The Golden Boy 

That dirty 'getting old' thing is catching up to me- my back and neck- yeah, I've had a hard time looking up for several years; my paratrooper knees are catching up to me; although it hasn't affected my bicycling yet- my shoulders are going; nerve damage in my hand makes things difficult...

I thought I had my stems pretty hiked up- but I've been playing with the idea of jacking them up higher. I'm still good on drop bars, but I know the time is coming for flat or swept back bars.

And since this is a Rivendell thing- the pix of Jimmy Carter on a Riv are quite inspiring.

dkatz1

I paid close to $4000 (in 2007) for a road bike (Independent Fabrication frame) with flat handle bars, which would make it a hybrid....it's what my back needed.
After riding that bike for 13 years, using it on the road and commuting, I'd have to say it was well worth it.

52telecaster

exactly!
It took me too long to switch but i never kooked back.

cudak888 

Road bike with flat bars ≠ hybrid. Maybe from a purely grammatical standpoint, yes - but what you describe is not the same as this. By a mile.





-Kurt

2old

Pictures, meh. Their prices for fully rigid biked (some made in Taiwan, which isn't bad, actually great) are too high for my stable.

big chainring 

Looks like beach cruisers to me. If I were looking for an urban do-it-all bike, I would be looking at a mini-velo. Small, compact, easy to store and bring up flights of stairs if need be. Long wheelbase, fat, tire cruisers are a pain to find room for in small urban apartments. I see those long wheelbase euro-cargo bikes around and think, where do you put that when not in use? Buy to each his own.

52telecaster

in my shop that's a comfort bike.

cudak888 

Marketing terms evolve. The evolution that birthed that bike remains the same.

-Kurt

Bill in VA

This is NOT my situation (I find drops make the back hurt less), but I am in agreement and actually is a good synopsis of this thread.

Rivendell was a bike frame I really wanted due to lug work, steel, and great paint. I leaned to the Roadeo or Roadini, but felt one of their canti-equipped models was the real draw. I prefer shorter chainstays for hills, and want 700c wheels with 28-38mm tire flexibility and braze ons. I do not want a rolling billboard compact frame with a 10" seatpost, matte paint, or black components.

The current Rivendell complete bicycle offerings are not really in my lane, BUT they will build you a bike as you want, and still have the frames that catch my eye. I like that. I like their at times quirky parts and accessories offerings, and have bought a number, and like to read their website. I found Rene Herse (Compass) at the same time, as well as VeloOrange, and have bought from them. It has allowed me to replicate some of the features that I really liked on my vintage Peugeot and my vintage departed Fuji, on my newer steel-tubed Bianchi.

I want all of those three concerns (Riv, RH, and VO) to continue and succeed and wish them well.

For me pushing the bike up the hill is both a defeat and a triumph, and part of the biking experience. At least it is better than portaging a kayak or canoe.

52telecaster

Comfort is used derisively by the staff but honestly those things get a lot of folks started riding.

gugie 

Five pages and counting.

Halfway there, folks.

Headpost

My point was just that so many people here in NYC go into bike shops and are sold a "beginner" bicycle LIKE this:



When they would have been so much happier and better-served--considering the type of riding they're actually going to do--by a bike LIKE this:

cudak888 

Hell with Grant. How many pages can we fill this thread up with Gugificazione?




-Kurt

cs1

As far as double top tubes go, Grant Peterson is something like 6'4". So he seems to design his bikes for tall riders. If you take a look at the lugs on his bikes you can see why they charge what they do. They are not aluminum cookie cutter frames from China.

sunburst

I've bought one set of bars from them (actually from a neighbor who was from Berkeley and visited that location), a style that only had 3 sources in the entire country at the time, Nitto Dove. Really elegant curves, as far as upright bars, imo. I've also set up quite a few bikes in what I consider Rivendell style, using Nitto Albatross, Nitto Promenade, Nitto stems, Brooks saddles, MKS touring pedals, etc, although I was never consciously copying them. It's just as I started getting older, I needed the upright posture. Plus I do most of my riding around town on errands and/or lightweight jaunts. And lastly, I was coming off a light-weight hardpack trail one day as a woman was entering and while complimenting her bike I realized she looked like a Rivendell ad: a Rivendell bike, accessories, clothes, everything!

