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.

Photo by Yana Paskova

We had a great time working with Bruce on the equipment portion of his project and look forward to hearing the stories that his travels will weave. Be sure to check out his NYT posts for yourself, or catch him in 140 character bits at @nytbruceweber, good luck Bruce!

NYC Velo: What bike do you ride?
Bruce Weber: Up until now I’ve been riding treks. I have three of them, a road bike, a touring bike and a hybrid. But  for the cross country trip I’m starting I have a custom made designed by NYC velo with a titanium frame built by Independent Fabrication.

NYCV: What’s your favorite ride?
BW: I’ve got a couple of friends with houses in the Hamptons, one in water mill and one in amagansett. To go beach and woods roads from one to the other and back is about 35 miles.

NYCV: What’s your favorite post-ride food?
BW: Watermelon.

NYCV: What is one thing you always carry on a ride?
BW: A $20 bill and/or a credit card.

NYCV: What’s next?
BW: I’m on my way to the west coast to ride back to my apartment in Manhattan, a trip I’ll be flogging about for The New York Times.

Just in time for the Pedros Shop Ride next Friday (June 10), el prez Matt Simpson is the latest 5ive Points subject. As steerer of the Pedros ship, Matt is part of one of the most influential little big companies in the bike biz, appropriately from our home (New England at least) turf outside Boston, Mass. Matt was recently at NYC Velo as an integral part of Tim Johnson’s Ride on Washington in March, yet again leveraging his time, his company, for sake of cyclists everywhere. He’ll again be visiting the shop next week as part of the Pedros riding crew – come along on the ride and see what Matt’s all about!

NYC Velo: What bike do you ride?

Matt Simpson: Form & function. I ride a custom steel Zanconato CX bike designed by friend & superb frame builder Mike Zanconato of Massachusetts. His attention to detail and care for the custom build is flawless. Steel lugged CX frame, painted by the great crew at Circle A (subtle black/pink).

Also, an I.F. ti-planet X ‘Binary Code’ (as featured in their 2011 catalog). Custom built & designed by ex-Pro racer Justin Spinelli of Luxe Wheelworks (former Svelte Cycles). The binary paint scheme is insane. I left the design to Justin and he pulled it off as only J-Spin could.

And of course the Chris King Cielo CX bike (steel), custom Pedro’s CX team painted scheme. Designed by Jay Sycip and the crew at Chris King, this Cielo is likely one of the most admried bikes in 2010, wait till you see the 2011 version (shown at NAHBS 2011).

NYCV: What’s your favorite ride?

MS: Morgan Territory California has some of the nicest rides I have done but hard to top Mt. Lemmon in Tucson, or Mt. Diablo outside of Walnut Creek, CA. I live in New Hampshire, and out my door have some of the most amazing country roads to ride in & out of Hollis, Keene, NH, but the rides aforementioned kind of rule. Can’t rule out Harrisonburg, VA either, skyline drive……

NYCV: What’s your favorite post-ride food?

MS: Coffee & pastries, can’t lie. Coffee is the salt of the earth. French style pastries, simple, and solid.

NYCV: What is one thing you always carry on a ride?

MS: Money & ID. Above all (yes I use saddle bag with appropriate etiquette items); money for mid-ride coffee, and ID for obvious reasons. Subscriber to the Matt Roy 6 P’s. (Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss-poor Performance)

NYCV: What’s next?

MS: Wow. Just got back from the Tim Johnson Ride on Washington and getting my feet back on the ground. If anyone has not heard about the TJ & Bikes Belong ride on Washington, I hope they are appreciative of what TJ, Richard Fries & Bikes Belong are doing to help us all, our families & communities.

So many cool projects (growth) going on at Pedro’s (to be announced by mid-summer). Managing a few side projects with industry friends (also tba very soon); and managing to be a good husband, friend & father to 4 young daughters. Our restated commitment to grassroots & advocacy within our community will bring sustainable infrastructure and opportunities to a new group of Pedro’s fans. Stay tuned…

There’s a connection between this week’s BOTW and our 5ive Points interview subject, Sandy Chapman, that may not seem obvious.

