Some people covet them for the precise fit. Some have them built to perform a specialized task. Some seek the status of riding a one-of-a-kind item. For my husband Dick, treating himself to a custom built bike meant choosing exactly what he wanted like a kid in a candy store: frame material, tubing, joining method, geometry, paint scheme and application method, components and more. And of course, to fit him precisely.
I don’t know if Dick caught the custom bike bug at any of the North American Handmade Bike Shows we’ve attended over the years in San Jose, Austin and Sacramento, but it certainly hastened the symptoms. It’s no surprise. Dick has had a soft spot for lugged steel bikes since he bought his 1987 Bianchi Super Corsa with its flashy chrome lugs, and the NAHBS showcases some of the sexiest lugged steel bikes found anywhere.
With a generous offer from a close friend at Phil Wood, weeks of planning and painfully long months of waiting, the reward was sweet: a SyCip road frame built with Richard Sachs lugs, branded as Phil Wood & Co.
Dick set the bike up originally with a carbon fork, but switched to a custom steel fork made by Steelman Cycles, which he had chromed vintage-style by Superior Chrome in San Jose. That’s a lot of custom work by a lot of master craftsmen. But to Dick, the result is well worth it. It fits like a glove and rides like dream. His dream.
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- Rarely spotted in the wild: a Phil Wood head badge on a custom road bike.
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- Steel frame by SyCip with lugs by Richard Sachs in Eddy Merckx orange.
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- The steel fork by Steelman was chromed to retro perfection.
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- Ever since that first Bianchi, Dick has been Campy all the way.
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- Little details make the difference, like handpainted cutouts in the fork crown.
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- Unlike Brooks saddles, no break in was needed for his Sella Anatomica.
Location: Historic Woodside Store, Woodside, California, USA.
Rick W.
March 5, 2014 at 11:13 am
Sweet! Right up my (lugged steel) alley.
Is the BB a Phil Wood? The hubs do not appear to be Phil’s. Big fan of Phil stuff.
Dick K.
March 5, 2014 at 12:39 pm
The bottom bracket is a Campy Ultra-torque unit. The hubs are 32 hole Campy Record and the rims are DT Swiss. The spokes are tied and soldered as well.
Matt Laroche
March 15, 2014 at 9:24 am
Totally love the color.