Handbuilt frame

Jellylegs1968
Jellylegs1968 Posts: 73
edited November 2009 in Road buying advice
In order to celebrate getting through a messy divorce, i am planning on buying myself a new frame. I fancy something handbuilt and probably steel.

How do British manufacturers such as Mercian measure up against their US counterparts such as Independent Fabrications or an exotic builder like Pegoretti?

I'd love to buy British but as i will truly have a free hand for once in my lefe, i do not want to compromise on the quality of what i buy.

Comments appreciated.

Comments

  • maddog 2
    maddog 2 Posts: 8,114
    a mate had one made by Paul Hewitt, out of Columbus tubing. Looks very tidy and my mate loves it. Couldn't say how they compare ti the US builders but I suspect it'll last a good long time.
    Facts are meaningless, you can use facts to prove anything that's remotely true! - Homer
  • cat whore
    cat whore Posts: 13
    Get in touch with Tom at http://demonframeworks.com/ - top end custom steel - he's doing some modification work for me on a vintage 531 frame but i have seen his new builds and they are just beautiful - he uses Reynolds 953, 853, 631 and 725, with lovely fleur de lis lugs. Quality.
  • acorn_user
    acorn_user Posts: 1,137
    I think Mercian, Roberts, Kevin Winter, Rourke are probably close to the top level of US and Italian frame builders. Maybe in some cases better. The thing is that they charge a lot less and have less snazy websites with fewer eye-popping NAHBS type art bikes, so it's hard to shake the idea that somehow they aren't up to snuff.

    Demon frameworks looks really expensive for a frame that's essentially using cast Long Shen lugs. If you want gothic carved lugs, Trevor Jarvis, Bob Jackson or Mercian are waiting for you!
  • Nuggs
    Nuggs Posts: 1,804
    Have you had a look at the steel offerings from Enigma? That's where my cash would be going! :D
  • Slow Downcp
    Slow Downcp Posts: 3,041
    Nuggs wrote:
    Have you had a look at the steel offerings from Enigma? That's where my cash would be going! :D

    +1, beautiful bikes, if the Elite is even half as good as my Etape, it's going to be a good frame

    What's your budget?
    Carlsberg don't make cycle clothing, but if they did it would probably still not be as good as Assos
  • nottscobb
    nottscobb Posts: 147
    I'm considering a similar purchase myself and planning on going to Mercian. Not just because they are British but because they are less than 30 miles from my house and if I want any modifications or repairs made to it later on I know they'll be able to do that for me. Buying local just seems so much more reassuring to me.
  • ballspondroad
    ballspondroad Posts: 181
    If you are having a custom frame built then I think it's important that you are able to meet the builder in person.
  • PHcp
    PHcp Posts: 2,748
    A large chunk of Mercians production goes to the states...
    ballspondroad wrote:
    If you are having a custom frame built then I think it's important that you are able to meet the builder in person.
    I think it's the designer you want to meet, the builder may be a craftsman but they're usually only doing what the designer has decded. Of course in some small firms it may be the same person. But at Mercian, you're unlikley to meet the builder or even go to the workshop.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    PHcp wrote:
    A large chunk of Mercians production goes to the states...
    ballspondroad wrote:
    If you are having a custom frame built then I think it's important that you are able to meet the builder in person.
    I think it's the designer you want to meet, the builder may be a craftsman but they're usually only doing what the designer has decded. Of course in some small firms it may be the same person. But at Mercian, you're unlikley to meet the builder or even go to the workshop.

    Well, unless they're being really unfriendly, because the workshop is at the back of the shop - the few occasions I've been into the Mercian shop, they've been very welcoming.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • balthazar
    balthazar Posts: 1,565
    I had a bespoke frame built by Roberts a few years ago, and I'm as delighted by it now as I was then. From initial consultation through to delivery I felt valued and included by the Roberts' team. The quality of finish is as high as I've seen on a bike frame.

    The Portland scene in america has generated some lovely and imaginative frame builders – Sacha White's work at Vanilla is finished to the level of fine jewellery, and there are plenty of others chasing his tail. Pegoretti's are marvellous and slightly deranged, just as I imagine Dario himself is. Nonetheless, I think it's valuable and warming for the soul to buy local, and you'll only be delighted by something from those builders mentioned. If I was having another frame built, I'd go either back to Roberts, or to Robin Mather (though I think he may have stopped building?), Mercian, or Enigma.
  • tenor
    tenor Posts: 278
    For traditional lugged frames try Mercian, Roberts, Jackson and Yates.
    For fillet brazed try Mark Reilly at Enigma or Roberts (Mercian and Jackson also do some) and Burls.
    For Tig welded performace frames go to Brian Rourke
  • aztecboy
    aztecboy Posts: 384
    Roberts gets my vote.
    Mate of mine has a Serotta that cost 11K plus.
    I think the Roberts is a better finish and somewhat cheaper!
    aztecboy

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