The bike was assembled for display at the inaugural New Amsterdam Bike Show over the past weekend.  To complete the build out of the Indy Fab Ti Factory Lightweight frame, Sandy stepped up to provide us with some “hot off the presses” components.  The red and black stunner was decked out with a SRAM Black Red component kit and Zipp 404 Firecrest carbon clincher wheels (and matching Zipp tyres).  Without Sandy’s help, the belle of the ball (errr, bike show) would have been missing some of its luster indeed.

In addition to the top notch parts spec, there’s a substantially RAD frame driving this week’s BOTW: the just-released Titanium Factory Lightweight from our friends in New Market (near Boston), Independent Fabrication.  An impressive marriage of carbon fiber and titanium, the Ti FLW as its known, represents the sharp edge of the custom bike world.  The frame sports an integrated carbon fiber seat mast with custom milled seat clamp, a press-fit BB30 bottom bracket shell, an oversized headtube allowing for an integrated Zero Stack headset, and custom, drilled-out titanium dropouts.

As great as the photos are, they certainly don’t do this bicycle justice…luckily, it’s on display at the shop!

This edition of the BOTW, no surprise to faithful BOTW readers, comes from our friends at Indy Fab.  We try not to make this News feature too IF-heavy;  maybe if they made crappier bikes we wouldn’t show them so often…

This example, while certainly not crappy, has a bit of a storied past.

It’s a Steel Deluxe mountain bike frame, fabricated a decade ago in Somerville, Mass. Legend has it that sometime around 2000-1, the guys and gals at Indy Fab introduced disc brake tabs on their steel hardtail frames.  At that time, the most commonly used disc brake systems were either inherently weak cable actuated or rather unreliable hydraulic systems. As one of the fastest growing segments of the bike industry in the early ’00′s, disc brake parts (in terms of technology and power) advanced dramatically.  Within a matter of a few years, disc brake manufacturers were producing brakes that were much stronger than their predecessors, leading frame builders to update and enhance the way the frames interfaced with the brake caliper.

This particular Steel Deluxe frame suffered a related, undesirable fate when, a few years ago, the brake caliper (too powerful!) separated from the frame, taking part of the rear triangle with it.

The frame spent some time sleeping, relaxing, thinking about its next step, until the NYC Velo team stepped in to help. We sent the disabled frame to our friends at Bilenky Cycle Works in Philly to work some magic. In the mean time, we contracted another friend, Christopher Igleheart, to make a fork to match the frame, perfect in matte black. A short 9 months later, the frame returned to the E Village with a couple rear triangle splints to bolster the section near the caliper, some S&S Couplers, and a new paint job (all installed by Bilenky)..

The splints work perfectly, the couplers allowed for the bike to be included in a recent trip down to Austin for NAHBS, and the battleship gray paint job keeps rust off of jeans.  The balance of the bike was assembled with a selection of not-really-matched and orphaned parts from both shop and private collections: red Chris King hubs, headset, and BB, Mavic rims, Shimano XT bits, one left SRAM TT Shifter (switched for right hand friction use and connected to the rear derailleur) and matching Paul Components Thumbie adapter. There are no decals, save for the headtube sticker.  The frame invokes references to the rat rods of the car world.

The bike has been a joy to ride, both on and off road, easily handling the rolling hills of west Austin as well as the Barton Springs Greenbelt MTB Trail with just a tire and tube swap. Two bikes in one, pack it into a backpack, no airline fees, bike vacation nirvana.

You might think that being in the business of selling bikes would make you a bit jaded when it comes to bikes.  New bikes come and go in the shop (as they ought to), but every now and then we’re sad to see one go.

Cue this beautiful Independent Fabrications XS.  The Carbon tubes, Titanium lugs, and beautiful color scheme renders us starry-eyed whenever we look at this machine.  Alas, It is going to a good home where it’ll be ridden many, many miles.  We hope its new owner enjoys riding it as much as we enjoy looking at it.

There are times when the days blend together. Whether it occurs because of a great winning streak in a game of Beirut or because of late night ramblings over a midnight snack with a friend at a 24 hour diner that eventually turns into breakfast, anyone with even a hint of a social life will understand this. Even with a couple hours of sleep thrown in, one day can turn into another, the reminder that you mentally crammed 48 hours into 24 only hitting you full force when the headache of sleep deprivation sears through your temples. Too bad when the overpowering desire to curl up on the floor and doze saturates your brain, you’re usually already a drink or two into your next blurred-together day.

