Report From the Beautiful Island

Formosa is Portuguese for beautiful island, and it's the old name for Taiwan. While the flat coastal plain studded with the factories that make our parts may not be particularly beautiful, the mountains just to the east and north certainly are, as are the beaches, and especially the people. In my travels to dozens of countries, I've rarely met locals as friendly and hospitable as the Taiwanese. And it never ceases to amaze me that it's far easier to get along speaking English in Taipei than in Paris.

We visited several factories that make our parts and met with many more suppliers at the Taipei Cycle Show. The longest meeting was with our rack manufacturer where we went over the myriad details required to make our new touring racks. I don't think these will be ready before fall. There is really a lot involved in getting them just right. We're also working on a new saddle bag support.

At our handlebar factory we approved the prototype stainless steel VO 25.4mm-26.0mm shims. These will be priced lower price than the only existing type and we'll have a wider version for use with threadless stems. We also discussed our new short reach drop bar and arranged to have all the logos on our city bars changed from laser etching to the engraved or stamped version.

Dia Compe has some new Campy-look shifters that we'll be stocking in down tube and bar end versions. There are a few other surprises from the folks at DC, including a new version of their touring frame that looks very nice.

We're still exploring the possibility of making very high quality roller-bearing bottom brackets, but what's stopped us is the high cost. Maybe, just maybe, there has been some progress in bringing the cost down. If we could manage to sell them for between $75 and $85, would you be interested? They would be aimed at long distance touring cyclists and others that ride extreme mileage in difficult conditions and need a bomb-proof BB. The photo is of VO BBs at the factory.

Our brake manufacturer showed us some prototype cantilevers reputed to be more powerful than existing models. We'll be testing them soon and may develop a Grand Cru version.

The new Grand Cru stem has been in development for a long time. It's amazing how many issues can crop up on such a simple project. It's almost ready for production, really!

Many of you had asked us to look for a high-end frame pump. I'm afraid that I found nothing that I thought was particularly better than models already on the market. We talked about opening tooling for a Grand Cru pump, but I doubt that sales could cover the costs. The simple fact is that mini-pumps and mini-floor pumps are now so good that most cyclists, myself included, don't bother with a frame pump. The only advantage of a frame pump is inflation speed, and I'm not in that much of a hurry.

We also scoured the show for retro-style lights. There is only one possibility so far and it would be expensive, but we'll explore it further. With so much going on I'm unwilling and unable to devote the time it would take to develop our own lights from scratch. We can't make everything and keep what little sanity remains.

One project that's been behind is the next production run of the Polyvalent frames. We're making a few small refinements including improving the bend of the fork blade; that's caused the holdup. With luck we'll have the final version of the new fork in two weeks and production can proceed. We're also working on a 700c version of the Polyvalent that will be more of a touring bike.

There's a lot more, but those are the highlights. I'll leave you to ponder, and comment on, the following photos.

VO's 5th Anniversary, with Sale

Next week will be VO's 5th anniversary.  Hard to believe. We had an informal staff meeting this morning and several of us suggested a 5th anniversary sale. That's OK with me since I'll be in Asia. So our dedicated staff will offer one-fifth, or 20%, off all VO and Grand Cru brand products next week. That's Sunday through Saturday (March 13-19). Items on the specials page are excluded, but shops and wholesale accounts are included.  Only applies to items that are in-stock (we can't do backorders).  No coupon code needed.

Also, with travel and back-to-back meetings for the next week I won't be able to respond to question on the blog, but you can e-mail the VO staff.

Grand Cru Hubs Arrive, Including Dyno Hub

We just received an air shipment of VO Grand Cru hubs. We have the high flange freewheel hubs in 126mm and 130mm spacing and in 32 and 36-hole. We also have matching front hubs. The long awaited switchable dyno hubs are also in the shipment. We'll try to get them all onto the website very soon with full details. The fixed and cassette hubs should be in the next shipment. BTW, they do come with quick releases. Here are a few photos:

Product Ideas

I'll be back in Taiwan for the Taipei Cycle Show next week. This is the most important bike show of the year and one where almost every major supplier and factory exhibits. In addition to meeting with the factories we already work with, I'll be looking for new products and manufacturers.  And, as in past years, I'm asking readers for ideas.

