Tag Archives: Bike of the Week

Bike Of The Week: Parlee Z5 SLi

New to the NYC Velo stable is the Parlee Z5 SLi. The Z5 SLi is the latest incarnation of Parlee’s lightest production road frameset.  The Z5 SLi is designed to work directly with the electronic shifting systems from both Shimano and Campagnolo. The traditional derailleur cable stops have been removed in favor is specifically designed internal routing of the electronic wiring, the mold holes have been reinforced, and an integrated battery mount has be added to the underside of the frame, out of the rider’s way.

As Parlee puts it: ”The end result is an intelligent, clean implementation of necessary structural change, without the addition of needless clutter or over-engineered excess. Welcome to the electronic age.”

This example of Parlee’s latest comes equipped with Shimano’s Ultegra Di2 electronic group, Reynolds Assault carbon clincher wheelset, and a 3T Team Stealth cockpit. Weighing in at just over 15lbs, this Parlee Z5 SLI goes for a scant $8600.

Bike Of The Week: Rene Herse

For those that love to race but can’t do so without including a picnic or some such diversion along the way, we have Rene Herse and the Brevet inspired bicycle. This style yearns to be ridden fast year round over challenging hill and dale carrying fuel along the way, maybe a little saucisson sec, baguette, fruit and pen knife tucked safely away in the purposefully designed bag.  Randonneur bicycles like this have been designed as a holistic system for fast touring and have been refined and refined by French Constructeurs to be self sufficient packages since the early 1900′s, though most modern takes look to the 1950s and ’60s for their inspiration.  The bikes are lightweight more aggressive than a typical touring bike, but still comfortable, are designed for the light front load of the elegant rack/bag/decaleur system and in this case, handsomely incorporated lighting system.  Fenders protect the rider from the rain of Brittany or Seattle. The higher volume tires provide a smooth fast ride over cobbles or dirt.  Starting in the late ’30s, Rene Herse produced some of the finest components and bicycles after left the aircraft industry; appropriate for a bike that shows off best under open blue skies dappled in white puffs, grass and leaves swaying in the breeze, and plenty of road to fly along.

Rene passed in 1976.  Today all of the designs and rights to the name (for the production of bicycles) belong to a Colorado man by the name of Michael Kone.  Consider it a heart transplant for what many say, are the finest Randonneurs ever made.  The hands that build have changed – Mark Nobilette constructs them in Longmont, CO – but the designs remain traditional and true to Rene and his family.

This Rene Herse comes handsomely equipped. Drivetrain duties are handled by a mix of Campagnolo 10-speed components in demure silver aluminum, with elegant Rene Herse three bolt cranks. Japanese Grand Bois tires are encased within hammered Honjo/Bertoud fenders, rotating around a White Industries rear hub and a Schmidt generator front hub. Powered by this hub, are Rene Herse-made front and rear lights with the wiring hidden within the tubes of the frame. Luggage provided by a finely crafted Gilles Bertoud handlebar bag, mounted with a clever “decaleur” stem mount. Rounded off with Grand Bois/Nitto rack and handlebar, this bike is purpose built with an eye for quality and style.

Bike Of The Week: 2012 BH G5 with Shimano Di2

The Bike of the Week has returned in fine fashion, celebrating the arrival of the 2012 BH G5 Di2.  The latest iteration of the G5 frame continues to support the Shimano electronic platform and includes an integrated Di2 battery mounting system on the underside of the downtube, near the bottom bracket, and thus lowering the bike’s center of gravity.  The G5 in this week’s edition of BOTW wears a 2012 Shimano Dura Ace Di2 kit, a Dura Ace 7900 SRM power crank, and Dura Ace CL-C24 carbon clincher wheels.

The G5 frameset continues to utilize an integrated seatpost design, increasing the stiffness of the frame while reducing overall weight, making the bike perfect for racing and spirited training.  The G5 continues to be a fixture on the local competitive cycling scene under riders from the BH/Comedy Central team, with this particular bike’s owner proclaiming that her G5 is “the most fun I’ve had on a bike.”  Don’t take her word for it, stop by for a test ride of your own.

Bike of the Week: Independent Fabrication Ti Deluxe 29′er

Independent Fabrication is, if anything, lustworthy.  This week’s Bike of the Week certainly fits that bill, and is of titanium, that most wonderful of bicycle frame materials.