Of course, the last time my days blended together, it was due to back to back to back episodes of “To Catch a Predator.” Me, pedophiles, and Chris Hansen. Until 3 a.m. Oh yeah.

And though Chris Hansen’s magnetic creepiness was woefully absent, the past few weeks have blended together, too. Sleeping in until almost noon, trudging through the slushy streets of New York, going to too many bookstores…and before I knew it, 2010 had flowed seamlessly and somewhat unmemorably into 2011.

It wasn’t until last Sunday night that it occurred to me that it really was 2011. That night, in a slightly chilly bike shop, with some Victory beer, the help of another Chris [Harris, not Hansen], and some oddly shaped tools, I slowly assembled my very first road bike.

It started with a bottom bracket tapping and facing set; a gigantic metal contrapction that does the frame-prepping equivalent of douching and brazilian bikini waxing. Each tap got inserted so as not to cut through the BB threads, “chasing” them, before the facing cutter was fitted onto the outside edge of the BB, shaving off most of the paint. It hurt a little to do [doesn't waxing anything?], but I managed not to screw it [or my frame] up.

With a hammer, I pressed my first fork crown race, clanging away at the crown race installer. Then, feeling very pro mechanic, pressed my first ever headset into place, perfect and pretty. Okay, that’s not accurate. I only really installed the bottom half of the headset while Chris did the hardest part of aligning the top half. After spacers, bars, and brakes were attached, Chris made me figure out how to install the derailleurs myself [which was totally cool because those are only the exact parts that don't come on a single-speed bike]. I got it, eventually, only to be laughed at when I tried to put on my wheels, tightening them down like they had track nuts on them. Chris had to fix the wheels before helping me wipe down and measure out the chain, installing the brakes, and insisting I wrap one side of my bars. And he took pictures, documenting my embarrasment.

A la “To Catch a Predator,” the bike build was a team effort. I was the equivalent of the Internet pedophile that stupidly walks into a TV set [“well...I thought it would make sense to put that...there...is that...wrong?”], while Chris [Harris] pretty much played the part of my other favorite Chris [Hansen] by attempting to reason with me [“do you really think that’s a good idea? You're building your own bike...What did you think was going to happen here tonight?”]. All very much like one of the greatest shows on television, with the exception that when I left the store, I wasn’t tackled by some burly cop screaming at me to get down on the ground.

And at the end of it all, I had a road bike. All I really got to do that night on the bike, was to pedal the length of the store. The saddle was a little lower than it should have been but once I cruised past the display of Chrome bags, that cliched realization, the prefix for those “I told you so”s [or more accurately "I TOLD you--Jesus CHRIST! WHY don't you ever LISTEN?!"s], that this bike was made to measure, hit me. It felt perfect. Not in the pre-fabricated, psychological way born of expectations, but in the physical sensations of a just-right reach, a standover that didn’t feel dangerously questionable, and the tangible fact of how the hoods fit into my hands.

And that’s when I knew. When I ceased to have any question in my mind about this simple fact:

Y’all are going to have a hard time catching this predator.

The latest subject for our 5ive Points series could not have come along at a more opportune time. Jesse Fox, currently the lead bike designer for Independent Fabrication (taking over for the recently departed Joe Ingram), has agreed to subject himself to our rigorous 5ive Points interrogation: brutally yet mercifully short.

In the interest of full disclosure, Jesse put in his time in the NYC Velo Mechanic Pit back in 2006, so he’s been a part of the “family” for some time now. After leaving NYC for the (allegedly) greener pastures of that lauded bike mecca that is Portland, Jesse spent time on the management team at the Bike Gallery, then at City Bikes in the Adams Morgan section of Washington, DC. Jesse’s travels recently led him to Boston, where he fortuitously connected with our friends at Indy Fab, and new love affair was born.