What new stuff should I look for? Pretend that you're the buyer for VO and want to source new items. But remember that any new products must fit with our overall theme; no BMX or carbon or MTB stuff. And new products must sell in sufficient quantity. We can't stock something we'll likely only sell a few hundred of a year. The comments are open.

Front Derailleurs

We've recently seen a number of questions regarding the choice of front derailleur for 50.4bcd and compact double cranks. As one of my college professors quipped before explaining some obscure point, "I cannot stress strongly enough how unimportant this is."

What I mean is that front derailleurs were perfected decades ago and there has been virtually no significant progress since. Front derailleurs just work and there is no point in agonizing over which to use. I've seen ancient Campy Nuevo Records shift modern triple cranks on touring bikes without issue and MTB derailleurs on compact doubles. Remember that the only significant difference between a double and triple front derailleur is that the inner cage plate on the triple is deeper to better pick up the chain on the granny ring. In short, getting the ideal derailleur may improve shifting, but probably not by enough for most to notice.

So in choosing a front derailleur for a compact double or wide range double I'd consider the following, in order of importance:

• Make sure the clamp fits the frame.
• If you use index shifting be sure it's compatible
• A front derailleur designed for a compact double is nice because the curve of the plate better matches the outer chainring, but I can't feel much performance difference. If I already owned a regular double or triple front derailleur I'd just use it.
• On 50.4bcd cranks there can be an issue with derailleurs that have a "sculpted" outer cage, as in the photo on the right. These cages can brush the crank arm. It's safer to stick with derailleurs with flat outer plates.
• Modern derailleurs with flat outer cages are hard to find, though, so I use a Tiagra front derailleur with the Grand Cru 50.4bcd crank, but mount it with around 8.5mm of clearance between the teeth and the outer cage, instead of the usual recommended 2-3mm
• With this kind of setup, you need to adjust the limit screws just right, but if you're careful with the setup it shifts well and runs fine.

So what new front derailleur would I buy for my own bike, any Campy double, or a Shimano 105, or one of the Micro Shift compact doubles that have been imported by FSA, IRD, and Forte (Performance). We may import our own version of the latter; it's well made, shifts nicely, and is cheap.

Gauntlets and Things

VO is not a bad place to work. We offer all the usual benefits like a health insurance plan and a 401k plan (with employer matching). And salaries are well above average bike shop levels.  Then there is access to bike stuff such as free prototypes to test and sub-wholesale pricing for all employees. But one of our benefits may be unique. Annette knit gauntlets for all the staff members; it can get chilly in the warehouse during winter.

So, if you're interested in working for VO send us a resume. We'll add one or two entry level positions when the spring season gets rolling.


On a different subject, this ad is from a Japanese magazine and was placed by a wonderful shop called M's Bicyclette. They also have a cool blog. And, unlike many Japanese shops, M's accepts international orders.

VO Posters Arrive

The first two VO posters, "Enjoy Life" and "Orange Bike", are now available. Both poster were created by graphic artist Dylan Hale. They are printed on 80-pound Cougar Natural paper using the spot color process. (Note, the black border is the background, not part of the poster) The size is 18 x 24-inches. Posters are shipped rolled in a mailing tube.

The posters are $12.50.  But, this week, if you add a poster to an order totaling over $150, the poster will be free. The free poster deal ends midnight on Sunday, March 6.

VO dealers and shops can get a free set of posters with wholesale orders, just ask.

BTW, would either of these images look good on a t-shirt?

Sugino Weekend Coupon Code

It's time for another coupon code sale. We still have a lot more Sugino cranks than we should. We simply didn't anticipate how many of you would choose the new VO and Grand Cru cranks instead. So we're offering 30% off on any Sugino cranks in stock. We need the warehouse space for the hundreds of VO cranks due in soon.

The coupon code is "cranky".  Click on "My Cart" (not "Checkout") on the top right of the screen to enter a coupon or a gift certificate. The sale runs from midnight tonight (2-25-11) to midnight Sunday (2-27-11) Eastern US time.

Also, check out the items on our specials page.

