Oh, I think Grant winces at my projects… On Feb 18, 2025, at 9:16 AM, Joe Bernard <joerem...@gmail.com> wrote:
Doug,
I think this is actually what happens now. Grant gets his frame idea together and imagines the aesthetic that would work with it, the kind of builds RBW will do for Web Specials. Then he says to the crew, "It's done, we're ready. Now let's see how spectacularly Leah blows it up." 🤣
Joe "more is more" Bernard
On Tuesday, February 18, 2025 at 4:47:41 AM UTC-8 Doug H. wrote:
Leah,I'm sure your Northern Lights Charlie is just what Grant envisioned when he designed that bike. LOL Maybe! Or maybe he was thinking....I wonder what Leah will do with THIS one??? Your bikes are so much fun and following along with your process brings enjoyment to me. Doug
On Tuesday, February 18, 2025 at 5:29:58 AM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
You guys have come a long way in the color approval realm! I remember when it was crazy to introduce anything but silver and look at you now, sending me these fancy links! By some secret miracle, I secured the exact stem I wanted, and it arrived Friday. My Paul levers were assembled at HQ and should arrive today. I will take the bike in to the shop Wed or Thursday and we’ll finally see the Northern Lights Charlie in its full form.
Thanks for your enthusiasm about this wild project! Leah I saw these at my LBS yesterday, and they were a closer match than this photo. Might depend on the batch.
Probably not as comfortable as Ergon's... but a little more fun! On Sunday, February 16, 2025 at 1:04:21 PM UTC-5 Paul M wrote:
When installing the Choco handlebar remember it can be used upside down also. The Choco evolved from the Chocomoose handlebar and that bar has a fixed angle of the bars sweeping down ever so slightly. I really enjoy the slight drop of this design on the Chocomoose and from looking at the Choco version it would replicate that, especially if this bike is going to be more of a road bike. It's not going to be a very big difference but worth checking it out.
On Sunday, 16 February 2025 at 08:34:02 UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
Ohhhhhhh YESSSSSSSSS. You get me!!!!! Who cares what the color of the grips are as long as you wear these?
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On Saturday, February 15, 2025 at 8:41:06 AM UTC-5 Roberta wrote:
+1 on the Ergon grips. I have the same grips in red on my Betty Foy and at first I was concerned that the paddles weren’t as big as some of their other paddle grips but the paddles are plenty big and I love these grips.
On Friday, February 14, 2025 at 1:10:14 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:
Leah, agreed about the Ergons. Gotta have that paddle shape.
![Screenshot_20250214_100933.jpg]() On Friday, February 14, 2025 at 6:25:48 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
It’s a true tragedy that there will be grips on the bar. If Ergon made a clear grip, I’d be all over them. But I really want that paddle shape so I’m afraid dove gray will have to work instead. Leah,
That is some impressive anodized parts collection! I can't wait to see it all built into a bike.
I am with Bill that some clear grips are in order to get the most of that handlebar. I have a set of NOS OURY clear grips I could offer up. If you pull up the link Bill has you will find other clear grips in there also. Lizard Skins, the new owner of Oury grips has clear, or glow in the dark grips.
With the Odyssey grips you can trim them down if they are too long. There seems to be a host of other BMX companies that offer clear grips.
I should get info for your anodize connection. Been hoping for Cane Creek to make their eeSilk+ or Thudbuster 3G seatpost in silver to no avail. Maybe if I can find a used or new post I can get it silver, or gold anodized to match the gold anodized Softride suspension stem on my Rivendell Mountain.
Reginald Alexis
On Thursday, February 6, 2025 at 5:36:43 PM UTC-6 Bill Lindsay wrote:
The handlebars break my heart just a little bit because of the real-estate that could get covered up. Maybe transparent BMX grips are appropriate:
Bill Lindsay El Cerrito, CA
On Thursday, February 6, 2025 at 11:01:33 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:
My taste for bikes trends to the colorful side. My purple Platypus was the first bike I chose every single part for, and I’m proud of how that little Platypus came out. I did it up in oil slick and rainbow, and after that, I decided that henceforth, all Leah Bikes will be modeled after natural wonders. I have the rainbow, and up next would be the northern lights.
I spent a decent amount of time trying to catch the northern lights this summer, which is how the idea came to me. I decided to involve two anodizers, the Mountain West’s celebrated woman anodizer, Ashley Anodized It, and Velocity USA’s anodizer, David, whom I’d met and ridden with on the Wednesday Evening Rides. Involving 2 anodizers and hoping their pieces agree is a huge risk, but I couldn’t see a way around it. Here is the inspiration photo I sent them:
If it was aluminum, I sent it to Ashley. I learned that aluminum has differing qualities that make some types better for taking color than others. I think my Silver 3 cranks came out the best. The Silver shifters were a nightmare. They had a plastic-y coating that came apart in the liquid and they took color poorly. Ashley had not done a pattern like Northern Lights before, so we had to invent it. She tried several things, but she felt she was losing the NL theme and would strip the color and start again.
In the end, she got it exactly right. She made me the moodiest, swirliest night sky parts imaginable. Here are some of them:
Meanwhile, David was at his post at Velocity, experimenting with pattern and color. When you mix colors, you fight them being “muddy.” He had to lift color with acid and apply different color, and he got a similar effect on my Quill rims:
I’ve chosen my own colorful pieces to add to the build:
Everything is done now. My rims arrived and Ashley is about the send her things. I do need a Faceplater stem but would otherwise be ready to build this bike. Probably in the next 2 weeks!
Thanks for reading, if you got this far. Leah I was happy.
I had my trio of Platypuses, each different from the next, so that anything I wanted to do was possible. I had been casting glances toward road bikes, but there were no 50cm Roadinis to be had, so I continued on my group rides astride my Racing Platypus. And then I forgot about road bikes.
Hype began to come out of Rivendell HQ about a new model, releasing soon. I love to read the copy on Riv’s website, and I always do, even if I’m not buying the bike. When I read that product description, I thought, “Wait. It’s like they went and made a bike exactly for me.”
It was a road bike. It had a sloped top tube, came in lighter tubing in my size, and was painted in a color I loved. I ride a few thousand miles a year, and most of them are road miles on club rides. I could really do something with this bike.
With 2 hours to the presale I decided I’d put one in my cart and see if I could make it mine. The New Yorker article had come out and the Platypuses were decimated as soon as Rivendell released them, so I wasn’t hopeful. I was shocked when my order went through.
I got…a golden Charlie.
To be continued in the next post so I can embed some photos. Leah
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