit fuzzier in the identity department.

strangely, i don't know if House counts for me as a bicycle brand. more like a brand that happens to make some bike stuff.

Kirk frames are great but he seems to be one of the builders that will let the owner paint their bicycle however they choose, they can get a little wacky and really undercut the brand identity as a whole. Also I don't care for 2 of the 3 logos he has come up with over the years.

Pegoretti for sure, however, like colnago (especially older ones) they are an acquired taste

Landshark, i love a landshark but I cant see them fitting in here, all over the map with little continuity over the years

Baum, yes

Toei, probably the absolute winner for me. beautiful, simple, nice logo.

I really liked the Tournesol brand identity and was sad to see it go.

Lluwelyn (that is not spelled right) maybe but i do not like all the tiny lluwelyn decals all over the place, one on each headset spacer? can't do it.

BMC is a great example, maybe the best big(ish) brand

Specialized bikes can be ugly but they are consistent and always look ready for a race. Those zerts lumps are getting a little out of hand.

Jack Taylor, unique and consistent but also esoteric and ugly to most peoples eyes in my experience (not mine, really want one). Like old Mondias and air brushed 90's italian craziness (Any one got a big Somec for sale).

I cant see colnago on this list, I guess they have been consistently crazy over the years but a guy airbrushed on the top tube riding his bike? Leonardo de Vinci? Spider webs? snake skin? They have resorted to hugest logo on downtube possible on a solid-ish color which is a bit cleaner but i think they will be breaking those airbrushes out soon.

Jaeger seems cool, i guess i can give them a pass on the "ateliers jaeger" section, someone there might speak french.

Kvale for sure, sweet sparkly fades, crazy thinned lugs, always beautiful and unmistakeable.

Thorn?

[bicycletricycle]

coolest carbon brand?

hmmmmm

would have been serotta, obviously :)

the current crop of high end carbon is lackluster, not from a fab. ride performance standpoint, but from a branding standpoint.

either bare carbon with boring decals or landshark madness?

Calfee has been consistent, TIME would have gotten my vote in the days of the VXRS but those things look silly these days,

LOOK(that 675 is a looker)? indy fab corvid (not really a brand, just one bike)?

maybe Ritte, least interesting frames with the best styling?

[fogrider]

coolest carbon brand?

hmmmmm

Calfee has been consistent, TIME would have gotten my vote in the days of the VXRS but those things look silly these days,



Yeah, the TIME VXRS is pretty sweet but there is an excess of decals that says "TIME" on the bike! I think the best looking carbon frames that are interesting are frames like the Cervelo and BMC. you gotta love the graphics on speedvagens and the simplicity of Tomii.

[Mike V]

Passoni
Mosaic
Crisp
Legend

[scho74]

I think Stoemper is pretty rad.

[beeatnik]

When I think of brands (plural), I think of companies or organizations. Capital, collaboration (a payroll) and all that.

When I think of having a brand (singular), I include sole proprietors and one man (lady) shops.

If you're asking who is the coolest of the cool, then anyone qualifies. If you're asking who are the raddest bike companies, then the list can be quite short.

Here are the cats I consider tasty "brands."

Cannondale (I guess you cats dont race or post on Weight Weenies)
Canyon
Stork
Colnago
Chris King Cielo
Speedvagen
Alchemy
Mosaic
No 22 Bicycle Company
Moots (hell, ya, Moots!)
Pegoretti (dude has at least 6 employees, no?)
Sarto
Seven

Here are the cats who have a great "brand"
RS
Vanilla
Argonaut
Winter
Vogel
Baum
Rock Lobster (hell, ya, Rock Lobster!)
Mr. Kirk (not sure how I feel about the new graphic identity)
D. Crisp
Icarus (I mean that's not his last name, right?)
Bishop (that's his last name)


Then there are the dudes who inhabit the space between having a great brand and being an organization

Firefly


Oh, the kids like Stinner....

[mosca]

I'll add Zullo and 44 Bikes as brands that have a distinctive graphic/industrial design style.http://www.zullo-bike.com/data/imagegallery/0fc34c1d-5cc4-350d-32fe-bbdbc89486e2/ddc9df47-012f-3fc3-3944-f5d53d2f10b0.jpghttps://farm8.staticflickr.com/7772/17237317188_c45b198d00_b.jpg

[SpokeValley]

Danger Will Robinson. I am cracking up.

