Douglas's frameset / still quite sick.

Wow, this is a very nice touring bike off to Woodstock, NY.
I love British Racing green. The silver items you see installed on the frame are S&S couplers, allowing the frame to be taken apart into two sections to allow for putting the bike into a travel case, eschewing airline baggage fees. Slick.

I worked yesterday and have to say that it did absolutely nothing in the way of making me any less ill. I am not good at taking it easy.
I will have all my office duties all cleared up and already have most of my mitering done on my next two frames.

Side view.

Rack and fender mounts, kickstand mount, smaller yet thicker tubing for dent resistance, a really, really nice touring bike ready to take the owner anywhere they want to go.

Matching fork with seven points of attachment. The bike was designed around Surly "nice racks" and they fit perfectly and are really, really "nice racks!"

Close-up.

That's it for now, all - thanks for reading. I'm just trying to get things done as this illness takes it's course. Sick & tired but not down!

Starting a new S&S bike tomorrow for Beth R. - Steve.

Busy/Sick/Mega-Post + current build queue

CP's frame all prepped - what a damn nice frame, and I really like the color! As you can see, it's mega-winter conditions here, and in keeping with the season I'm super sick - forced office day today as just working through it out in the shop is just not working out.
I need an office day very badly anyway, as monthly taxes are due, the inbox is full of receipts that need filed - there are many hats to wear as an independent custom made-to-measure bike builder.

booty shot - niiiiice.............

DH's touring bike just showed from paint, I have not had time to prep it but once I do I'll post more detail shots of it, as I said I need to stay out of the shop today & get better.

I am not exposed to many people in my life as I live kind of far from town, don't see many people as I do not have a big peer group and mostly work all the time, especially in winter - so I think that makes me susceptible to germs & viruses.
But, what a beautiful frameset! British Racing Green with S&S couplers, allowing it to be broken down into halves for travel - more when i get decals & a headbadge on it. Back to work tomorrow regardless of how I feel, I can't afford more then one day out of the shop. Damn work ethic.

almost done, but I forgot the centerloc/6-bolt adapters. Dang.

On the way........What a sweet ride, huh?

I dug up this old pic of me racing back in 1990.

Frame repair/disc brake modification.

I built this frame as the 92nd frame I sold, almost seven years ago. It needed a downtube replaced and while it was here got the canti mounts removed and a disc mount added. It's interesting to see how different my bikes are now from this era! They have come a long way to be what constitutes a "Coconino" now.

NO - I do not do frame repairs on anything i did not build - sorry!

Looks like JR really like to hit this part on rocks - now that your brake is here you may want to stop! There's four dents there - ?????

For what it's worth it was this kind of thing that lead to me creating my signature seat stays, I used to use Columbus seatstays (this whole bike was made from Zona) but it was way too "dent-y" whereas now my bikes are made largely from True Temper, 4130 & Dedacciai.

On the left is a finished fillet I did seven years ago, on the right is one I just did but did not file at all. How about that?

This was after 100 bikes, and I've built a few hundred since. There is no substitution for experience.

BR's frameset on the left, JR's on the right.

I did not consider that my dummy couplers would be at paint because the bike on the left will be an S&S bike, and that kind of set me back, but there is always something to do!

Tight & right.

Untouched silver brazing on my seat tube 'lug" - check out how the silver follows the lateral striations from cleaning with emery paper - that's why you do it that way - the silver follows it into the sleeve as well.

BR's seat tube - a pretty small frame.

BR's fork, just needs canti mounts.

Fork crown detail.

I actually got out on a ride! It was cool!

In all of November I got out for two hours of exercise - TOTAL.

I did go paddle the Verde a few times, but that doesn't come close to the burn from off road handcycling - nothing does.

Conditions were absolutely stellar.

A Christmas Cholla - one of the biggest I've ever seen - usually they are small & hidden under trees. A really cool cactus.

One of my favourite rides now.

Not many people back here. Hard to find in the red rocks anymore.

What it's like in Flagstaff right now! Cold!

Right on - thanks for reading. Sooo busy.

Anyhoo - here is the current build queue - whoa.

On deck - Beth R/Jim R - AZ, Mark W - UT, Hunter S - NV, get ahold of me or get bumped! Brett M - AR, Chris N - NV, Melissa F - AZ, Greg B - CO, Noah C - AZ, Michael L - ?, Nick King - AZ - get ahold of me! Rex C - CA, Ted M - AZ, Eric P - AZ, Dave B - AZ, Barin B - Venezuela, Peter F - England, Bill S - NM, Jon B - CO, Jason C - UT, Dave B - AZ (3rd bike!), John L - AZ, Eiji S - Japan. Super Missing - John A, MD.