Salamandrine 

Comparing Rivendells to hybrids is somewhat ridiculous. Hybrids sold in bike shops were always at the entry level price wise. Rivendells are more like an, ahem, modern version of an MB-1, but with much fancier (expensive) lugs. It's top end stuff. Clearly they confuse a lot of people by throwing Wald baskets and cheap derailleurs on them.

There's my contribution for today towards the 10 pages.

dkatz1

I actually a 52 and then a '51 Telecaster....and a 61 strat...all bought used, all for under a hundred bucks and then sold for the same....I also at one time had a 1959 ES 345 and a 1954 Byrdland prototype. Back then, things were different.

dkatz1

Drops hurt YOUR back less. Not mine.
Also: back in 2007, when I had the IF built, I was trying bikes wiht drops (used to ride them, long ago) and found that the arthritis in my hands made it almost impossible to work the brakes. A lot of people love those reclining seats in movie theaters. They hurt my back. We're not all the same.

Crankstank 

I have been told by friends that own Rivendells that if I get one and ride it for awhile, it will start to look completely normal. I love my drop bar bikes for long rides. Most of my rides are less than 20 miles so my Surly Troll with the flat bars usually is my weapon of choice. My roadie friends think it’s weird but I don’t seem to have any problem keeping up. I will own a Riv one day and will probably get the strangest looking one (to my eye anyway) they currently sell so I can see how long it takes to become normal. And if in the unlikely event I hate riding it I can always hang it on the wall and ride my other bikes.

Bill in VA

I DO agree with you and was trying to say that. I hope you did not think I was disagreeing or dismissing YOUR back issues. We all pick what we are comfortable on or like.

cudak888 

-Kurt

The Golden Boy 

There's definitely an element of truth to that.

When the Tektro RRL levers came out, I thought they were the most hideous abomination of a brake lever ever invented.... I think even the Rivendell copy said something to the effect of "what a brake lever would look like if you told a millennial to design a vintage looking brake lever." Over time they went from "hideous" to "ugly" to "intriguing" to "I'm gonna try them out." Damn if they aren't the most comfortable levers, and they look fine to me now. It's taken like 5 years or whatever- but, IMO, they're the best brake levers ever, now.

IMG_1703 by Dave The Golden Boy, on Flickr

IMG_0217 by Dave The Golden Boy, on Flickr

IMG_0218 by Dave The Golden Boy, on Flickr

corwin1968

I discovered Rivendell Bicycle Works in 2011 and became a fan of their bikes because their riding philosophy was right in line with my own.

I started riding in 1995 on a Trek Mult-Track, which both then and now, I find to be the perfect type of bicycle for me. The Multi-Track had a couple of limitations for me, primarily a too short top tube and not enough tire clearance. I prefer a steel, diamond frameset (some top tube slope is fine) and there really aren't many (any?) bikes out there that fit my requirements, except for some of the RBW models.

I finally took the plunge and bought a Hunqapillar frameset. It checks all of my functional requirements but in all honesty, I would prefer it to have been tig welded, powder coated one color and half the price. Also, when I bought my Hunqapillar, the Appaloosa was available and was pretty much an identical bike except for the much longer chainstays. I waited to find a used Hunqapillar with a more reasonable chainstay length. For my riding, the extra length is not beneficial and can even be somewhat of a hindrance.

noglider 

You certainly have nailed the æsthetic. I say you should accept those offers. I get emails from Chinese companies asking me to review their products. They send them to me for free or a 95% discount. If you start blogging prolifically, you can get some bigger offers than that.

And by the way, you can get the ™ character with Option-2 on a Mac keyboard.

ascherer 

I know, my International is yet another artwork. It does stray into brass, cork, and leather but it has no twine. I do not own an artisanal hatchet, titanium spork, nor grass-fed Porcupine Tar Soap. Thank you for the compliment!
<EDIT: I suddenly remembered: I have to cop to the fact that I the bash guard is from Riv. It was the only one I liked>

I turned 'em down. One offer was half off some decent-looking watches, but I really don't want another watch. I have 3 already, I only wear one at a time and it's the ugliest one I have (Apple) but the most useful. The one that matches my bike's æsthetic (thanks for the ligature) is my Dad's early 50's Omega Tank watch. Classy, classic and understated. The other offer was from a line of kinda Hip Hop outerwear. I think I'd bring their brand down...