Our friends at Indy Fab describe very well their Ti Deluxe mountain bike on their website, but research shows that readers really just want to see the photos. So, without further delay, Charles’ Indy Fab Ti Deluxe MTB, with components from Fox, Shimano (XTR), Industry Nine, and Thomson.

Bike of the Week: Kona Roundabout

NYC Velo is proud to offer the Roundabout, the newest offering from Kona’s diverse, purpose driven collection of Asphalt bikes. The Roundabout is designed specifically for people wanting a beautifully built, perfectly simple bike.

The Roundabout features a classic steel Mixte, AKA step-thru, frame, representing a clean, streamlined purpose-driven-bike aesthetic. It utilizes a user-friendly Shimano 9 speed drivetrain that offers a perfect range of gears to zip around town. The Kona HandPlant swept-back cruiser-style handlebar keeps the rider upright, comfortable and focused on the road in front of them. Kona offers this fender-ready model in two sizes: small and medium.  At $899.99, the Roundabout represents a quality mark that will keep it out of the service bay, without the need for frustrating repairs and adjustments (it will most certainly be out enjoying a carefree ride).

Bike of the Week: Independent Fabrication Mellow Fellow

The NYC Velo Crew was fortunate to get its hands on the limited edition, some call it a “collab”, Indy Fab Mellow Fellow bike last year which proved to be quite the crowd pleaser while in the shop. A beautiful single speed rig for the city, complete with (bag ready Nitto) racks, this bike found a happy home recently with a very pleased customer. After some test riding and a lengthy conversation about intended use, ergonomics, and riding position, the team set to work on a few “mods” to further customize the Mellow Fellow. A set of Honjo fenders, a Nordeast cruiser handlebar from Nitto, and Brooks leather handlebar tape complete the one-off package.

Originally, the Mellow Fellow was part of the Paper Labels design project uniting three crews hellbent on creating the best in their respective fields, Independent Fabrication, Bodega, and Bailey Works bags. Three bike designs were fabricated based on three color schemes that also integrated bag or rack combinations.

Paper labels of vintage and deadstock spraypaint cans were the color palette source upon which the three concept bikes’ paint colors were supplied. The color scheme and iconography of the Paper Labels bikes were derived from Bodega’s archive of discontinued vintage spraypaint. These colors were popularized by the 1980′s graffiti culture and are now coveted by spray can collectors. Krylon Aqua Turquoise #2008, Krylon O.D. Khaki #2301, and Krylon Metallic Blue #1903 serve as the foundation for the bikes color schemes.

Additional graphics for the bikes were created by referencing some designs from other old vintage can labels. Only 15 of each model were made and include matching bag(s), t-shirt and a can of spraypaint mixed and labeled for each bike.

Bike of the Week: Troy’s Fat Chance

This Bike of the Week is a bona fide winner: the Buck Shaver from Fat City Cycles. This particular Buck Shaver belongs to NYC Velo team member Troy O, who’s currently tackling the MTB scene in Copenhagen, Denmark on his classic “Fat”.

The Buck Shaver is a mountain bike from Fat City Cycles, a less expensive version of the fancier Fat Chance models, a “budget” handmade machine. Budget as it is, the Buck Shaver still has all the attention to detail of the more expensive bikes but used less expensive materials and a simpler mono-stay rear end. Troy’s Buck Shaver was made in the fames Fat City Cycles Sommerville, MA workshop, before Fat City Cycles was sold to the investors who owned Serotta Competition Bicycles at the time (Serotta has since changed hands a few times). The Buck Shaver was made from 1994 to 1996 and it is rumored to be a replacement for the Monster Fat Chance and was eventually changed to the “Bro Eddy”.

The model name Buck Shaver was a nickname for a Fat City employee named Pat Egan (he used to race in a bowling shirt with “Buck Shaver” embroidered on it) who was, according to old Fat City catalogues, “always on the look out for a good deal”. The Buck Shaver frame was named for him as a tribute after he passed away in 1992. The Buck Shaver has the same geometry and dimensions as the Yo Eddy but, according to longtime Fat City and Independent Fabrication employee Lloyd Graves, it utilized AVR top and down tubes and an MHT head tube, as well as a wishbone seatstay that took longer to make than the traditional seatstays found on the higher end “Fats”. I don’t know what those tube designations mean, but they sound great and support the notion that this frame is basically a entry level, handmade frame made of stock materials and lotsa soul.