1x10 Experiment

I've been riding bikes with 2x10 or 2x9 drive trains for many years. They are set up with a 46t/30t crank and a cassette with small cog with 11t or 12t and a large with 27t or 28t. I find that I can ride in the 46t ring more than 90% of the time. Only on steeper hills do I need the 30t, which I regard sort of like a Jeep's "low-range". Of course this won't work for every terrain, but in the flats and rolling hills around here it's perfect. It's even fine for occasional trips to mountainous Western Maryland or West Virginia.

For shifting I've set up most of my road bikes with 9 or 10-speed Campy brifters. I know there is still some resistance to index-shifting among the retro crowd, but I've been using it since the 1990's without issue. I've also had no issues with 10-speed drive trains.

So what's the experiment? Well, I've noticed that 1x10 drive trains are starting to appear on more and more mountain bikes. Shimano is making wide range 10-speed cassettes, 11t-36t. I wonder how a 1x10 drive train would work on a rando or touring bike? I think I'll build something along those lines later this year. Anyone have any experience with 1x10 on the road, or any thoughts?

Seat Post Clamp Check

How are the various parts of a bicycle component assembled at the factory, say the parts of a brake, or headset, or a seat post head? In my experience they are often assembled at a large table by a group of jolly women. I'm not kidding, more often than not there is a huge table with bins of parts in the middle and a half dozen women, often middle aged, screwing together all those little pieces. And they are almost always chatting and laughing and having a great time, maybe cracking jokes about the funny visitors.

Usually these assemblers do a great job, but not always. Which brings us to the point. We've noticed that on a few of our seat post in the last shipment the clamp on the top is assembled front-to-back. The clamp is almost symmetrical so it's a very easy mistake to make. Having it backwards limits the seatpost's range of tilt and it might not clamp as tightly as it should. So have a look at your seatpost and if the clamp doesn't line-up, as in the photo, switch it front-to-back. It only takes a couple of minutes to do.

Miscellany

We've been pursuing a project to make really high quality crochet-back cycling gloves for a couple of years now. After examining at least a dozen prototypes we're giving up for a while. We simply have not been able to get the quality we want at anything close to a reasonable price. We may eventually find some little factory in a less obvious place that can do what we want, but for now we'll give the project a rest.

We have also delayed our pannier project, too many quality issues with hardware. The sewing and materials are not as nice as we'd like and we need to re-think the attachment hardware. I'd like to really bump up the quality of these and may need to visit sewing shops in Vietnam or Central America to find one that can do what we want in the smaller volumes we need. I'd love to have them made in the USA, but from what I've seen it would double the cost. If any US shops are interested I'd be happy to talk.

More and more custom frame builders are using VO and Grand Cru components. We got this really nice e-mail from Greg at Milholland Bicycle who builds some spectacular bikes (check out the flicker page too):

 I have been using more and more of your parts for my custom builds, and would like to say thanks for putting out great products at a nice price. As you know these parts have been unobtainable and just plain expensive for the past 30 years. I now can offer a custom lugged  "constructuer" bike complete for under $3500 and that includes your Grand Cru parts. This is unheard of in the custom market.... Keep those Grand Cru parts coming!

I don't want to start another long paleo diet/health discussion, but for those interested, here are a few of the blogs I follow: DrBriffa (smart MD) PaNu, Marks Daily Apple, Hunter-Gatherer, The Heart Scan Blog (highly recommended), Health Correlator, and the best of the bunch is Whole Health Source. I actually follow many more. Using Google Reader makes it very simple; there are typically get only 5-10 new posts each morning.

It's really nice in Maryland. For the first time this year temperatures are above normal; we're getting sunshine and highs in the 50s and 60s. But we have to go to Minnesota for a weekend of snow and rain! Tom, Robert, and I are representing VO at FrostBike. Please drop by our booth if you're attending. And bring us something warm to drink.

More of our Grand Cru products will be getting stamped logos instead of laser-etched. We think it looks nicer. The photo is of the first production Grand Cru fixed hub. They should be in a container arriving in March.

