David Kirk’s road bikes are always minimal looking at first glance. It’s not until you really give ’em a solid once over that you notice the artistry that sets them apart. In addition to his frames, he offers a few bits and pieces that other builders can use and even that you can order to gussy up your existing ride. Here’s what’s new from Kirk Frameworks…
BIKERUMOR: What have you been working in since NAHBS last year?
DAVE: I’ve been working on a number of different things. The big, and yet nearly invisible, thing is tightening my sizing, ordering, and building procedures so that they are as quick and accurate as possible with the aim of leaving more time for me to be at the bench making stuff. The big goal is to keep my lead-time as short as possible while still satisfying demand. I’ve also been working on plenty of product related stuff. I’ve been tweaking my tube specs to give an even better ride while keeping the weight down, fine tuning the design of my Triple F rear dropouts, and prototyping and testing road and cross framesets to work with disc brakes.
BIKERUMOR: Any killer custom bike builds?
DAVE: Picking a favorite customer build is like picking your favorite child – can’t be done. However I am excited by one of the bikes I’ll be bringing to NAHBS this year and that is my new fillet brazed cross race bike with disc brakes (shown). It’s my personal bike for the 2012 race season. I’m very excited to be using disc brakes and finally setting aside the cantilevers for those wet and muddy rides and races. Once I get this back from the show it will go off to Joe Bell for paint and then have a DA group and a new set of disc specific wheels hung on it and I’ll be ready to roll. Spring is going to be fun.
BIKERUMOR: Did you see anything last year that’s inspired you?
DAVE: I always leave the show feeling inspired by what I see – Pegoretti, Strong, Crumpton, Ellis, etc., all showed stuff that brought a smile to my face.
BIKERUMOR: Can you give us a teaser of what you’re bringing to NAHBS 2012?
DAVE: As usual I’ll be bringing two complete bikes and one frameset to the show. Both of the full builds are from my JK Special series – the first is a JKS X that is built with XL sized 953, Llewellyn lugs, and special chain and seat stays built for me by Reynolds (Kirk by Reynolds) and it is set up with internal Di2. The second full build is a JKS Classic. It uses a special mix of Reynolds 953 and Kirk by Reynolds stays and is a classic Euro stage race bike. It features hollow fabricated side-tack seat stay caps, Llewellyn lugs, and a full Campagnolo Super Record build. The frameset being shown is a fillet brazed cross bike built from Reynolds 853 Pro, Kirk by Reynolds stays and is designed to use disc brakes. It will be shown in the raw, sans paint.
BIKERUMOR: If you had to race all the other builders, who would you want to inch out for the win right at the line?
DAVE: I think nipping Eddy Merckx at the line might just make my day.
