Calfee Design, known for using alternative materials, didn’t disappoint at NAHBS this year. The now standard bamboo and carbon fiber bikes were present, along with a mountain bike made from a tree branch that feel during a storm. The branch came from a Douglas Fir. The joints are made from a pounded bark cloth sourced from a Ficus. A lefty fork and NuVinci 360 hub round out the build. Craig Calfee built this up for personal use, and has been using it off road with no issues.
Also in the booth was a 650B wheeled Drangonfly Double Disc Adventure bike, a bamboo roadie with a hidden Campy EPS battery, and an S & S coupled time trail tandem rocket ship. All of these, plus images of the wood bike on the other side.
The folks at Calfee Design, in an effort to get larger tires on the Drangonfly, tried out a set of 650B wheels. The end result is clearance for up 42mm tire (or up to 35mm tire on a 700c rim). The BB height changed less than 10mm, and the bike rides and handles almost the same as it does with a 700c wheel and more narrow tire. The addition of disc brakes and a tweaked geometry makes this one a great gravel grinder.
The Calfee Barstem now has the option to integrate a K Edge Garmin mount into the bar.
This monster tubed bamboo roadie is a prototype for a new model Calfee Design will be showing off at Sea Otter later this year. The final model will be made of carbon fiber. The bike holds a special trick up its downtube. A campy EPS battery has been disassembled, and the charging part and cells are reconfigured into a package that is hidden in the downtube.
Just park your bike next to an outlet to juice up the internal battery.
The cable stops have been integrated into the joints.
Calfee keeps it classy and fancy with EE Cycle brakes.
Winning Best Tandem at NAHBS this year was Calfee Design’s TT Tandem rocket ship complete with custom one off S & S couplers.
