Idea Day

VO customers are pretty amazing. Not only do they keep us in business, they send us great idea to share. Check out the items below. All of these were in our inbox yesterday.



Phillip sent us a video of his very clever folding bike mechanism. If VO ever makes a folding bike this might be the way to do it. He writes:

I designed it a while ago, but over Christmas I finally got around to making a prototype. The idea was to create a folding mechanism that could be applied to many types of triangular framed bicycles. Think of it more as a "its raining so I'll get the bus home" rather than a Brompton rival!

Peter did a great job building up his '83 and '84 Lotus Classiques. Not only are there lots of VO parts, but checkout the great leather bits. Peter's comments are in the captions.

The toeclip leathers obviously lend themselves very well to being laced up as covers on brake and shift levers.The handgrips were only a little bit trickier.  I tripped across a pair of pleather-covered ergo-style bar grips at my LBS that were just too cheap to avoid experimenting with and VO just happened to be out of stock of the cork grips I had originally planned to use.  I stripped off the obnoxiously slippery pleather covering, mounted the remaining shaped rubber grips on the handlebars and laced a set of your city bike elkhide bar covers over the grips, using toeclip leathers as extra gussets on the underside so the covers could be laced up around the much bigger diameter.  I think the pictures pretty well show how it's done.  I would expect that VO cork grips would work just as well under the elkhide covers.

 I first discovered VO looking for something to replace the early-version Brooks leather bar tape that faded from its original rich honey color to a sickly-looking greenish gray in little more than a week - despite liberal wiping with Proofhide and very little exposure to sun or weather.  I ran across a vintage Italian original-equipment leather-covered handlebar on eBay and started hunting for some kind of lace-up leather product (like, maybe steering wheel covers) that I could use to make a similar handlebar.  For quite a while I wasn't finding anything until VO launched its elkhide handlebar and toeclip covers.  A sidebar VO blog item about somebody in Japan making leather covers for brake-lever hoods appeared about the same time - which weren't available here.  And I put two and two together and fabricated my own leather brake hood covers using toeclip leathers for gussets and some extra bar-cover leather.

And the toeclip leathers also worked well as pads to quiet any rattling of the SS water bottle from VO against the cage.  VO of course wasn't making bottle cages back then.

Peter also sent us this link showing how he used a VO Rackaleur to support an OYB bag. And how to use that bag as a saddle bag.

Speaking of saddle bags, George got a Minnehaha medium saddle bag to use as a front bag. We tried it here and it works very well, at least on small-to-average sized frames. Everything I need for work, including my 12.5" Thinkpad, just fits. Might be a nice commuter setup.

The back-strap on the bag fits over the front rack's "backstop" or integrated decaleur.

Super Rack

I took this rack photo at the 2007 Cirque de Cyclisme and just came across it while looking for something else. It's on a French constructeur demountable frame. This thing has to be super sturdy, and super expensive to make. I can't help but wonder if it isn't overkill; that's a lot of tubes. The removable mini platform on top is cute. Anyway, such a cool design that I thought you'd like to see it. Wadda ya think?

The Elk Are Back

Espresso-color elkhide bar cover

We use elkhide for our handlebar covers, city grips, and toe clip covers. Unfortunately we sometimes run out of them, particularly in the espresso color. Elkhides are often in short supply, especially the highest grade, which is what we use. Our elkhide comes from from a small California tannery that buys most of its stock from recreational hunters. They tan and dye the hides and ship them to us. The covers are actually cut right here in Annapolis. It's a tough job since the usable part of the hide is not that large. A lot of thinking goes into deciding how best to utilize them. We need to work around the bullet holes, scars, and rough areas while trying to waste as little of the expensive leather as possible. Since each hide has a slightly different color shade, thickness, pliability, and elasticity, we carefully match the pairs of covers. But these are wild animals, not farm raised cattle, so there will always be some inconsistency. Such is the nature of the beast.

We've thought about switching to cowhide, but the soft feel of elk hide and it's ability to conform to the bends of a handlebar convince me not to. Cow hide is also not as "spongy" and shock absorbent. If we can't get the larger supply of hides we need as we continue to grow then we'll switch. We've already had a run of cowhide covers made as an experiment. They were OK, but not as good. There is another artisinal tannery that we work with, they tan the leather for our mud flaps, and we'll see if they can come up with a custom tanned cow leather that's closer to elk.

