The Radavist

Photos by Keith Trotta

For those who like insightful information from the world of frame building need to check this out…

“My personal bikes are always a testing ground for me, not only for parts but also frame tubing, forks, and frame building components. This bike has modern carbon bars, seat post, which I have not ridden before, and a modern 1.0 ENVE fork, so I wanted to see how they felt compared to the aluminum bars/post and steel (fork) that I have been riding recently.

The frame is also much stiffer than my traditional road bike with a 35 mm double oversized down tube and custom-tapered 28.6-31.7 mm seat and top tube. This allows for a standard 27.2 seat post, which is more common and comfortable than the odd 30.6 post the 31.7 seat tube requires.”

Continue reading and see more photos at the Bishop Bikes Flickr.

Chris Bishop in 35mm

One of my favorite framebuilders is Chris Bishop and this weekend, unlike previous events, I actually got to spend some time with Chris. While I really wanted to interview him while we sat at Whole Foods drinking a bottle of Tripel Karmeleit, I figured he was probably enjoying the afternoon and didn’t want to bother him with it. When we did chat, it was mostly about his years as a messenger (he actually still messengers in Bmore every day) and how much he loves to ride a track bike in Manhattan.

Columbus MS in 35mm

Then I came across this interview on Embrocation the other day and I was glad that someone caught Chris’ stories on tape. Here’s an excerpt:

“Chris clearly thinks that a track bike is the best for city riding. “Manhattan is great for a track bike; that’s traffic slalom all day long.” I have to agree that, especially in bad conditions like rain, snow, and ice, a fixed gear is much more communicative than a bike with a freewheel and brakes—“like driving a stick instead of an auto.” But what about the steep angles and incredibly narrow wheelbase? He described a method of changing a line in which he “pops” the entire bike from one course to another—it reminded me somewhat of the kind of thing one might do on a pump track. “

Man. Is he ever right! In fact, I’m going to go tear through Manhattan now on my Merckx Pista. Read the rest of Chris’ interview on Embrocation here. I added a few more photos from my Recent Roll to the NAHBS in 35mm Flickr set.

To say that I’m a Bishop Bikes fanboy might be a little extreme. But then again, if you search for Bishop Bikes on this blog, it can be overwhelming. Chris Bishop builds Beautiful Bicycles out of Baltimore, one of the grittiest cities on the east coast. I have never seen a Bishop that didn’t hit a soft spot with me and hanging out with Chris the day after the NAHBS was a blast!

Check out more photos of Chris Bishop’s custom road bike below!

One of the bikes that I missed out on photographing at the 2010 Philly Bike Expo was Chris Bishop‘s own singlespeed cross bike. I wondered why Chris hadn’t posted it up sooner but in a recent post on the Bishop blog, he refers to himself as “not much of an internet guy“, so he relies on his wife to handle much of his PR movements on the internet (hats off to her!). One of those PR movements is finally posting photos of this bike.

Check out more photos of Chris Bishop’s singlespeed cross bike below.

Webbed lugs and legs? That’s how the Bishop Bikes crew spent their 4th of July in Charm City. Those are some beautiful lugs. Go check the rest out at the Bishop Flickr!

For anyone who attended NAHBS last year, this Bishop frameset will look familiar. It won Best Finish in show and was painted by Rudi at Black Magic Paint. Well, it took almost a year to build this bike up, but it’s complete. Before we jump into that, however, here’s what Rudi has to say about the bike:

“Chris Bishop sent this bike to do whatever we wanted in the summer. My right/dominant arm was paralyzed in a moto wreck shortly after we received the bike. The bike hung in our shop for months until I felt comfortable painting a bike like this. I sent some sketches over before NAHBS and Chris said, “Awesome! Go with your vision.” My vision was gold paint outlines with kandy gold leaf fade over the fill for the logos. The “grain” panels were a three-color kandy fade. The head tube logo was five color wet paint over a solid black base color. ”

See the completed build photos at the Bishop Flickr and the frameset photos at the Black Magic Flickr.

When these two names get together, you know it’s gonna be good.

“Fillet brazed Sram eTap road bike, Enve fork, bars, and seat post, Chris King Matte Slate head set and BB, and R45 hubs laced to Boyd Altamonte lite ceramic coated rims by Tommy at Cutless Velo. The paint scheme was designed and executed by Noah at VeloColour in Toronto and a custom stainless head badge was hand cut by Suzanne at VeloColour. Another example of why they are not only great designers but artists who can execute the designs flawlessly.”

See more at Bishop Bikes’ Flickr!

As a unique pairing to the Butterfly Wing Bishop Track, this road bike dons paint from Bryan Myers of Fresh Frame and a balleur build kit. I can’t decide which bike I like best, so I think it’s safe to say they’re both some of the nicest I’ve ever seen come from the shop of Chris Bishop. See more at the Bishop Flickr!

Photos by A. Danger on Flickr

We’ve already seen photos of Nichole’s Columbus Gilco track bike, but a reader forwarded me a link to more photos and I had to share. The details, colors, and environment really make this bike pop and shows Chris’ craftsmanship in a new light. Enjoy more below and see the whole set at Flickr.

Peter P’s classic, chevron-painted road bike has me drooling like none other. Chris Bishop knows how to do clean shorelines. See more at the Bishop Flickr.

Photos by Keith Trotta

Chris Bishop’s talent is best highlighted by his ability to craft a beautiful, classic road or track bike. Take his latest project for example. With a finish like that, it almost distracts from Chris’ shorelines and lugwork. See more at the Bishop Flickr.