Eric F 

No doubt it's a hot bike. I look forward to seeing better pics of it in the future.

canyoneagle

Newly built 90’s Merckx Corsa-01 with Record 9 for consideration.
Fun project!

Eric F 

Classic steel Merckx will always score high on the hotbike-o-meter, but I can see some minor deductions for camera angle, crank position, and seatbag. That said, I bet it's one sweet ride!

canyoneagle

agreed. Resubmitted.

Paul Barnard

The colors on this bike are nice, but the tube shape is an absolute no-go. Especially the spindly looking seat stays.

Paul Barnard

Very nicely done. This frame is the polar opposite of the Cube I just commented on. The tubes flow together artfully rather than looking like a team of engineers worked on trying to be different for the sake of being different. Not only that, State is a much better name for a bike company than Cube. Cube? For a bike? Seriously? That's about as brilliant as Oval Concept for a company that makes wheels.

Paul Barnard

Nope. Gumwalls don't belong on high end modern carbon bikes. In fact it is exceedingly rare that gumwalls contribute to the hot factor.

Paul Barnard

Ultra hot. The sticker is definitely bonus.

Paul Barnard

Gorgeous bike. I am not sure about the brown. I'd like to see it with black, but still, hot.

Paul Barnard

Hot. To my eye really large and really small frames aren't as pleasing. I think if that frame were a few CM smaller it would make the Hot r Not top 10 all time. As it is, it is seriously hot. Fantastic build.

Paul Barnard

Hot! Great employment of silver components. A silver crank may bump up the hot factor, but I'd have to see it to compare. Great work.

Paul Barnard

Alright, I am all caught up. I am not a regular here, but stop by from time to time to catch up and to help some of you who are style challenged. If I were to steal any bike ever posted in the history of our various Hot r Not threads, it'd be Robbyville's Speedvagen. I lust over that bike.

A couple of general notes.

Bikes to the large and small end of the spectrum are rarely hot. They normally look awkward. That's not to say that some of you haven't done a spectacular job given that handicap.

Gumwalls do not belong on modern high end carbon bikes.

As much as I love titanium as a build material, it is far superior to fishing pole material after all, it rarely looks hot.

Alternative tube shapes can look like art or they can look cobbled. With apologies to a great company, the Lynskey Helix twist is utterly hideous.

Names matter. Lets contrast two names I mentioned in catching up. Speedvagen is a hot name. Cube is plain damn dumb.

Frames that have a top tube that slopes downward from back to front are awkward. No slope or a slight rear slope presents better.

Machined brake tracks are harder to make look good. They look better on an all silver rim.

Don't be afraid to take a risk with color. The parts don't have to be permanent. Change them out if they don't flow.

I appreciate all of you who take time to post pics of your bikes. In the end, it doesn't matter if you have an ugly baby as long as you love it.

WhyFi

Okay, ol' codger.

downtube42

Thanks, appreciated. I can't disagree on size and aesthetics. I'm still stinging from the day I sat in an Opel GT and learned such beautiful things are not for people of my dimensions. Maybe with a year of yoga I can remove some of those spacers.

seypat

My first college roommate had an Opel GT. Sweet looking ride! He was a big guy, a linebacker on the football team. He had to squeeze into the GT. Another guy in the dorms had an Opel Manta. One of the players on the basketball team cruised around in a Nissan 200SX. He had the seat way back and the back tilted. Looked like Bubba Smith in Police Academy. That was 1983. One of my suite mates had a black Trans Am like the one Hasselhoff drove in Knight Rider. His last name was Beatty. He DJed as a college side gig. His DJ name was "Master Beatty."

Het Volk

Thanks. I think the brushed polished alu bits work. Someone else thought the entire component collection should be black with no polished alu. Building up a pair of Mavic Open Pro CD wheels with Orange CK Hubs, as well as Tubular Montreal Ambrosia rims with black CK hubs.

These Salsa Delgado's with Tiagra hubs were kind of a budget build when I built them.

Het Volk

I think Soma messed up getting rid of the Soma Smoothie. This should have been a mainstay of their line. This color, this frame, rim brakes. A beauty of a frame and bike.

Paul Barnard

The whole "blacked out" thing is way overdone. It can look good, but it rarely looks exceptional. Just too common.

robbyville

Welcome back, albeit briefly! I appreciate the kind words. I took my time saving and planning for the Speedvagen. In less than 3 weeks the bike will be 3 years old and I still smile every time I walk by it. It remains my daily ride and I truly don’t ever see it being replaced. From a comfort and fit standpoint it always amazes me that on my longest ride to date (Mexicali to San Felipe 122 miles) that I felt as good at mile 122 as I did at mile 10. Although a couple of changes I made were purely aesthetic they’ve also performed well like the leather painted to match handlebar tape which will also soon be 3 years old with barely a scuff.

Thanks again!

Paul Barnard

I experience the same kind of pleasure with my Lynskey Backroad. Although it is truly ugly. The bike fits so well it's like an extension of my body. It almost disappears beneath me. While it's not a lightweight, it is pretty darned sporty.

illdrag0n

Any love for endurance road bikes?

Eric F 

Nice bike...but hot points deductions for the bars being up at seat level.

Symox

Bianchi's in Celeste are some of the best looking bikes around imho

nycphotography

I personally disagree. I almost never like them. And yet that bike is hot. All just my own opinion of course.

Kimmo 

I'm not a fan of celeste either, but I worked on one of these bad boys once, and the matt finish looked awesome. Prolly doesn't look so great now though...