It’s been a while since I’ve updated the ol’ blog, and a whole bunch of bikes have passed through my workshop since last fall. First up is this gorgeous Vitus 979. This particular example was purchased “new old stock” about ten years ago from the back stock of a Manhattan bike shop. The logos and paint have been professionally removed to expose the beautiful raw silver of the underlying aluminum, which I hand-polished to a nice shine.
Read on to learn more about the Vitus 979! Continue reading
In 2014, I acquired two San Rensho (also written as 3Rensho; “san” is Japanese for “three”) road frames. One, pictured above, was a 53cm and the other 58cm. While they came from different sources, they were both Super Record Export versions. 3Rensho, which translates to “triple victory,” was a highly regarded bicycle manufacturer from Japan in the 1970’s-90’s.
Founded by Yoshi Konno in 1974, 3Rensho bikes were made by a team of Konno, Koichi Yamaguchi, and Masahiko Makino. While 3Rensho made both road and track bikes, they are most widely known for their track bikes which were custom made for Japan’s Keirin racing sport. Tragically, in 1995 Konno was responsible for a drunken car crash that killed five people and left him paralyzed from the neck down. 3Rensho closed down shortly thereafter.
Despite this ignoble end for one of Japan’s most prestigious bicycle brands, Yamaguchi and Makino went on to great success building frames under their own names. Yamaguchi has made frames for the U.S. Olympic Team, and continues to make custom frames as well as running his own frame building school in Colorado. In addition, Cherubim Bicycles, founded by Yoshi’s brother Hitoshi, continues to create amazing bicycles under his nephew Shinichi Konno.
Read more to learn about these frames and the restoration process!
So it’s been literally a year, to the day, since I’ve updated this blog. But I haven’t been idle on the bike front! In fact, 2015 was quite a year for me and bicycles, one where I finally achieved a long-held dream of mine: to build my own frames. Thanks to the help and mentoring of Lance Mercado at Squarebuilt Cycles here in Brooklyn, I built my first frame this past March.
Read on for all of the details! Continue reading