Rando Impressions

It occurred to me that I should ask Alec to write up his impressions of his new VO Rando. Alec is a good person to ask about this since he is a very very experienced long distance cyclists.  He's put about 25k on his Cross-Check, including a circumnavigation of Iceland. I thought this might help those considering a new frame:

I wasn't certain at first, since I've grown so used to my Cross-Check over its 25k or so miles, but the Rando proved itself to be a different bike immediately.

It's lighter and more comfortable. Part of that feeling is the long chainstays and traditional-diameter tubing, I think. It seems to soak up bumps and float over sketchy patches instead of transmitting the shocks straight to my body and wearing me out. The Rando has lower-volume tires but still feels very cushy. I've only done two centuries on it so far, but I haven't felt beaten up after any of them.

The allure of the Rando is that it just goes, without complaining. It climbs well and responds when you hammer. Strangest, though is that it feels sluggish on the descents. I thought at first that I was descending slowly, but I nearly broke 40mph. What feels like sluggishness isn't at all - it's stability. The Rando doesn't bounce and twitch at high speeds and doesn't lock into a line; it feels slower, but you can safely go faster. It's a very nice feeling to not be locked into a line; the Rando doesn't wander or twitch, but it doesn't feel like its on rails either.

It also doesn't complain about my handlebar bag. I like to carry a lot of food and clothes with me because I ride to the ride starts, so I usually have 10 or so pounds up front.

Picture Day

We had our little photo studio going, so I asked Alec to shoot some of the staff bikes currently on site:

Alec's VO Rando

  Robert's custom 650b Rando, built by Robert.

Trygve's brand new Polyvalent, just finishing up the build.

Kyle's Motobecane Le Champion fixie. Kyle also has a Polyvalent at home.

Colin's Raleigh Portage, a rare 650b production bike from an English company.

Colin's VO Mixte, a brand new project.

 Alec's Crosscheck all-arounder.

This reminds me that VO is not a bad place to work. Staff members get parts and frames at cost, as well as lots of free prototypes and samples to test. So there are always a few cool builds in progress here.

Have any new builds? Add a link in the comments.

Fender Coupon Code

 It's time for another one of our occasional flash sales. This one runs this weekend and is for 20% off on all in-stock fenders. Yes, both Honjo and VO models are included, even the ones on special.

Just in time for spring showers, and mud. In case you didn't see it, the new Bicycle Times review of VO Hammered Fenders is two posts down.

The coupon code is "flashyfenders".  Click on "My Cart" (not "Checkout") on the top right of the screen to enter a coupon or a gift certificate. The sale runs from midnight tonight (2-4-11) to midnight Sunday (2-6-11) Eastern US time.

BTW, here are answers to two very common fender questions:

• 700c fenders do fit 27" wheels with no problem at all. The difference in radius between the two size wheels is only about 1/4-inch.
• 650b fenders fit 26" wheels and vice-versa. The fit is close enough that no one will ever notice. If you flex the fender a few mm it can be easily made perfect. Look at the photo below of a 650b and a 26" fender.

Paleo Rambling

I just returned from 10 days on the left coast. I visited Vancouver BC, San Francisco, and San Luis Obispo. Also stopped for lunch in Santa Cruz. They are all great places, but San Luis Obispo, the one city I hadn't previously visited, was my favorite. This may be partially because SLO is smaller, less crowded and seems to have a slower pace. If VO opens a west coast location, a distinct possibility, SLO is at the top of my list.

In addition to visiting potential distributors and being a tourist, I spent a couple of hours at Rivendell's headquarters in Walnut Creek. Grant Peterson was a great host, gave me the full tour, and showed me some beautiful frames. We even talked about a few areas where Riv and VO might cooperate.

Every time Grant and I meet I'm struck by how much we have in common. One of our mutual interests is paleo diet and exercise. Paleo diet is based on the fact that paleolithic and pre-industrial peoples have incredibly low rates of most of the "diseases of civilization". These include cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimers, and many of the other maladies we consider common. Though they have a higher chance of dying at a young age, and so a lower average lifespan, once out of those dangerous years pre-industrial humans remain amazingly healthy and live almost as long as we do.

