by Igor
It's no secret that between product designing, testing, the uptick in order processing from our restock, and life, we've all been extremely busy. And since it's been a bit since we've done a "general happenings" around HQ and since I have a few minutes here to catch my breath, I thought it would be a good time to update our readers and followers.
Shipping
We'll start off with some of the boring but important stuff (for visibility). If you live in New Zealand or Australia, shipping is going up. US Postal Service has discontinued First Class and Priority shipping, so the only options to send packages is Postal Express or Fedex - both of which are quite pricey and sometimes go over the price of the order. So if you need larger items like fenders, handlebars, racks, etc... please contact your local VO Dealer. They order in larger quantities, and can often accommodate customer requests:
- Australia
- Commuter Cycles - VIC
- Omafiets - NSW
- Treadly Bikes - SA
- Cargocycles - VIC
- Saint Cloud Cycles - VIC
- New Zealand
- Action Bicycle Club - Christchurch
- Get Lost Cycling - Wellington
- Bicycle Junction - Wellington
Ok, now for the fun stuff!
Crazy Bar Review on Bikepacking
The redesigned Velo Orange Crazy Bars are pretty wacky looking, but when broken down, actually make quite a lot of sense. The combination of rise, sweep, and width hits a sweet spot and could work for many styles of bikes and riding styles. It’s also great to see Velo Orange manufacturing them out of a lightweight 6061 Aluminum, because some steel bars seem excessively heavy by comparison. So, yeah, they’re crazy, but I actually think they have the potential to add another dimension of comfort to a wide variety of rigs.
While they are currently sold out, we are getting a lot more around mid/late December 2021.
Rubbery Bar Tape Review
The Velo Orange Rubbery Bar Tape is, as the name implies, made from a textured rubbery compound and is long enough for the biggest flared drops. Generous length is only rivalled by its 3.5mm density, which lends itself perfectly, not only to gravel but drop bar mountain bike conversions, rough stuff touring lorries and frankly, anyone else who wants the best of grip and damping.
Randos - The Rumors Are True!
We have next generation prototype Rando framesets. They are rim brake, 700c, and very spritely. I built mine (below) with 2x12sp with no lightweight bits (but I'm getting carbon wheels soon!) and it sits at 23lbs. The design of the frameset was truly an exercise in minimalism and only has what is absolutely necessary.
Our friend Matt suggested we keep a "Frame Diary" of the design, prototyping, and production process. I think that's an awesome idea.
Granola-Moose Bars
We actually teased these on an Instagram post a bit back and the stoke was high. We're making a couple small tweaks to the angle relative to the stem for a better position.
We're also doing away with the tall clamp. We had an overwhelming number of requests for a model that could be used with a stem adaptor for older mtbs, so it only makes sense. This is the way.
More Sensah
The Sensah products we've brought in have been very popular. We recently got some more Sensah products in to test, specifically this 12sp Empire group. It's really good and it has some carbon bits because, you know, carbon.
The neat thing about the front shifter is that it has 4 trim positions, kind of like the older Campagnolo integrated shifters. The shifting is very tactile, just like the SRX 11sp stuff, and is crisp. I'm pleased.
New Digs!
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