A lot has been said recently about the venerable bike manufacturers in Somerville. In the handbuilt bicycle world, Indy Fab has continued to build on their reputation as leaders in creating innovative products of the highest quality. The majority owner of the employee-owned company, Gary Smith, has decided that for Indy Fab to be able to continue to offer some of the best products in the industry and to push the technological aspects of the handbuilt industry forward, a move north to New Hampshire is in order. It’s not very often that we see such significant investment in American manufacturing these days, especially not in the bike industry and especially not in New England.

A brand is made of many components and the MBA’s out there can do a much better job arguing the merits of each. Certainly, the people that work at any company, especially in a high-end specialty industry (custom bicycles), contribute much to shaping the brand, both its image as well as the substance behind that image. While the move to NH will see the departure of some of the Indy Fab team, many integral parts of the “brand” will make the transition. We have also seen some of the great shapers of Indy Fab over the past 15 years, who had previously left the company, come back on board to shepherd the team through the transition and onto what will certainly be a bright future. Keep an eye out for a few folks joining the Indy Fab team for the first time to make their mark as well (ahem, Jesse…).

We can say that Indy Fab is and will continue to be the best handbuilt, custom bike manufacturer in the world because the represent them to the public as an authorized dealer. We also say this because we are Indy Fab owners, with some on the staff owning bikes from deep into the Fat City days. We get excited for every single steel, ti, and carbon bike coming out of Somerville and look forward to seeing the first bikes to come out of New market, NH. Stay tuned to the interwebs for Indy Fab’s NAHBS offerings next month!

If there are any folks that want to chat more about the move, feel free to drop us a line (or you can give our friend Jesse a call, tell him NYC Velo sent ya).

NYC Velo: What bike do you ride?

Jesse Fox: I have a few bikes that get ridden regularly, but I am really excited about a new IF that I’m working on. It’s going to be the ultimate D2R2 bike- basically a steel IF Club Racer, tweaked for performance on the steep, beautiful and tiny dirt roads in western MA. I can’t say much more about it right now, as it will be one of the IF show bikes at NAHBS this year in Austin. All I can say is that it will rule and everyone will want one. And, it will be Sandy-approved.

NYCV: What’s your favorite ride?

JF: I’ve been fortunate to have ridden in lots of great places over the years, but one that always stands out for me is riding up to the Plains of Abraham on Mt. Saint Helens. Incredible climb, soft and tacky dirt, then all of a sudden you are thrust out onto this bizarre moonscape, riding over baby head pumice and lava rocks in the shadow of this massive caldera.

NYCV: What’s your favorite post-ride food?

JF: Burritos. The perfect food in the perfect package.

NYCV: What is one thing you always carry on a ride?

JF: I heard that Gary Klein used to ride with a .38 Special in his pack, in case he encountered any mountain lions. I’m not sure what to make of that, but besides the usual water and a spare tube I always ride with three things: duct tape, zip ties, and extra Sidi buckles (the ratchet kind that screw on). You never want to run out of Sidi buckles.

NYCV: What’s next?

JF: I am really excited to be a new addition to the team at IF, especially with the upcoming move to NH. We’ve got some pretty big plans for the new shop, and I’ll be working hard to make sure the IF of right now and the IF of the future kills it just as hard, if not harder, than IF has in the past. I like the challenge of filling some big shoes, and I can’t say enough about how much of an inspiration the current and past IF crew has been on me as a designer and builder of custom bicycles. To the future!

]]> http://www.nycvelo.com/5ive-points-jesse-fox/feed/ 0 http://www.nycvelo.com/5ive-points-joe-ingram/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=5ive-points-joe-ingram http://www.nycvelo.com/5ive-points-joe-ingram/#comments Wed, 29 Dec 2010 00:07:21 +0000 Andrew http://nycvelo.com/blog/?p=2442

This edition of the 5ive Points series focuses on a good friend of NYC Velo, Joe Ingram. Until recently, Joe was the CFO of Independent Fabrication in Somerville, MA. He started at Indy Fab in 2002 and, in addition to his CFO duties, he managed the design and order process. He also represented the company by attending numerous industry and customer events, including the bi-annual NYC Velo/Indy Fab shop ride here in NYC. During Joe’s time at the company, Indy Fab developed into one of the finest custom bike manufacturers in the world.

Joe will be moving on to another phase of his life in the coming weeks, and NYC Velo extends its gratitude and best wishes for the future. Thanks Joe!