City bar grips

To my eye there are two types of handlebar bar treatment that really stand out, elkhide covers and shellaced cloth tape. Leather bar tape is my third choice. Both the covers and shellaced tape are a bit of work. Put aside a couple of hours to do a really nice job on bar covers. It's pretty simple, but repetitive work (I do my covers while watching a movie). Full directions can be found here. Matching bar covers, saddle, fender flaps, toe-clip leathers and straps really bring a bike together. Vegans may not agree.

We just got a shipment of elkhide and have a small quantity of covers in all colors in stock. We'll be making more over the next week.

Leather covers on my old VO rando bike

North American Handbuilt Bike Show

We were looking at the NAHBS web site and noticed that many of the exhibitors are Velo Orange customers. NAHBS showcases some of the worlds best custom builders and bikes. So it's really gratifying to know that these guys sometimes use our parts.

Here's a list of some noteworthy exhibitors (and VO customers.) Click on the links to check out some gorgeous bikes.

• Bishop Bikes
• Pereira
• Inglis / Retrotec
• Signal Cycles
• Calfee Design
• Ahearne Cycles
• Castle Frameworks
• Naked Bicycles & Design
• Steve Rex / Rex Cycles
• Cherubim
• M.A.P. Bicycles

Unfortunately we won't be exhibiting NAHBS this year, though we have a couple of times in the past. The location is on the opposite coast this year and its too close to Frostbike, where we will be exhibiting, and the Taiwan show. I may, however, fly out just to walk the show and meet with some of our wholesale customers. If you can get to Sacramento it's absolutely worth attending.

More Special Stuff

We just added more products to the Velo Orange specials page. Some great components and accessories at great prices can be found there. Certain items will be on sale only until stock levels normalize, others will be discontinued. Get em' while you can.

That's all.

Sign Up For The VO Newsletter

Recently Annette wrote a guest post about a VO e-mailing promo offers. The response was very positive with 92% of folks saying they would like to have them. So we've decided to try a monthly newsletter. It will contain new product announcements and single-use coupon codes. You can sign up for it at this link. You can also opt-in when placing an order as shown below. If enough folks sign up we'll continue the newsletters and coupon codes, if not we'll drop them in a few months. Of course you can unsubscribe at any time and we won't share your info with anyone.

Alternative Saddle Bag Support

I've noticed more and more Pass Hunter style front rack being used as saddle bag supports or small rear racks. I just saw another one on a Japanese site and was reminded that Nick used one on his bike. These photos are of his 26"-wheeled on/off road touring bike. I'm not sure that I like the looks of this installation as the rack is not level, but it is certainly practical and very strong.

I wonder if we should design a version especially for rear mounting? There are some small rear racks/bag supports already available, but ours would be stainless steel and have a few nice refinements. Another project to think about.

No Paint or Plastic

The Reflect - polished (left) and brushed (right)

We've got these new bottles in from Klean Kanteen: the Reflect. We thought they'd be neat to try out, so we got just a couple to see how you guys like them.

You can get them here.

These remind me a lot more of the original Klean Kanteen (remember the stainless top?) they're a neat alternative to the newer ones with plastic tops and sippy mouths and all different colors.

New cap!

The new cap also has a bamboo top. The loop on the top swivels around so it gets out of the way when you don't need it.

We think you'll really like the high-polish version as well. Looks good on a bike!

Everywhere you want to go

Post by Alec B.

You can get there on a Rando bike.

I've been riding mine for a bit more than a year now, and it's taken me to a few places.

Photo by Mary Gersema

It's probably no coincidence that during that time, I've met three other people riding VO Rando frames in Maryland and Virginia. Hi Bob, Mark, and Steve!

last years' rides. This view: 170mi x 110mi

The snapshots in this post are my GPS tracks from those rides, all layered one on top of the other.

When you zoom way out, it's just a big ball of spaghetti, covering almost all of Maryland and Northern Virginia, with some stray strands in Southern Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and one reaching offscreen to North Carolina...

Catoctin Mountain. This view: 5mi x 8 mi

If you look closer, though, some order emerges. The Rando has taken me across Catoctin Mountain (right) every way you can go! It's a good climber, and you can be sure that it's seen more than a few "gut busters" in the last year...

The rando has also passed through Gettysburg, PA (below) several ways, but it looks like we missed a few. We'll have to fix that!

Gettysburg, PA. This view: 2mi x 3mi

We also seem to really like the area around Frederick (below, left), scouring the quiet country roads on ride after ride....

Patuxent river, MD. This View: 25mi x 14mi

Frederick, MD. This View: 35mi x 24mi

I've also taken the Rando to explore the Patuxent river (above, right), and even Washington, DC (below).