Grant gave me a copy of Gary Taubes' new book, Why We Get Fat: And What to Do About It (which Riv also sell). I'd read Taubes' groundbreaking first book, Good Calories, Bad Calories, an exhaustively researched and somewhat dense review of diet and nutrition. Taubes was instrumental in showing a startling disconnect between current mainstream nutritional advice and what is actually based on science. He read hundreds of peer-reviewed studies and extensive historical data only to find that most of what mainstream doctors and the government experts tell us about nutrition is simply wrong. His findings also go a long ways toward explaining why the pre-industrial, or paleo, diet may be far healthier than what we eat today.

In any case, I wasn't sure it was worth reading what's basically a simplified version of Taubes earlier book, but there was that long flight home so I did. I found the new book brilliant; thanks Grant. If you're not going to look up references in PubMed, it's a lot easier and faster read while imparting all the basics of his earlier book. Buy it (from Riv, not Amazon) and you'll learn a lot; guaranteed. Just to be clear, I don't think Taubes interpretation is 100 percent perfect, but it's darn close. I'd also recommend reading the Whole Health Source, a blog by neurobiologist Stephan Guyenet.

I know I'm rambling, but if you're interested in this stuff I'll do another post with a lot of other great sources, books, and blogs  about Paleo diet and exercise.

An amusing aside, Grant and I are both interested in soap. Grant gave me a bar of the pine tar soap he sells. I can't say I was taken by the scent, reminiscent of a forest fire, though it's very very effective and definitely manly.  I sent Grant a chunk of Savon de Marseille, an artisanal and traditional French olive oil based soap. We use it not only as soap, but also as shampoo, and shaving cream. Annette says it eliminates the need for moisturizing cream; amazing stuff. As with bicycles, most of the really good stuff was developed long ago.

Bicycle Times Review of VO Fenders

Karl from Bicycle Times Magazine was kind enough to forward the following review of VO fenders. It's from issue #9 which should be in stores and mailboxes by now. The review is pretty positive, but the part I found most interesting is that they installed the fenders on a bike with disc brakes, something we have not done. (Click on the image to enlarge)

Miscellany

The winner of our handlebar naming contest is Postino, submitted by Jeremy (1/21/11, 3:47pm). If you could e-mail annette@velo-orange.com, we'll send the handlebar to you. We're all totally amazed at the number of really good suggestions submitted.

I'll be traveling for the next week, so no blog posts. I also try to get away from e-mail when I travel, but VO's staff will be answering tech and shipping questions as always.

Below is a shot of the Grand Cru cassette hub.  I'll post more about it when I return, but here is one interesting point. This hub has four identical and rather large Japanese cartridge bearings. Most hubs with low flanges don't have room for four bearings this big, so we went with a large flange design. It's also nice that they are a common size and relatively easy to replace if they ever do wear out.

New Handlebar Name?

 
I've had this old Italian handlebar for many years; it's the one on top. I really like it for a fast city bike and thought that VO should make something similar, the one on the bottom. It's much like our Milan bar, but with zero rise. It's actually designed from scratch, not based on the Milan, but the similarity is evident. We just ordered the first production run and hope to have them here sometime this spring.

All we're missing is a name for our new creation, which is were you come in. Whoever comes up with the name we like best gets a free VO or Grand Cru handlebar, any model you like. Please post your suggestions in the comments. (Don't forget to use a name in the comments so we can credit the right person.)

Update: Thanks for all the great name suggestions. The VO staff is considering them all and we'll pick the name today.

Update II: Congratulations to Jeremy, who submitted the winning "Postino." 

Raid Rims

The first shipment of our new Raid rims just landed. These are my absolute perfect rims and what I will use when I get new wheels. I know that not everyone has the same needs and tastes, but here is why I like them:

• At 22mm wide they are the perfect size for 28-38mm tires (though you could go a little bigger). I think 28-32mm is the ideal size for 700c road bikes. For me those sizes combine the light and lively feel I like with a good dose of comfort.
• They look great; the shape is simple and classic. And the high polish finish is stunning.
• They are box section rims with double eyelets and that makes them very strong. I won't hesitate to ride them on unpaved roads or on a loaded tour.
• The brake surface is a little taller than on classic rims. This makes brake setup easier.
• Based on our other rims from the same factory, they should consistently be very round and easy to build up.
• They are a bit dear at $78, but that's because we paid a lot for the tooling for the rim extrusion and for the tooling for the double eyelets.The polishing is also not cheap. So I think the price is more than fair.

