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mansgottado:

Adam and the Art of Building Bicycles - Part II - The New Bike

My friend Adam pretty much runs the custom bike building game in Chicago.  Well, not really, actually, he just makes sweet one-off bikes for friends that want them.  He’s been wrenching on bikes ever since we were in high school and he worked at the local bike shop, but in the last few years he’s taken it to the next level and started to put together some really nice custom bikes.  When his daily ride got stolen last year, he was devastated.  There was only one thing to do: build another. 

Here’s a look at his newest creation.  Adam made this single speed freewheel from a Raleigh Grand Prix.  He just happened to be in the right place at the right time when a stranger overheard him talking about bikes and offered up a tall old frame he had saved from the trash.  Adam set upon stripping off the rust and paint.  To force a patina, Adam used vinegar just like I talked about using on the Mora 510.  In this case, Adam used towels soaked in apple cider vinegar, with a shorter treatment that turned out fantastic.  While different in details from the Schwinn he built, Adam’s personal build aesthetic quickly becomes clear when looking at the two bikes.  Classic, handsome, clean and simple.  An ode to the past but with modern amenities and an eye towards function and ridability.  I suspect Adam could quit his day job and make a decent living building custom bikes; in fact he told me that two guys stopped and asked him if this bike was for sale while he was taking these pictures of it.

As I mentioned earlier, Adam has also been building bikes for friends of his, most of which look pretty different than his personal bicycles.  I hope to feature some of those builds in the future.  You can also keep an eye out for a future feature on a bike that I built, inspired by what I saw Adam doing while we were both living in LA.

Adam Hoff is a Chicago based photographer, motorcycle and bicycle enthusiast, general good guy, and a great friend of mine.  All photos by Adam Hoff.