Clear Shapes

Hello.

This is a bike for Mr Hiraiwa in Nagoya, Japan.

It's a very straight forward road racing bike.

Stiff and efficient for pedaling without

 adding to the fatigue of long days in the saddle.

 The bike holding a predictable line while 

its rider worries about more pressing matters. 

As they say in Japan, "Go at 'er with the give'r stick!"

That's what they say, right? 
Isn't it?

While not everybody's cup of tea,

Asa Osborne has been exploring

some of the most meditative music

 I'm willing to expose myself to.

His work is slowly getting more and more

 elemental until the melody all but

 disappears into a hypnotic sine wave.

Perfect working music and

 certainly not fist pumping arena rock.

From playing guitar in Lungfish,

 starting in the early nineties;

half of The Pupils;

and most recently Zomes.

Seemed Like the Thing to Do

Hi De Ho, blog-o-teers.

This bike is headed back out to Mark Schofield in 

currently-snow covered New England.

This bike was also one that had its front end replaced.

 We took the opportunity to also build a fork for the 

bike's new sizing since Mark had purchased the 

frame second hand.

The fork is the latest iteration of the Black Cat segmented forks.

They feature custom drawn tapered True Temper blades, 

silver brazed into a fillet brass brazed crown, and leading, forward facing dropouts.

It's a mouthful without all the accompanying pics,
 but you'll see plenty more of these in the near future.

It is kinda interesting (to me at least) to look at the bikes
 made some years ago and see the ways things
 have changed and way things have stayed the same.

  

Same bb configuration. I guess there's only so many

 ways to attach the same tubes to a bb shell.

The seat cluster is noticeably different. 

The seat stays used to attach above the top tube.

Not sure there was ever a real reason, 

I just like how it looked at the time.

I could say, less distortion of the seat tube,

 less concentrated heat, etc, etc, 

but the newer ones don't seem to have a problem 

with all the tubes coming together at the same point.

Right now, I like how the new ones look.

Go figure.

I seem to have stuck with the gusset design.

It seems to be working rather well,

 both as a functioning gusset, and as a calling card of sorts.

We'll continue to stick with it for now. 

This one is brand new and is more or less 

identical to the one that was on the old front end.

As esoteric as the differences may be,

it's those things that keep me interested and challenged.

Hopefully when/if the big thaw comes to Massachusetts, 

Mark will beat on it as before, without skipping a beat.

 

Suddenly, I seem to have noticed

Dinosaur Jr's name being thrown around

as a touchstone for "modernguitarrock"

and as a reference point for many up-and-coming

bands. I agree, for what it's worth.

Still, J Mascis seems as unlikely a frontman

as there ever has been in this "modernguitarrock".

All the better.

 

Almost Ready

Feel the Pain

Start Choppin'

The slightest scratch in the surface.

Pick your own favorites.