Troy and I, as part of the NYC Velo MTB Team, raced our (almost) matching Buck Shavers for a while “back in the day” — in this case back in day means 2005 or so — to modest amounts of success. Unfortunately, low race finishes were never the bikes’ fault…

We’re huge Fat City fans here at NYC Velo and look to bring our readers more “Fat” bikes in the future. Until then, enjoy Troy’s:

Engineering: it’s what they do. The 2012 Scott Carbon Scale Expert 29′er

The engineers at Scott Bicycles are back at it again. Like kids set free in a toy store, these bike gurus head straight to the best tools, materials and technologies they can find to build the ultimate toys for the bike enthusiast. The 2012 Scale 29 Expert (little brother to Scott’s 899 29′er aka the lightest 29 mountain bike frame around at 899 grams) is an impossible mountain bike model to ignore given its enviable combination of cutting edge technology, extensive R&D, and affordable price.

For 2012 this softer riding hard-tail has more built-in compliance, meaning that the bike can flex vertically to absorb trail or street feedback, yet is laterally stiffer for more efficient climbing and faster acceleration — a few more steps towards the “holy grail” of ride qualities. Scott has once again raised the “laterally stiff/vertically compliant” bar for the MTB industry.

Though the 29′er wheel is larger than its cousin the 26″, the Scale’s carefully considered geometry makes it a tight and nimble handing machine, dominating rocks, trees, cars and street construction. The Scale’s nimble handling, combined with the inherent ability of the larger 29 inch wheels to roll over technical terrain, its light/efficient/compliant carbon frame, Shimano XT/SLX components, DT Swiss wheels, and Reba Rock Shox fork make this a ride we highly recommend.

Bike of the Week: Ti Factory Lightweight by IndyFab

So hot it’s not even listed on Indy Fab website, the Titanium Factory Lightweight from the new company digs in New Market, NH (just north of Boston) is this week’s BOTW (Bike Of The Week).

A brilliant integration of titanium and carbon, this Ti FLW is reflective of the most contemporary of custom frame design. With an integrated carbon fiber seat mast, custom milled seat clamp, press-fit BB30 bottom bracket shell, oversized headtube allowing for an integrated Zero Stack headset, and drilled-out titanium dropouts, the TiFLW is truly at the sharp end of the custom bike industry.



When it’s all said and done, this ride sits comfortably in the dream bike category. Some exotic bikes are built for the wall, some for show and some for the occasional loop in the park. This bike was built to ride. The customer chose components from Sram, Industry Nine, and 3T and a one-off Matte-Black-on-Ti paint job to ensure she stands out on any ride.

Bike of the Week: Parlee Z5 SL Limited Edition

As cyclists we are often tempted by the sirens’ song of the latest and greatest lightweight wheel, part or frame and fork combo. The Z5 SL Limited by Parlee is a bike that COULD be marketed solely by its breathtakingly light weight (making it very tempting indeed) but this Z5 SL is much more than just a sub 800 gram frame.



Last year the original Z5 was the lightest frame in the closely watched German Tour magazine frame test, however, light weight is not the defining characteristic of this machine. It’s the ride quality that makes this bike so desirable. Building upon their experience with the very first Z1, the Z5 SL Limited is a bike designed and built for a lifetime of sublime riding without the compromises often found in what others ache to call the “lightest”

With no rider weight limits, no reduction of (lifetime) warranty, no reduction in function or fit, the Parlee Z5 SL Limited is a machine that inspires long rides and fast race days any day of the week.

This one, recently sold to a very happy customer of ours, is spec’d with Reynolds Assault carbon clincher wheels, SRAM Red components, Edge (now Enve) and 3T components.

Available in 12 Flex-Fit sizes to suit all riding styles. The SL in the SL Limited Edition means 100-150 (size dependent) grams of weight savings over Parlee’s (already light weight) Z5.

“We ride many superb bikes. But once in a while, one comes along that shines a little brighter. The Parlee’s Z5 SL ” – Bicycling Magazine