Washington, DC. This View 3mi x 1.5 mi

Photo by Mary Gersema

PS: If any of you collect routes, you can download the ones shown here from my ridewithgps page.

Curious about how to make your own tracks? I use motionX; some of my buddies use Garmin, and there seems to be an option for Andriod users too.


Thanks for reading! Happy riding, everyone!

Specials

This is the time of year that things slow down at most bike businesses, VO included. It's not an unwelcome rest period. Winter gives us time to do things like work on new designs and to analyze our inventory. We want to see which items are overstocked, which are selling slower or faster than expected, and which we might consider dropping in the future.

Despite 2011 being our best year ever, we did find quite a few things that are overstocked. So we're adding items to our specials page. Check the page every so often and you might find a few real deals. In some cases the special items will be discounted until stock levels are back to normal, in other cases we'll simply drop the item when we run out.

You might note that the Rando frame is on sale; we over-ordered on the large sizes and need to make room for the 700c Polyvalents and the, eventual, Pass Hunters.

Blogs We Read

We were chatting about bike blogs and I asked some of the VO staffers which ones they read. Here are a few that we find interesting:

• gypsy by trade, A neat blog by a former VO staffer and now in Alaska
• Wheel Fanatyk, Igor, the new guy here, found this cool blog that's mostly about wheels.
• Bike Shop Girl, From Annette
• Bikeville, Old bikes from our friends at Bikeville, several of us read this.
• Cycling Tips, Racy stuff.
• Mercx Mondays, The Cannibal!
• Vintage Bicycle, Great old bikes described, nice photos too.
• Chasing mailboxes, Rando friends
• While Out Riding,  UK cyclist touring North and South America
• The Lazy Randonneur, A cool blog about bikes, kite surfing, SUPing, etc.
• Jill Outside, Another great blog from Alaska; thanks Scott.
• Velo News, More racy stuff.
• Lovely Bicycle, Just lovely.
• The Daily Randonneur, More rando friends.

And a few non-bike blogs that we like:

• Archival Clothing, A great blog about quality stuff from a VO customer.
• bunnie's blog. Robert recommends this. I'm not really sure what it's about.
• Log Cabineer, Out in the woods.
• Lloyds Blog, About tiny houses and other fun stuff.
• The Cleanest Line, Patagonia's blog, one of my favorites
• Hops, Fig, and a Duck, recommended by Alec
• Surfrider Foundation, Recommended by me.
• FX Cuisine, This blog is dead, but I still keep going back to it.
• Carl Safina, Wonderful writer and oceanographer.

If you have any suggestions for non-commercial blogs, please mention them in the comments. We need new stuff to read in the new year.

Merry Holidays and Many Thanks

All of us at Velo Orange want to thank our customers for another great year and wish you HAPPY HOLIDAYS.

Year End Deals

We've lowered the threshold for free shipping to $25 from midnight tonight through Thursday. The usual rules apply, orders must ship to the lower 48 states, frames and wheels not included (due to their size).

We're also offering 20% off on everything picked up at the VO showroom Monday through Thursday of next week. But, remember, our little showroom is only open from 10am to 4pm. It's at 1819 George Avenue Annapolis MD, 21401.

Also, we'll be closed the week between Christmas and New Years. You're welcome to place orders through the store site, but they won't ship until Jan 2nd. And there will be no one here to answer phones or e-mail that week.

Applying Decals

The Polyvalent comes with minimalist decals. A lot of folks like this simple look, but others prefer more traditional contrasting-color decals. So when you order a Polyvalent frame or build kit we give you the option of getting a set of white decals. Here's a video that'll show you how to apply them. The same technique works for most other modern bike decals. You can even get get custom made decals (just Google bike decals) for restorations or to personalize your frame.


Applying decals from Velo Orange on Vimeo.

Fun with Freehub Bodies

Back in the day, when we rode 5 or 6-speed freewheels, we would change freewheels to suit the terrain. A flat criterium meant fitting a "straight block", 13-14-15-16-17-18. On a mountain ride we'd fit a wide range freewheel, maybe 14-32. We serious riders also had a couple of in between freewheels, or even loose cogs to build our own custom freewheels.

These days we have 9 or 10 or 11-speed cassettes that cover such a wide range that a single cassette will probably do for everything short of touring in the mountains. But wouldn't it be neat to have exactly the right cassette for every ride, or at least one for the flats and one for the mountains, and be able to switch them in a few seconds.  Here's a video that shows you how to do just that with a VO hub:


Fun with Freehub bodies from Velo Orange on Vimeo.

