Bikes of NAHBS: Part 1

This year's edition of the North American Handmade Bicycle Show just finished up this last weekend in Sacramento, California, and we were there to see what we could see.  It's really impressive to see the workmanship on many of the frames on display, but of course, it's usually the paint that catches the eye first.  Paint jobs this year were, as usual, amazing, over-the-top, tastefully understated, garish, and just about everything in between.  The bike that won best finish didn't even have paint on it, but more on that later....

Whether or not you're looking for your next bike, we find the ways builders combine parts and paint to be really inspiring, and hope you do too.  If you see color combos or parts that you don't know where to get on these bikes, and you'd like to get the same setup on your bike, we're happy to help you get exactly the look you want, so feel free to get in touch. 

For the moment, enjoy the bikes....

Mosaic GT-1

The bikes at the Mosaic booth were all stunners, but this one had a special combination of a subdued green-green fade paint job combined with Chris King's Matte Mango R45D Centerlock hubs, Threadfit bottom bracket, and Inset headset(with matching spacers) that gave just the right amount of 'pop'. 

Very nice indeed.

Dekerf Ti Mountain Bike

Chris Dekerf has been building frames in B.C. for over 30 years, and in that time he's also brought paint in-house, which makes his paint that much more impressive.  This Gulf Racing-themed bike was thorough to say the least.  He repainted everything–right down to the adjusters and air cap on the fork and the Enve stem.  Talking with Chris, it becomes clear how much he cares about each aspect of building the bike, and this is a perfect example of that.  The iconic paint is accented perfectly by the black White Industries headset, and CLD+ hubs.

Hunter All Road

Rick Hunter's bikes have a beautiful simplicity to them.  Even when they seem to have fun and odd details, he somehow makes a bike that looks unassuming and just very much about being a great and beautiful bicycle.  This road bike is a perfect example of that with its simple lines, single-color paint, and black White Industries R30 cranks, bottom bracket, headset, CLD hubs, and Paul Klamper brakes and Boxcar stem.  Even with the latest electronic drivetrain the bike wouldn't look out of place anywhere. 

Well done!

Sycip Designs Breakaway 

Jeremy Sycip has a varied repertoire—from cargo bikes to lightweight road and mountain bikes—but we really like the look of this all-weather fat-tire road bike with Ritchey Breakaway couplers.  With a wide-range double drivetrain, and just enough red accents from its shift housing and Chris King headset and spacers, R45D Centerlock hubs, Threadfit bottom bracket, and even the Silca pump, we think it's got a great balance of utility and bling.

We hope you enjoy these, but stay tuned for more, and if you have any questions about the parts and how to get look and parts you want for your bike, just get in touch.

All photos: Brendon Potts