Fun fact: one of the really cool things that happens each year that doesn’t really get talked about is the friendships that develop and the networking that happens between builders at the show. This is especially prevalent on New Builder’s row where show attendance can sometimes be very slow. People chat, relationships develop, and sometimes really cool collaborations come out of it.
Last year, Jamie White from Métier Vélo and Tim Crossman were a few tables away from one another. They talked, had dinner at the show, and ended up riding together after the show. If you remember from our coverage last year, Tim was the Ukrainian carbon builder who had just constructed his second CNC filament winding machine so he could make his own tubing with which to build bicycles. Jamie’s frames at the time featured 3d printed titanium joints conceived and designed custom to each consumer.
What has occurred is pretty neat- the pair are now collaborating in such a way that if you want a bike with tubing tailored to you, Tim and Jamie will work together to bring you that next level of customization. The result is a frame that is tailored to the consumer to the physical core of its being- that’s really something. I don’t know how you can get deeper custom than that…
The bike front and center was the embodiment of this deep custom collaboration. Not just were the main triangle tubes custom wound for the frame…
… but so were the seatstays and chainstays. When ordering the Tim Crossman option, the team can work together on custom lay-ups, as well as custom tube shapes and mandrels per consumer. The possibilities and opportunities with this level of customization are pretty thrilling when you think about it.
Once tubing is designed, Jamie bonds them into his titanium joints. Holding this in my hand at NAHBS, I regretted not bringing a scale. (should have called me over #alwaysbringascale – zach)
Once again, we were able to see Jamie’s proprietary seat tube, one that can be microadjusted and locks into place once set. “It’s very exclusive because it’s very expensive.”
Because each Métier Vélo frame part is designed custom per customer, it allows Jamie some freedom when it comes to dropouts and lug shapes. Here we have an ultra-light vertical road dropout for a traditional rim brake bike.
This road disc bike with thru-axle hubs had a very different frame part configuration- both functionally and visually. Your Métier Vélo can be completely traditional or on the cutting edge of industry trends- it’s totally up to you.
And if the customer chooses, they can have their name also printed and attached onto the frame at an extra cost.
It should be said that while your Métier Vélo can tend towards the super-custom end, super custom can be super expensive. Jamie does offer off-the-shelf stock tubing options to keep costs lower if the customer requests it.