All you need is a spare freehub body and another cassette. You can even switch cassettes between a 130mm spaced hub and a 135mm spaced one. Or pull the cassette off to replace a broken spoke.

Project Update

I thought some of you might like updates on the various VO projects I'd mentioned previously.

• We've been testing different forks for the Polyvalent 700c/Camper frame. We even figured out how to re-rake our own forks. I think we've nailed down the geometry and we'll approve production very soon.
• The Pass Hunter 700c performance frame is up next for development. We hope to be testing prototypes in a couple of months.
• We're awaiting new prototype camping racks. I know these have been in the works for a long time, but we do want them as close to perfect as we can manage. Since the prototypes are all bent, welded, and finished by hand it takes 2-3 months to get each new generation.
• We've rethought our luggage projects and are designing a new line of premium bike luggage using the best fabrics we can find. I think we've found the right material and come up with a pretty darn nice handlebar bag design to get the line rolling. Now we'll enter the long prototyping stage. These will probably be called Grand Cru bags.
• Our first round of short reach/drop bar samples was disappointing. We have to make new tooling and try again. I'm really particular about bars and am finding that getting the hand positions right is much harder on these than on medium or long reach models.
• We hope to introduce complete, ready to ride, bikes this winter.

As for future projects that we're thinking about:

• We're kicking around the idea of a 26" expedition bike, something halfway between a mountain bike and a traditional camper.
• A larger porteur rack is possible, but how big? Need to haul cases of beer, pizzas, large paintings, sheets of plywood?

Campy-Compatible Hubs

The Campy versions of our Grand Cru touring and VO high-low hubs have arrived. Many Campy fans, myself included, have been waiting for these. They are available on all our hubs and on all VO rear wheels. And yes, they will work with 11-speed.

We also have the freehub bodies available separately so you can slip them onto your existing wheel. It only takes about 5 seconds, and no tools, to switch from Shimano to Campy compatibility.

I know that some of you don't get the appeal of Campy products. And I have to admit that I don't notice much diffidence in performance between Campy, Shimano, and Sram. But many of us really love the Campy brifters, still the best ever in my opinion. I also like that many little internal parts for Campy derailleurs and brifters are available. I can rebuild stuff instead of replacing it, or convert 9-speed brifters to 10-speed. Finally, I like that front shifting is non-index.

Just a note about one other compatibility issue. All of our cranks work with 5 to 10-speed, be it Campy, Shimano, or Sram. They should also work with 11-speed, but we have not tested that since none of us ride 11-speed yet.

Complete Rando Special

We have a new offering in our Prototype and Specials section. It's a complete 57cm VO Rando with a Shimano 105 10-speed derailleurs and brifters. This bike was used for testing and a magazine review and has very very few miles on it. It's $2000 including the rack and front bag; considering that the maxi build kit $1220, that's a pretty great deal. It would make a wonderful fast randonneur or credit card tourer.

Go Tour

A guest post by Alec Burney

It’s been a bit more than a year, the calendar says, but it seems like just the other day that I shoved off from home with gear on my bike and dreams in my head.

I just got my photos back, and that brings it all into focus again. I’m reminded that I wouldn’t have seen these sights or met the folks I did if I hadn’t been inching my way a few thousand miles down the coast.

Relaxing in the shade

What I’m left with is a confirmation of what the bicycle is and can be. It’s a tool for going from “A” to “B,” some will tell you. Or it’s a toy for zipping around on the weekend. Or a piece of exercise equipment. Or maybe it’s a different way of thinking.

The Pine Creek Gorge

You can hop on and head towards “B,” but all along the way you’ll get to do something magical - you’ll get to bump around through life and experience all of its little joys. The bicycle is a tool - a tool of discovery. And it’s a toy, a magical thing that makes adults into children again. Exercise equipment? An exercise in life.

You can head out for a weekend or a week, and stick to the dirt roads, state forests, and country lanes where it’s quiet and there’s little traffic. Maybe you’ll find yourself on an unpaved track in the backcountry where you can go at your own speed and be contented with your own thoughts.

A sensible bike will let you put on some bigger tires, for comfort, racks for your stuff, but then the rest is up to you - go have fun! When you're out rambling, you don't need much to stay happy.

Tioga State Forest

My "navigation device"

As I made my way I learned about what I needed and what I didn’t. Cue sheets don’t help much when you’re going almost 3,000 miles and like to follow wrong turns and ride down bike paths. Each gas station in each state you go through has a huge folding road map for only a few dollars. These helped me get lost a little bit more, and ride up big hills I didn’t need to, and encouraged me to go West when I wanted to go East, and visit parks I might have missed otherwise.

