Priceless - Custom 1 off steel frame - Stolen near Liverpool
shooka
Posts: 10
To Every Single Cyclist on Bikeradar
I need to get this off my chest:
Back in October 08, I travelled to the US to participate in a bicycle framebuilding apprenticeship with one of the most highly regarded steel bicycle framebuilders in the US. It was by far the most incredible learning experience of my entire life. My aim from this experience is to learn as much as I can about bikes and eventually start my own framebuilding career – and eventually be masterful enough to do something really special for bikes.
Well, I spent a while learning, designing and custom building my first ever frame back in October (MD-YFBS-001). Having spent all of my savings, borrowing a couple of grand to get over there and pay for food and travel and then camp in -10C for a couple of nights – I came home with really amazing framebuilding knowledge and my first ever frame, not perfect, but my first.
Having saved a bit more money, and having had a few cash presents for christmas, I decided to get it sprayed a very nice metallic blue – it was sent to Liverpool to get the lugs and fork crown chromed before returning to be sprayed in Bristol.
I'm now devastated to find out that on the way to be chromed in Liverpool – My first ever, built by my own hands, custom built to my measurements bicycle frame was stolen from the couriers van (including the van itself) – along with a load of other very rare bicycle components belonging to other people. I believe this happened somewhere in or around Liverpool
This priceless piece of sentiment obviously has a massive amount of value to me, and is irreplaceable – I flew half way across the world to build it by hand FFS!
I've attached a picture of how it looked before it went to the sprayers, no doubt it is more shiny as it has been shot-blasted.
If anyone see's this bike, in person, in a bikeshop, police auction, on ebay, gumtree, trade-it. Please let me know and take as many details as possible. I'm offering £350 cash –no questions asked– and my eternal soul, for anyone that can recover it.
Details of features and my contact details below.
+447985246775 or 01179637799 or matt@shookas.com
Being that it's custom, it has a few things that would allow the sharp eye to tell it apart from other similar frames – they are small, but totally unique.
Firstly, the head-tube and forks, are 1" but are threadless – this is fairly non-standard and the stem was custom brazed for the frame.
Then there is one bottle cage boss, that is smaller than the other 3. It's the front most boss on the downtube, it's 1.5mm in height instead of the other 3 being 3mm. The frame top tube is 555mm center to center. The front triangle is all lugged except where the top tube joins the seat tube, the rear triangle is fillet brazed.
There are braze-ons for mudguards, cable routing and the front fork crown will resemble a Surly Long Haul Trucker fork – the way to tell them apart is that the Long Haul Trucker has lugged fork dropouts, and 2 sets of braze-ons for mudguards and low riders. Mine are fillet brazed dropouts and only has mudguard braze-ons.
Finally, the frame has a very very rare cinelli rear brake bridge – which I have modified further. See images attached.
It's very difficult, as the frame was bare metal, the picture shows it before it was shot blasted. I imagine it will probably get a hack spray job before it gets sold on - or it will be dumped somewhere.
I understand that my frame was not the only one to go missing – there are vintage Colnago's and other classics from as far back as the 1920's that went missing. I would urge anyone who sees a job lot of unsprayed old looking kit to have a closer look at where it's come from.
Thanks for reading
Matt Dawson
Strada Cycles
236 North Street
Bristol
BS3 1JD
+447985246775 or matt@shookas.com
I need to get this off my chest:
Back in October 08, I travelled to the US to participate in a bicycle framebuilding apprenticeship with one of the most highly regarded steel bicycle framebuilders in the US. It was by far the most incredible learning experience of my entire life. My aim from this experience is to learn as much as I can about bikes and eventually start my own framebuilding career – and eventually be masterful enough to do something really special for bikes.
Well, I spent a while learning, designing and custom building my first ever frame back in October (MD-YFBS-001). Having spent all of my savings, borrowing a couple of grand to get over there and pay for food and travel and then camp in -10C for a couple of nights – I came home with really amazing framebuilding knowledge and my first ever frame, not perfect, but my first.
Having saved a bit more money, and having had a few cash presents for christmas, I decided to get it sprayed a very nice metallic blue – it was sent to Liverpool to get the lugs and fork crown chromed before returning to be sprayed in Bristol.
I'm now devastated to find out that on the way to be chromed in Liverpool – My first ever, built by my own hands, custom built to my measurements bicycle frame was stolen from the couriers van (including the van itself) – along with a load of other very rare bicycle components belonging to other people. I believe this happened somewhere in or around Liverpool
This priceless piece of sentiment obviously has a massive amount of value to me, and is irreplaceable – I flew half way across the world to build it by hand FFS!
I've attached a picture of how it looked before it went to the sprayers, no doubt it is more shiny as it has been shot-blasted.
If anyone see's this bike, in person, in a bikeshop, police auction, on ebay, gumtree, trade-it. Please let me know and take as many details as possible. I'm offering £350 cash –no questions asked– and my eternal soul, for anyone that can recover it.
Details of features and my contact details below.
+447985246775 or 01179637799 or matt@shookas.com
Being that it's custom, it has a few things that would allow the sharp eye to tell it apart from other similar frames – they are small, but totally unique.
Firstly, the head-tube and forks, are 1" but are threadless – this is fairly non-standard and the stem was custom brazed for the frame.
Then there is one bottle cage boss, that is smaller than the other 3. It's the front most boss on the downtube, it's 1.5mm in height instead of the other 3 being 3mm. The frame top tube is 555mm center to center. The front triangle is all lugged except where the top tube joins the seat tube, the rear triangle is fillet brazed.
There are braze-ons for mudguards, cable routing and the front fork crown will resemble a Surly Long Haul Trucker fork – the way to tell them apart is that the Long Haul Trucker has lugged fork dropouts, and 2 sets of braze-ons for mudguards and low riders. Mine are fillet brazed dropouts and only has mudguard braze-ons.
Finally, the frame has a very very rare cinelli rear brake bridge – which I have modified further. See images attached.
It's very difficult, as the frame was bare metal, the picture shows it before it was shot blasted. I imagine it will probably get a hack spray job before it gets sold on - or it will be dumped somewhere.
I understand that my frame was not the only one to go missing – there are vintage Colnago's and other classics from as far back as the 1920's that went missing. I would urge anyone who sees a job lot of unsprayed old looking kit to have a closer look at where it's come from.
Thanks for reading
Matt Dawson
Strada Cycles
236 North Street
Bristol
BS3 1JD
+447985246775 or matt@shookas.com
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Comments
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Rotten luck Shooka, must've been like losing your first-born. Gripes you to think of some chaved-up oik riding around on any of those beauties, but that is probably the reality. Still, you never know, I'm sure if anyone on here finds it they'd be more than happy to reunite you, and for my part, without the need for a reward.Pictures are better than words because some words are big and hard to understand.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/34335188@N07/3336802663/0 -
Aw maaaaannn
I'm based in Liverpool, and believe it or not there are (can I say 'other'?) civilised people up here too.
I'll keep an eye out for ya. It's a beauty.When Chuck Norris does division, there are no remainders.0 -
Apparently, it was a UPS van – and so far all I can find out from them is that it was somewhere in the St Helens area.
Maybe it will turn up some day.0 -
dude sorry to hear that i used to be a frame builder in the uk so i know how awesome it is to make your own stuff sadly i have none of my work left!! (sold to finance other things). :oops:0
