Chrome Molly

After about 15 months of waiting, collecting and assembling all the bits, it's finally complete.

Initial impressions of the ride qualities are that it is very smooth, yet really responds when you hammer it. So many good things are combined on this bike to create a ride like I've never experienced before. Light and stiff, yet compliant over our rough roads. The Veloflex Masters combined with these wheels really carry a lot of speed. The Campy bits work well, but a few gears offer a bit of drivetrain noise not unlike any other bike I've ridden. The shifting is quick and generally very precise. Not quite used to being able to dump a mess of gears at one time on thumb paddle, so that might take a bit of getting used to. A hair over 17 lbs in this ready to ride state.

In all, a ridiculous extravagance, yet still worth it to me.

gomango

Let me be the first to say, I am in love.

I have been waiting for a year to see this beauty.

Let's go for a ride.

Vonruden

Stunning!

Chrome Molly

Yes, let's.

A couple more thumbnails

Michael Angelo 

Very Very nice, beautiful bike.

busdriver1959

There are more pictures that Dave posted on Velocipede Salon.com, Friday Night Lights # 264, post #3 . I think it's the same bike and there is a link to Flickr with even more shots. Beautiful bike. Congratulations.

PeregrineA1 

Oh my. That is very very nice!

KonAaron Snake 

That is a beautiful velo - I love your build choices, very elegant. The seat cluster is what really catches my eyes - it's exceptional. I love your paint/color choices as well.

This goes into my favorites category with stuff like GMG's Kvale, Scooper's Waterford, etc.

thirdgenbird

As the kids would say, OMG!

I'm a picket guy, but I'm not sure I would change a thing. What wheelset is that?

Edit: ok, I've got one suggestion, I feel obligated. Paul components skewers. I can't decide on silver or black though.

Saguaro

It really is a "ridiculous extravagance" we indulge in here isn't it? I love it!

bikemig 

This is a cool bike. I've looked at Dave Anderson's website a few times; his bikes are really good looking.

Scooper

I really think Dave is one of the best in the business, and he's a helluva nice guy to boot. He was one of the earliest to tackle stainless, and his work is flawless.

Congratulations!

gaucho777 

Fantastic! Congrats!

Can you tell us more about the finish. Is it brushed/polished metal with clear? And, forgive me, but what is the blur/smudge on the top tube in front of the seat cluster?

I don't think I've seen (or haven't noticed) fork ends like that before, how they narrow so much before the tips.

Really nice build. It looks fast and smooth.

gomango

As enjoyable as these pics are, I must recommend this set as well.

Strong camera work to study this beautiful frameset.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/anders...7643376003285/

Let me also say that the price of custom isn't so prohibitive when you think of it in the long term. Just consider the joy, freedom and fun over say 10-15 years, maybe more.

At least that's the line I use on Mrs. Gomango. I've been wrangling for one of these as well, so I have been doing plenty of marketing at home.

Chrome Molly

Thanks all. It's KVA stainless with a brushed finish. No top coat, just a bit of T9 or stainless polish every once in a while. Should require all the maintenance of a stainless bathroom stall at the airport (ex the graffiti). The down and seat tube "wraps" are multi color paint with the stainless tubing showing through as the lettering.

The smudge on the top tube is my amateur effort at photo editing. My favorite parts of the bike are the fork ends and where the stays enter the drops. Very clean.

The whole build was my attempt at mixing C&V with modern, and Dave was great to work with. I came in mentioning that I wanted something that rode like my trek760, but with updates in the sense I wanted it lighter with maybe a bit less whip in the frame, yet retaining a supple ride. Well that's exactly what Dave built. The kicker was that when I brought my 760 in as the test fit bike, he had his own 760 in the shop. No doubt he understood the ride I was looking for.

I fully recommend Dave, as his paintwork is stunning and even a "plain" unpainted steel bike like mine reveals his skills really well. I admit to under-appreciating the process at the start. His build photos really captured how much he really puts into each one of his bikes. He kept me informed all the way along, really let me participate in the design more than I expected, and he's very likable and easy to deal with. The upside is his new shop is somewhat local, so I'm already kicking around other ideas with him. Hope you consider a custom build, thank you for the compliments, and thanks for allowing me to share a bit.

Sir_Name 

Wow. Wow! That is strikingly beautiful; a real head-turner. Congratulations, you must be feeling pretty good right now.

The (lack of) finish leaves all of the skill, presence, and craftsmanship of the builder in plain sight. A showcase. I would love to see this in person, under the sun.

Best regards.

KonAaron Snake 

I agree - in some ways paint is like A-1 sauce, on a lesser steak/bike it masks the flaws and adds something. On a fine steak, or a bike like this, it masks quality. I used the same approach you did for my custom - a merger of what I love about c/v with modern advantages. I'm biased, but I think it's a great approach, expressed perfectly in your velo.

inkandsilver

It's exquisite. I'd almost be afraid to ride it - but I'm sure the ride is sweet enough to persuade you to get out there and let it be a bike.

RB1-luvr

wow that is beautiful. And here I am all excited to finish building my Ritchey Road Logic. Now I'm wishing I had looked into one of these.

Sir_Name 

Funny, I just finished a steak - no A-1 required...It's been a good day of unadulterated feasts for the eyes and taste buds.

Italuminium

just the perfect bike really. Enjoy this future classic!

bconneraz

beautiful bike; wow! I love the fasback seat stays; holy smokes thats a pretty bike.

Wildwood 

Second the comments on the beauty of seat cluster. What a lovely ride.

All good reasons (in above quotes) to find a quality local builder. I bought 2 customs from local builders and 1 via long distance and there was a world of difference (in favor of the local builders) - especially in the design area, where it is most important.

gomango

The issue here is we have so many exceptional builders in the Twin Cities. Dave Anderson, Curt Goodrich, Chris Kvale, Alex at A Train Cycles, Erik at Peacock Groove, Matt Appleman,Bob Brown and the list goes on.

It almost has paralyzed me into indecision.

Seeing CM's Dave Anderson has given me a pretty good idea for a long term project with one of the choices.

Any of these builders would be within a brief bike ride to their shop.

We have got it made here.

Wildwood 

I worked for a year in Portland OR and felt the same way.

Calfee was in Santa Cruz, CA only a few miles away from my home at that time. Jon Tallerico was in Palo Alto, CA.

Edit: I'm a fan of Curt Goodrich's work, but have never met the man.