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It’s been a long, long time since I first posted about Ben’s Columbus MS road frame. Last June, in fact. Chris and Ben both tracked down all the parts needed to build this beauty up and I gotta say, it’s one of the best road bikes I’ve seen come from Bishop. Which is saying a lot, considering my own and Michael‘s are still two stellar beauts.
Catch more of this insane road bike (if you can indeed catch it) at the Bishop Flickr!
M-m-m-molteni Monday! While Tracko’s got a sweet Merckx Mondays post up, I’m adding to the bike coveting with this sick Molteni Pista up on eBay. If I had the money and if this thing was a little bit bigger, I’d swoop it up for sure. Some background, this is being sold by a reader, who’s a photographer in need of some new glass. I’ve been there before and it’s a tough sacrifice to make.
See the rest of Anthony’s Eddy Merckx Pista in high res here or try your luck, bidding on it at eBay!
Marinoni, one of the most renown Canadian frame builders are celebrating 40 years of craftsmanship with an exclusive 40th Columbus SL road frameset:
“The Marinoni 40th Anniversary SL is a lugged tubular Columbus SL frame with a classic look and geometry. The frame is offered stock with a BSA Italian bottom bracket and a choice of either threaded or threadless steel fork. Options of chromed finish give it a nice retro look. The 40th Anniversary SL is offered in 5 stock sizes and is also offered with optional custom geometry.
Available as a frameset, or in three Campagnolo groupset of configuration: Veloce Silver, Athena Silver and the very exclusive 80th Anniversary.”
I love this so much and I wish more builders would engage in their heritage more. Seriously, what an awesome idea!
It’s the end of Summer. That means my busiest time of year is finally over. After finally combing through all my random film scans, I’ve pulled together a big photoset filled with shots from all over the globe. From Zurich to Columbus, there are some gems in this one. See for yourself in the Gallery!
Tools of the trade:
Yashica T4 / Leica M7 28mm / Neopan 400
Let’s face it, the name Cinelli and Columbus is synonymous with Urban Cycling. Personally, I feel like they’ve done a lot to bring alleycats, track bikes and general radness to the industry. Especially with sponsorships and their collaboration with MASH over the years.
At this year’s Eurobike, Cinelli’s booth featured an extensive Columbus display, the Bootleg HOBO with Lucas Brunelle’s video and the newest from MASH. I even ran into Red Hook Crit Barcelona champion Fish while I was shooting photos. Check out more in the Gallery!
Look, Eurobike is hella Euro and fluoro. I’m not interested in Cube’s offerings, or other large batch bike. I want to see how the smaller shops and distributors are tackling one of the most elusive offerings: the production steel road bike.
Crema Cycles seems to have their solution going in the right direction. Take this Columbus and True Temper mixed road frame. My size, Campagnolo 11, ENVE and Chris King throughout.
This bike is straight forward, lightweight and elegant without being ostentatious. So is there a down side? Not really. Other than I’d like to see one or two nice details to separate this frame from the rest out there but that’s always the challenge.
The Crema bikes look very simple. Something you’d not only travel with, but not cringe about locking up, depending on the build kit (those wheels!). That’s something I can appreciate. Check out more of this very nice bicycle in the Gallery!
This icon has been floating around for years and now it’s made its way onto a sweatshirt from MASH. Scoop one up here!
Photos by Keith Teket
Chris Bishop’s Columbus MS track frame made the rounds on the internet almost immediately after it was built and documented. I’d say that it was one of his most popular frames to date. So popular that when Ben put a deposit down, he specifically requested the road version of the beloved MS track frame and that’s exactly what he got! See more at the Bishop Flickr!
My Icarus Viking MAX track bike was incapacitated for a few months while the fork sat en queue at Fresh Frame. After a lot of surface rust started to form around the shorelines, I felt it best to just get it painted, if anything, for the longevity of the bike. Since this bike has one of the uber-rare Chris King stainless steel headsets, I got Bryan Myers from Fresh Frame to polish the stainless crown to match and he even added a little bit of wood inlay in the lug window. I have to admit, I wasn’t completely stoked on the wood inlay but It’s growing on me.
This bike has proven to be one of my favorites in the stable and why wouldn’t it be? It’s a classic track bike with some very unique detailing…
I can really appreciate builds like this: vintage steel with a mix of modern componentry, especially when you add a tubeset like Columbus MS into the equation. This bike rolled into Shifter Bikes while I was in Melbourne and it was one of those bikes that didn’t like to sit still. It kept wanting to roll. Was it the legacy of Greg Lemond that was trying to establish a forward momentum? Who knows… but the Campagnolo Centaur 10, Zipp wheels, Thomson cockpit and Rolls saddle probably have something to do with it.
Photos by Andrey Jandarov
Let’s see, Columbus Mini Max, purple razzle dazzle and tons of White Industries? So good! Check out more of this purple beast at Elka Bikes.
Previously:
Elkabikes: Columbus MAX Beast
Hey, it’s been a while and when I come across something like this, I have to share it. Richard Pool designs and prints these portrait infographics of famous cyclists and the Eddy Merckx designs are so good.
See more Merckx Mondays below!
Photo by Chris Bishop
Chris Bishop has so many NOS Columbus tubesets and the MS, or multi-shaped, tubes are some of the most unique. Here’s a profile section of the tubes. From left to right, non drive chainstay, drive side chainstay, top tube, down tube and Air seat stays. Keep at it Chris. This is a great photo.
I just got back from Portland after a long day of traveling, to come home to a wonderful Merckx Mondays post from Fyxomatosis. Head over and check out more of this custom, one-of-a-kind Eddy Merckx MX-Leader restoration!
I’m back in Austin, after a completely incredible weekend of filming and photographing Giro’s new clothing line, New Road. One of the things that made this photo shoot different than a lot of previous ones were the people involved. There was an ex 7-Eleven racer, a magazine editor, the co-founder of kickstarter, a bike shop owner, a race organizer, myself and a few Giro employees.
One of those employees was Eric Richter, a key figure in Giro‘s helmet and cycling shoe division. Eric’s responsible for many of the rad new products that Giro has been pushing over the years, as well as their involvement in various events like the Red Hook Crit. I’ve gotten to know him from chatting at Interbike and other events but I really enjoyed getting to spend some saddle time with him on his new Black Cat disk road bike in the hills of NorCal.
Columbus MAX doesn’t make this the lightest bike ever but the bent stays, disc brakes, Dura Ace and Easton parts set this bike apart from any other MAX road bike I’ve seen. When Eric pulled this beauty out of his car, I had no idea what to even say. I was stunned. See for yourself below!
Nobody knows Eddy like Andy White from Fyxomatosis, so when Khalil contacted Andy for a one-of-a-kind MXL, he went overboard. Custom FYXO livery, custom FYXO decals, custom FYXO everything. Or as Andy puts it “no corners cut, no bullshit treatment“. This Merckx Mondays is a dedication to those who do it right. Andy, this is amazing.
As we were riding over to Eppy’s house, everyone kept telling me about his Merckx collection and a mural that Woof painted in his bike room. I had no idea what to expect, so imagine my surprise when I saw this Molteni painting staring me down as I entered this room. The joke of the afternoon was “there’s like 4 weeks worth of Merckx Mondays in there”…
Check out more below!
Mike is over in Italy right now, visiting Cinelli and Columbus for a little PR&D. Not many people can say that their frames are designed in Italy, in conjunction with one of the most repsected names in cycling. I can’t wait to see what they’re cooking up. See more great vignettes into the world of Cinelli and Columbus at the Mash Blog.