- I think that's it - Steve.

The touring duo projects winding down - whew......

Justin's frame is back, no sun pics as it's been snowing like crazy, but man - I dig the color allot.
"BMW-Mini Cooper ice blue"

A nice little rack I made for the front fork, which yes, I also made. Quite the project - 71 individual pieces that i counted........

Willets design Paragon disc mount and Paragon dropouts. The rack is totally unfiled.

Final checks on Douglas's & then it's off to paint to become British Racing Green.

Matching fork. Damn, touring bikes are a ton of work - I'm re-thinking the pricing structure on these rigs.

Polishing the stainless steel couplers. Nice work bench, huh?

DH's pile O' goods.

And, the beginning of Beth's very cool bike - not sure what to call it? BMX/MTB/Commuter/Travel bike. - Cool.

That's it for now - just checking in - BUSY. The touring bikes along with the eye injury, blowing out my back, my wife's 40th B-day and hosting the family thanksgiving sure too a toll on me the last month. Here's to things getting easier! Lots of snow so lots of work hours, and a surprising number of orders rolling in - thanks, All! - Steve.

Random pictures of Douglas's World Tourer.

All freshly brazed, very hot & covered with flux.

Raw headtube brazes, still fluxed.

Ditto on the BB.

Now, shiny & smoooooth - yum.

Braze-on ready, fully polished.

Ovalized brace/fender mount.

Seattube sleeve/lug seat tube junction fully polished out.

Custom kickstand mount/fender mount.

Surly "nice rack" with custom seat collar mounting - the thickest part of the bike, an excellent mounting point for the rear rack. Bomber & re-tap-able to any thread in any country.

The Surly front "nice rack" - this is the nicest front rack I have ever seen, by far. What an excellent mounting system!

That's it for now, folks - picking up Justin's frame/fork/rack from paint tomorrow, prep & ship on that, All the parts are here for Chris's 29er, just needs assembly, new pricing scheme on touring bikes and un-filed frames, and a full build queue status upcoming in the next few days along with more news & such. - Thanks so much for reading & all the continued patience and incoming orders! - Steve.

stuff & things - Nov. 2011

Busting out some segmented seat stays - I made the first pair too short (but, just right for the next build) by making them to my miter length, not my overall length. Oopsie............

Douglas's S&S x 700c fat tire world touring bike coming right along.

Broken down - sweeeet.

The rack I made for Justin's bike. Racks are hard! I have to build one every few years to remind me why I don't build racks.........

The whole enchilada - seventy-one individual pieces, many of them hand made from tubing or metal bar. Off to paint to become mini-cooper ice blue.

That's all I have for now - mandatory office day today. - Steve.

Justin's project winding down, chipping away at Douglas's

Justin's frameset is done, but yet to go to paint for reason that you will see later in the post.

This frame came back from WI, I made it around eight years ago and it was doing just fine until a stick had it's way with the frame, derailleur, cassette, wheel and chain - ouch!

But, being steel, it is fixed and ready for more.

This was the start of Douglas's frame set.

Damn! this tubus rack is just beyond me. I have no clue as to how this is in any way supposed to be a functiong rack. I guess I will have to make one. I know that will work.

3rd water bottle mount.

........brazed........

.......and cleaned.

Douglas's bike at the get-go - well, I did make the fork first.

Here, I have completed all the slip-fit silver brazing. As you can see it's an S&S coupler bike - it will disassemble into two pieces for travel.

Couplers are very expensive, so I've been taking my time to not do anything bad like off setting the couplers or cutting anything too short - that would be sad, very sad.

All made into a front triangle.

The Paragon rack lugs arrived for justin's custom rack. Cute!

Gus-gus approved!

We got out for a paddle on the Verde - it was really nice to get out, I have not been out since I blew out my back - an MRI revealed a crushed anterior T-11 vertibrae, a floating bone fragment at the same, a bone fragment above my left pelvis, and a broken right rib. I told you my back hurt!

Here goes Mike Padian.

The beautiful Verde rim. it snowed the day before we went and the day after. Nailed it!

Charlie paddling down.

D. & Me.

We came back to this!

Just checking in, trying to dig myself out of the hole I created by getting hurt. Feeling better, but still pretty tweaked up. Doing what I can as fast as I can. just good to be off the couch - a rough month! - Steve.