Dave’s Balloon Bike…
September 15, 2007Thing I love about this sport is the variety both in terms of discipline (road, ‘cross, touring etc etc) and machinery… especially the latter as a self-confessed bike nut. Today then I have to show you this beauty from reader Dave Byron, he mailed me pictures a couple of days ago and to be honest, despite me being something of a racing snake, it took my breath away as an exercise in retro style and function. Pictures first then I’ll let Dave tell it in his own words…
Over to Dave….
” My ride is a Retrovelo Paul (http://www.retrovelo.de/). Made by a couple of retro bike nuts from Leipzig, Germany & designed as a homage to the Balloon bikes of the 1930’s. The frame is a pure old school hand brazed lugged CrMo steel affair, the Retrovelo boys wanted the ride to be comfortable but not as heavy as the pioneer days. Balloon bikes are the spiritual ancestors to the 1950 Beach Cruisers that in turn evolved into the first mountain bikes/bombers of the 1970’s. That’s the evolution to help you understand the origins but the soul is pure 1930’s Balloon Bike while embracing modern technology. A good example are the tyres,the two Retrovelo founders went to Schwalbe and developed a balloon tire forthe 21st century. Kevlar lined and with all the technology of the very successful Big Apple a new retro boot was born, this bastard child of the 1930’s balloon format and a BMX tread pattern sporned a new way to roll. The result is a ride that has to be experienced to be believed, but that’s not nearly as shocking as the lack of rolling resistance. Ever ridden a mountain bike on slicks? Disappointed? Try the Fat Franks and be prepared to be amazed! Add a Nexus 7 hub, Rigida stainless rims, stainless spokes, Shimano rollerbrakes, B&M dynamo, Sugino chainring,galvanised steel mudguards and you have an indestructible delight. Powder coat it, then lacquer it for good measure and it’s protected for ever.
I love this machine, a purchase motivated by the aesthetics ended up with a huge appreciation for what this two man team has created. “
Nice isn’t it! Love the tyres, I feel a need to build something just so I can have a pair!
Dave has some more pictures here, and if you have a question about it then drop me a line below and I’ll pass it on. I’d like to hear your thoughts. I know Dave has something rather cool in the works to add to this machine, stay tuned for that….
Blimey, you lot afraid of your keyboards or something? Nobody got a word to say…. I’m disappointed ;o)
Good luck with the hill-climb Mike. It sounds tough. The Bec and Catford hill climbs, near me will soon be on. Just thought of doing them makes me feel sick !
haha, cheers, yep – a very peculiar form of self-hurt.. ;o)
Oh… what a beauty! I wish they were available over here in the states… sigh.
Hi Chris, I think they soon will be: http://urbanvelo.org/retrovelo-is-coming-to-america/
cheers
Mike
[...] Dave’s Balloon Bike, Teil Zwei*… October 8th, 2007 Remember Dave’s lovely retro machine from a couple of weeks ago… well, he’s been busy with the spanners again and taken his [...]
Retrovelo bikes are available in the US. There’s a shop in Portland, Oregon that just started carrying them.
The shop’s called ‘Clever Cycles.’ I accidentally ran across their website (http://clevercycles.com/) while looking for a Surly dealer in the Portland area.
I drove over there one evening a few weeks ago to check ‘em out. The fit and finish on the Retrovelo bikes is just amazing. They’re so nice, I’d probably buy one to park in the living room.
They’re not cheap. Try US$1995.00 for a powder blue unit.
Hey Luke, thanks for the input ;o)
Hello,
Could you tell me if the front rack comes from retrovelo too ? I didn’t see this option in their website.
Best regards,
Claire
I mailed Dave, he says:
The rack is from a Dutch company called Johnny Loco, it seems they have it made by Steco who are famed for making those heavy duty front cargo racks you see mounted to Amsterdam clunkers.
http://www.johnny-loco.com/
It took me ages to find it and I wasn’t sure if it would even fit as its made for a bike with a smaller wheel diameter.
http://www.johnny-loco.com/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.browse&category_id=12&Itemid=113
The fitting was a bit of a challenge but worked out great in the end, after removing the wheel I was able to carefully encourage (bend & return) the rack top mount area over my forks and and behind the crown, the clearances are zero.
I then used an extended mud guard fixing bolt at the top mount and two ‘P’ clips on the forks for the two lower mounts to make it a factory look fit.
The ‘P’ clips were sourced from a local electrical factor, they are used to retain large diameter cabling or pipe/conduit and are conveniently fitted with a rubber gasket to protect the powder coat on my fork legs.