New Camper Racks

These are our new loaded touring racks, or at least the prototypes. These versions are pretty good, but not perfect. The front rack is very close and, if testing goes well, might make it into production this spring. The rear rack will need at least one more prototype to get it perfect. We tried to make the racks in the style of French constructeur racks. We studied hundreds of photographs and drawings of classic touring racks before designing these.

The front rack has an integrated decaleur and low rider frames. It can be mounted to the fork crown, to low-rider bosses, or to both.

The rear rack has a lower rail that wraps around the rear fender. This makes for an exceptionally stiff rack. It also allows the panniers to be lifted off without disturbing the load on top. Finally, the lower rail allows for a lower center of gravity and better handling.

They are made of stainless steel and the workmanship is really nice. Don't ask me about price; I don't know yet.

Incoming

Here are a few notes about arriving items and new products.

We've been out of a few things due to the holiday rush so we arranged an air shipment. The following should be back in stock within the next couple of weeks: BBs in many sizes, Grand Cru headsets, VO touring, road, and city pedals, cargo nets, wheel stabilizers and stems.

Our new Raid rims should be here within days. They are a strong double-eyelet box section rim. The width is 22mm and they look like a wider version of the PBP rim. I think this size falls right the sweet spot in rim width and in strength-to-weight ratio. I'll post full details and photos when they arrive.

We'll also be getting the new switchable dyno hubs very soon, at least the first small shipment. The rest of the production run will arrive in March. Again, I'll post full details only when they arrive, but here is a photo of one of our test units with a few thousand miles on it.

March will see many new products arriving by ship, two containers worth actually.

The most exciting of these are probably the new Grand Cru hubs. The high flange cassette version won't be done in time, but the freewheel, high-low, and fixed hubs are almost ready.

The long awaited VO and Grand Cru chrome stems will, with a bit of luck, also be ready in time to sail.

And, finally, the single speed version of the Grand Cru 50.4bcd crank is nearing completion and should be aboard.

Posters

The poster below were made by Dylan. He's a graphic designer who's "trying to get an illustration career going." We really like them and think they fit right in with the VO style. Remember those great posters from French and Italian bike companies? Might be time to bring them back. Which one is your favorite and should I have some printed?

UPDATE: Almost everyone like them so we'll print some, probably the top three.

Porteur Rack Coupon Code

Our coupon code flash sales have proven very popular, so we'll do one every few weeks. This one is good for $40 off the VO Porteur Rack, with or without rail. 

If you need a front rack to haul heavy and bulky items, or just a box of donuts, this is a great deal. Here's the full description:

This is a traditional-style Porteur rack as used on the famous Parisian newspaper delivery bikes. Those Parisian delivery bikes were reputed to carry as much as 110lbs of newspapers on similar racks, but of course they had strengthened bike frames and forks, not only racks.

The VO porteur rack is made from strong stainless steel tubing and polished to a lovely shine. It won't rust like painted steel racks or fatigue and crack like aluminum racks. The quality is actually superior to that of many custom racks. In short, this is a real load-carrying rack, not an aluminum "style-rack".

The platform is about 36cm x 29cm.

The tangs are pre-drilled to fit 700c, 27", 26", and 650b bikes. There are four bosses for light attachment. There is a boss for securing your fender to the rack, no rattling. Please also note the elegant pannier/tie-down loops above the mounting tangs.

Mounting hardware is included. The Porteur rack mounts to the dropout eyelet and the brake bolt (or fork crown hole).

The coupon code is "bigload".  Click on "My Cart" (not "Checkout") on the top right of the screen to enter a coupon or a gift certificate. The sale runs from midnight Friday (1-7-11) to Midnight Sunday (1-9-11) Eastern US time.

Happy Holidays

I just wanted to wish our customers, staff, and friends happy holidays and a prosperous new year. 

Thanks for making 2010 a spectacular year at Velo Orange.