Look At This Beauty!

This special order from Van Nicholas is beautiful. It arrived as a 105 spec full build and we converted it to CX1 from Sram. Doesn't it look well :-) 

We all wanted one. So it's a good thing it's now gone to its new home and we can stop being temped by it. 

Amazon Cross bikes are available to order and can be custom specified. If you would like some more information on VN then please come in and see us. We always have a few examples in store and on display. 

Another Amazing Astraeus

I just wanted to share some pictures of another classy VN we built. 

Not very good pictures I'll admit but you will have to believe that these bikes are stunning. 

Titanium is the future..

Custom Van Nicholas Amazon

After a recent batch of Van Nicholas orders, I thought we could share this one. 

Custom spec'd as part of a pair, the gents Amazon is derailier geared with a drop bar and the ladies was Rohloff geared with a flat bar. 

Blue was the theme. 

Custom wheels, hand built by Kevin. It's been a busy week for wheel builds, 3 pairs of wheels and 2 individual re-rim jobs. 

Nice metallic bar tape from Fizik

More blue from Hope and Brooks

Sporting TRP Spyre brakes

Dual piston mechanical disc brakes for road with MTB versions coming soon. 

Custom build season has already started. Check back soon to check out a rather tidy Salsa build. 

Core Show and The Bike Place - ESI and Carbon-Ti

ESI are a silicone company that create a tidy little range of grips and bar tapes. For MTBs they make a standard and a thicker grip. They are impressively light at only 50g and are available in a large range of colours. The grips are very shock absorbent and comfortable but may not be ideal for those who prefer a more consistent feel. The conventional style of ESI grip are perfect for XC and single track / trail riders but for anything more demanding, a traditional grip may be better. They also produce longer tubes for drop bar bikes but they don't exactly look the part. Great news is that now ESI have released a tape. 

I quite like the tape, it's rather clever. It's the same deal as the other grips, all the colours, doesn't weigh much and is comfy. Unlike other tapes, there's not stickiness and it's versatile. There is a chamfer cut from the tape. This means it can be wrapped around the bar so it's flush and there's no ridges, or it can be used the other way up and will appear ribbed just like in the picture. 

Because it's made from silicone, it's super stretchy so it is easy to wrap but also you can vary the thickness depending on how tightly you wrap the bars. Variable thickness if you like.. Again due to its material, it won't hold water and remains grippy. At £39.99 it's not cheap, but consider the fact that you can reverse it when it's tatty and all of the other benefits as mentioned. 

On the same stand we turn away from the stunning Cielo frames and the Chris King bling-ness to find the rather spectacular ELS mule. (Points for those that know what ELS stands for in the bike trade). This bike was so light it needed to be tethered down. Dripping in Carbon-Ti products, this bike was made just to show off. 

From the new hubs to the one piece Ti replacement SRAM XX1 chain ring, it's designed to be less than light.. So if you want to shave the grams off your bike, think about Carbon-Ti.

Out On The Bikes!

As many of our regulars will know, we spend all our time fixing, selling, upgrading and talking about bikes but we rarely get out on them! A few days ago we tackled the impossible, lived the dream and went out for a bike ride. 

I must admit that at this stage our main focus and target is the pub. We aren't out to break records or set the road a blaze with our immense speed but to be in a position to require the refreshment that pubs offer. 

This event did gather a range of bikes types, we had: alloy, carbon, steel and titanium. 

It did give us an opportunity to try out our new Trek Domane's, alloy and carbon. Lets just say, if you don't ride bikes or you have ridden a stiff bike, it's a world apart. These bikes still move when you stomp on the pedals but they have the compliance that makes them super comfortable when in the saddle. The alloy bike has at least 5% more compliance than its rivals and the carbon has a massive 35% more than its rivals. Beyond reciting the info off the trek site lets just get it strait, I'm impressed!

As Trek are making some changes to the way they structure the model years, it's worth dropping in and having a chat about what's new. I say this because everyone needs a Domane!

Ritch@KR

Van Nicholas goodness

As you will know, we have been selling Van Nicholas bikes for some time now. They have a keen (see what I did there..) eye for detail and their bikes are look rather splendid. 

We have various models in stock at the moment; Amazon, Yukon and Ventus.

Even better they are great value for money and customisable. With all that to offer its important to come in store and see out resident Van Nic Guru, Kevin. 

So whether its custom geometry or custom spec, we can get it right!

Ritch@KR

Oh you know you want these.

Titanium accessories from Van Nicholas have been available for a while now but we just wanted to let you know that we can get these in to order! We do regular orders with Van Nicholas and these quirky gifts and accessories often appear on those order lists...

If you ever need any of these great Titanium products then get in touch and we will make sure they are on the next order.

Ritch@KR

We all Love Titanium!

We have got a few Van Nicholas Custom builds coming though now so keep looking on the blog for more pictures but here is a sneak peek of the latest one.

We have Ti Demo bikes and various models in store so pop in for more information.

Ritch@KR

Van Nicholas Mistral Close Up.

Mmmm This is a nice looking Demo bike.

Call now to get booked in for a go!

Ritch@KR

John Tomac Carbon/Ti Raleigh

This has been the talking point for a lot of retro fans and its now back on display in John Atkins Cycles. 

This bike is very special. This is one of 4 known bikes that were made to replicate the bike Tomac rode for a short while. This particular bike was the housed at the UK Raleigh HQ on display in the main entrance as a proud display of Tomac-ness. Its short history ends with it being sold to John Atkins Cycles when Tomac moved on from Raleigh.

This bike is one of the 4 promo bikes made by Raleigh back in the day. 2 are thought to have stayed in the USA and one went to Europe. These 4 bikes had Titanium sections made by Merlin (rather than the 80 or so replicas made after by Litespeed) and have no frame numbers. There is just a small mark on the BB. 

The Tomac Raleigh has never been ridden and is all original. As you can see, some of the stickers are peeling and the original Rock Shox paint job is fading. To this day they tubes and tyres even hold air and the mold marks can still be seen. So overall its not doing too badly for its age. 

There is plenty of information (some more opinions than information) on the internet if you want to know more but otherwise the bike is here for you to drool over. So why don't you come on down and see it for yourself.

Ritch@KR