NYC Velo: What bike do you ride?

Joe Ingram: I have a few bikes that I ride. I love my XS for the road and my Steel Crown Jewel for getting around town but if I had to choose one it would be my pearl pink Ti Deluxe single speed. It is fully rigid and I am running V brakes so it is silly light. Way too much fun.

NYCV: What’s your favorite ride?

JI: Honestly of all the awesome places I have had the opportunity to ride, my favorite would be a ride Lloyd and I did out of Eagle, CO. Amazing non stop climbing for hours and then the funnest descent I have experienced. They got it good out there.

NYCV: What’s your favorite post-ride food?

JI: It doesn’t really matter what sort of food it is as long as it is good food…and a beer.

NYCV: What is one thing you always carry on a ride?

JI: Pants

NYCV: What’s next?

JI: I’m trying to work that out now. I want to try something new for a while. There are so many interesting things you can spend your time doing, why spend all your time doing one thing.

photo by Howard Jones

I got the flu about ten days ago, which meant that I got to both amass an arsenal of over-the-counter cough suppressants and other flu medication, and have the honor of being possibly the only person in America losing, rather than gaining, weight on Thanksgiving. And while both some weight and the fever have since been kept at bay, I’ve had a dry, hacking cough that’s lingered. The kind that will wake you up at night like an insatiable significant other, persistent and somewhat predictable, resulting in groggy workdays. The kind that results in somewhat sore abs and a tight back from those nighttime acrobatics. Except, you know, without satisfying happy endings that are implicit in anything involving insatiable significant others.

All of which led me to run to a walk-in clinic where a doctor listened to my heart every which way and then informed me that I just may have a heart murmur.

“Have you experienced any shortness of breath or difficulty breathing during exercise?” The doctor asked.

Images of attempting to climb River Road without “shortness of breath or difficulty breathing” came to mind. The inability to suck enough air into my lungs as I got pulled, dragged, then dropped up and down 9W presented itself.

“Uh, no, not really,” I answered.

Because images of a frame also emerged as I envisioned how I must look, riding up River Road. It was small and cute and welded together by a friend. I had visited the workshop to watch it being put together and even met the guy who was going to do my braze-ons [that sounds so dirty, I know]. And there was no fricking way some goddamn heart murmur was going to keep me off this almost-complete beauty.

Because, like I mentioned before, it’s an IF. The day before I got so pathetically sick that I was living off Tom Yum soup, I had ridden up to Somerville, MA to the IF workshop, with a quick stop by Clear Flour Bread to pick up some treats [their morning buns are pretty phenom]. Bundled up in every bike gear layer I own, it was a quick trip north to a warm workshop where my already-tacked frame sat, being TIG-welded into existence. I got to watch as Tyler worked his magic, explaining the process of using a giant electrical circuit to weld, and the use of air without oxygen in it.

Then I got the grand tour. I got to see the collection of tubes, the jig where tubes become frames, and the chain stay cutting machine [it was really cool]. There was the paint section where the newest green Ti Featherweight sat, waiting for its stripes of black matte paint, as well as an assorted collection of frames waiting for their respective powdercoats. I even got to see the big machine that provides extra pure air to the paint department, as well as IF’s sand and glass blasters.

Along the way, I saw and learned about how braze-ons are brazed on, leaving a glass-like residue, and how Corvids are assembled and the super power glue that holds them together. The IF carbon lugs for the Corvids are made specifically to measure, and not bent or stretched to fit like steel lugs. Even in its raw form, the carbon fiber frame was awesomely impressive. I think my heart murmured when I got to touch it; it didn’t hurt that it felt like air when I lifted it up, either.

There’s actually so much cool stuff and people at the IF workshop that it’s hard to actually delve in and describe everything in one visit [especially when your own custom frame is sitting in the welding department, nearing completion]. I left feeling more excited than when I arrived, and even in the midst of a feverish flu a few days later, I did a mental little dance when Tyler sent me even more pictures.

Yeah, that’s right. Pictures of my brazed and welded IF Crown Jewel. [Potential] Heart murmurs be damned. Ain’t nothin’ gonna keep me off that bike.