Swimming in Pennsylvania

A turtle in the Genesee Valey

The bike paths were some of my favorite riding. It seems that deer and hawks and turtles come from all around to enjoy the little bit of woods in the suburban sprawl. Bike paths connected me to friendly folks, swimming holes, icecream stands, and great camping spots.

Life on the bike really was life without a schedule, where I could nap and read under a shade tree in the heat of the day.

Jersey Mills Post Office

I crossed Western New York from North to South, and wondered how towns like “Cuba” and “Nunda” extracted their names from the nearly-Canadian so-far-north, glaciatic terrain of Upstate. Soon I crossed into Pennsylvania, got a new state map, and tried my best to get lost in a maze of forest roads. Susquehannock, Tioga, State Game Lands this and that, and the Pine Creek Gorge. The trail is a strange mix of old and new, and I drew my water for the day from springs alongside while tourists in enormous traditional covered wagons rolled past joggers and mountain bikers. The town of Jersey Mills added to the charm - its post office was connected to what was almost certainly someone's house. The post office was closed, but I dropped my letters in the box and kept going.

Pine Creek covered wagon

And along the way I learned to ask for directions. “Anyone seen Williamsburg? It’s over there somewhere, right?” It’s fun to let on that you’re completely lost, especially when you are.

My "trail guide"

This guy showed me to the trail that would be my secret highway into Philadelphia. Some of the prettiest secret entrances to huge cities are via bike paths that follow big rivers. Way better than sitting in traffic. I can’t recall his name, but he was a spirited rider and had been enjoying his bike so long that the toptube was rusted through in one spot, from sweaty summer afternoons. I hope he’s gotten a new bike by now.

The NCR trail

Zigzagging to Philadelphia brought me to a weekend of reconnecting with friends while the Flyers missed the Cup by just a hair. Philadelphia was not happy about that, and I escaped up the Schuykill River trail and then across to York, and followed the NCR trail through the towns of Railroad, New Freedom, and Freeland.

Schuykill River Trail

Before I knew it I was on the Jones Falls trail, an amazing part of Baltimore that could be anywhere, a serious part in the middle of a busy city.

Gary joined me for the New York section

Virginia is a blur of long rollers, but then the flat, calm Outer Banks of North Carolina leave a lasting memory. I’ve been back to ride this section a couple more times. It’s very strange to find yourself so surrounded by water, but riding a bike.

There’s parts of Hatteras less than 500 feet across, and it’s all sand dunes. Just a long flat road all to yourself, and a nice campground at the end of it. There’s few bad places to ride a bike, but this might be one of my favorite, if I had to choose.

After landing in southern North Carolina, and attending my sister’s beautiful wedding, I set off on another adventure. Maybe we can talk about it next time.

Until then, who’s got stories to share? Been somewhere neat? Want to go somewhere soon?

Free Shipping Deal on Orders Over $100

As we've done in past years, we're offering a free shipping deal during the holiday season. This offer started today and runs through January 1, 2012.

Here's the fine print:

• The free shipping is offered only on orders shipped to the continental USA.
• The order must be over $100.
• Frames and wheels are excluded due to their large size and, thus, higher shipping cost.

Prototypes for Sale

We have a new section in our site called Prototypes and Specials. We'll use it to list some of the frames and bikes we've previously sold at our garage sales. These may be prototypes or display bikes or bikes sent to magazines for reviews. We may also have the occasional new frame with scratched paint or some other small flaw.

There are two rather nice bikes in the category now. Both are bikes are prototypes that I rode for awhile, but no longer use. The burden of this job is that I can have more great bikes than I possibly need, and at the same time I'm trying to own less stuff.

The first bike is the prototype of the VO Rando frame. This was a bike I rode for about a year, but no longer do. The ride is absolutely terrific and very similar to the Pass Hunter I now ride, but I prefer the pass hunter. Johnny Coast did a really fine job on this frame (He was trying to win our semi-custom frame business, which he did.) The Rando has a great selection of new-old-stock French components. It even has Maxi-Car hubs.

The second bike is the prototype VO Gentleman. This was a semi-custom frame we offered in our early years. It was built by Ahren Rogers. The frame is fillet brazed, has bosses for a chain-guard and a single down tube shifter. The build is a mix of classic and new components. This would make a great commuter or classy around-town bike.

Update: The rando is sold. Also, the derailleur on the Gentleman is a Simplex SX610, much nicer than the model 404 I'd incorrectly listed.