Too funny! :D

[SpokeValley]

Anyone ridden a Vendetta? (Or any of several builders in Portland OR)

Looks like very nice work but I've not seen one in the wild...

http://www.vendettacycles.com/vendettacycles/road.htm

[eippo1]

You can't talk about style and not include Peacock Groove. I guess the style would be completely over the top, but in an artistic way.

http://www.bikerumor.com/2014/11/10/peacock-grooves-erik-noren-is-the-cycling-industrys-misunderstood-artist/

http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Peacock-Groove-Erik-Noren.jpg

For over the top in an aesthetic way, it would have to be English.

http://www.englishcycles.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/English_Cycles_001_2617.jpg

Also, I have no idea how this can be a thread about style with so few pics.

[brando]

Food for thought.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-39XqWljfkOM/VWaECVT3vQI/AAAAAAAAHmA/NvRBXod9HYY/w920-h518-no/IMG_20150527_225535996.jpg
Where does Ira Ryan fit?

[Seramount]

You can't talk about style and not include Peacock Groove. I guess the style would be completely over the top, but in an artistic way.

http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Peacock-Groove-Erik-Noren.jpg

what's up with the chain...? looks like it came from a saw...

[buddybikes]

Across the hall I see Dave Anderson's stuff posted all the time and awed. Assume his weight time must be astronomical.

[alessandro]

what's up with the chain...? looks like it came from a saw...

Yarrr...
http://www.bikerumor.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Peacock-Groove-Evil-Dead-II-Theme-Bike-Rear-Dropout-Waterjet-cut-600x400.jpg

Also the vertebral aspect of the fork crown:
http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Peacock-Groove-Blood-Bike-600x400.jpg

[gomango]

Across the hall I see Dave Anderson's stuff posted all the time and awed. Assume his weight time must be astronomical.

I don't think it is.

It would be worth a call to find out though.

Been meaning to do that one of these days.

[gomango]

I would add two to this mix.

Hampsten and Savine.

Evidence:

http://daniel-savine.blogspot.de/2015/03/everglades-gravel-roller.html

https://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view;_ylt=AwrB8pszk2dV7g0AB2IunIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTIyZD M3Y203BHNlYwNzcgRzbGsDaW1nBG9pZANlZmJlZGYwZmRlZGQ3 MzVkODg2ZmQ5NzQ4OGZiNDhiMgRncG9zAzEEaXQDYmluZw--?.origin=&back=https%3A%2F%2Fimages.search.yahoo.com%2Fyhs%2 Fsearch%3Fp%3Dhampsten%2Bstrada%2Bbianca%26fr%3Dyh s-mozilla-001%26fr2%3Dpiv-web%26hsimp%3Dyhs-001%26hspart%3Dmozilla%26tab%3Dorganic%26ri%3D1&w=930&h=594&imgurl=cycling-passion.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F08%2FHampsten-Strada-Bianca.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcycling-passion.com%2F2013%2F08%2F19%2Fhampsten-bikes%2F&size=89.0KB&name=%3Cb%3EHampsten+Strada+Bianca%3C%2Fb%3E&p=hampsten+strada+bianca&oid=efbedf0fdedd735d886fd97488fb48b2&fr2=piv-web&fr=yhs-mozilla-001&tt=%3Cb%3EHampsten+Strada+Bianca%3C%2Fb%3E&b=0&ni=21&no=1&ts=&tab=organic&sigr=11l5lvsp2&sigb=14gdjoq28&sigi=129729hl8&sigt=10th057rn&sign=10th057rn&.crumb=VuKJsQwUHcV&fr=yhs-mozilla-001&fr2=piv-web&hsimp=yhs-001&hspart=mozilla

[sandyrs]

Talbot frameworks

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/71/02/ff/7102ffcbedc366e3bb49f804cf192d14.jpg

[TurboNate]

I'm partial to Moots, for many reasons
Stinner has come on my radar recently
Bishop puts out some very attractive bikes
Dinucci Has set the standard quietly and tastefully

[cmg]

kelly bedford and Caletti . just to pretty...:)

[TimAZ]

Brian over at Kelson Bikes in Idaho makes some beautiful bicycles. Carbon, steel, ti, road, mountain, and cyclocross he does it all himself from start to finish.

http://kelsonbikes.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/KELSON-Bikes/118600729909?ref=ts&fref=ts

[Ozrider]

Ti and Steel bikes
Baum
Firefly
Indy Fab
Mosaic
Llewellyn

Carbon:
Parlee
Crumpton
Colnago

[shovelhd]

E-Richie and The Jerk top my list. There are some great builders out there that make beautiful products but these two do that and make a bike that fits my needs.