It is finally finished. I just got back from a metric century and it rides fantastic.

The frame is built by a local Dallas frame builder named Dave Cheakas. His company is called Southwest Frame Works. I asked Dave to build this based on the geometry of my Vitus 979.

The seat tube is 52cm ctc and the top tube is 53.5cm.

I'm running a full Dura Ace 7600 track group with Dura Ace brake levers, brakes and seat post. The DA hubs are laced to 32 hole IRO silver rims(Velocity Fusion). The saddle is a Brook Swift with matching saddle bag and bar tape. The headset is Chris King.

Major kudos to fellow RBRer Chris H who hooked me up with a custom Texas head badge

Brooks Swift saddle and lugged stem

Drivetrain and cranks

Wow!
Really pretty bike!! Congratulations:thumbsup:

very sharp!!....BTW, is that a Nitto stem?

very sharp!!....BTW, is that a Nitto stem?

No...It's a custom stem made by Pacenti designs. They made the lugs on the frame too

I bet it's hard to keep yer head up while riding on that thing...too busy ogling the cockpit. I'm interested in how it feels to ride that tape, I have a box I haven't used yet, wondering if it's more for show than actual function? The saddle looks great. Look forward to hearing the ride report.

I love pretty bikes!

How hilly was the metric century? I am assuming you rode it with your new bike. Beautiful!!

I absolutely love the stem lugs, they are truly art, bet they sucked to braze though (I hate brazing FWIW). Enjoy your beautiful new bike.

That is some of the sweetest lugwork I have ever seen....seriously. I am a metal-smith and have seen a lot of fancy stuff too. VERY sweet, nice choice on colors...and aren't you a NEW convert to Brooks as I remember?.... You seem to have gotten sucked in big time....hehehe......TOLD YOU SO......

That is some of the sweetest lugwork I have ever seen....seriously. I am a metal-smith and have seen a lot of fancy stuff too. VERY sweet, nice choice on colors...and aren't you a NEW convert to Brooks as I remember?.... You seem to have gotten sucked in big time....hehehe......TOLD YOU SO......

Thanks. I was impressed with the lugs too. I gave the builder free reign to do what ever he wanted. He choose Pacenti lugs and did some carving. The tubing is Columbus Spirit. My original plan was to have the lugs red and outlined in white. The builder and I discussed it and we decided to go with white lugs to add contrast. I really glad now we went that way.

Yes I'm a new convert to Brooks. I now own 3:)

Out of curiosity can I assume the lugs to be cast? The way I understand it that is the traditional method. FWIW Brazing them would be no harder than brazing any other design....good flux, a big soft flame and patience.....Color equals temperature... the right temp...there she flows...simple as that. I like that a bike doubles as a piece of fine art.

Lost wax casting, the actual casting is done by Long Shen I believe, Kirk just gives them the designs and they make 'em. BTW, thats the first time I've seen one of those stem fully painted, usually people polish the lugs to a mirror finish.

I was just drooling on Pacenti's website....Your bike is as nice as ANY I saw there too!

Beautiful.

The tubing is Columbus Spirito.

... of course it is :p

well done Dave. the only faults I see is that it's not 56 x 57cm ... apart from that she's perfect :thumbsup:

peace

Out of curiosity can I assume the lugs to be cast? The way I understand it that is the traditional method. FWIW Brazing them would be no harder than brazing any other design....good flux, a big soft flame and patience.....Color equals temperature... the right temp...there she flows...simple as that. I like that a bike doubles as a piece of fine art.
I know, I just don't like brazing, it's just my preference. I TIG a lot, instant weld gratification is really my thing.

I'm interested in how it feels to ride that tape, I have a box I haven't used yet, wondering if it's more for show than actual function?

I've been riding the Brooks leather tape for the better part of a year now, and I really like it. It wears forever, and eventually gets some interesting coloration (or discoloration) where your usual hand positions are. It's decidedly not cushioned, however. I put a layer of Cateye cloth tape under it to provide a little "squeeze," but eventually the leather compresses and feels quite firm. It does provide an excellent and comfortable grip surface, and adds a bit of thickness to the hadlebar, which I personally like.

Great looking bike Dave!

What handlebar is that? Did you polish it? 31.8mm silver bars seam to be hard to find.

Great looking bike Dave!

What handlebar is that? Did you polish it? 31.8mm silver bars seam to be hard to find.

It is a Reynolds bar I bought at biketiresdirect.com. I wanted a natural bend bar in silver but I couldn't find one so I bought this black bar and stripped the center section and polished it. Underneath the tape the bar is black

Very nice Dave. Nothing like custom, lugged (& local) steel! You must be lovin' it.

Cheers,

Sweet ride!

Wow. Er, I mean, WOW! That thing is so hawt, these pics belong in PG.

I don't own a fixie/SS yet, but this pretty much sets the bar for what I want. Very, very nice.

Thanks for posting this. I've talked to David a few times about building a frame for me. It looks like a really beautiful bike. Congratulations. After this I'm ready to pull the trigger on one. A couple of questions, if you don't mind talking about your bike: Overall, how does the bike perform? How was the experience of dealing with a custom framebuilder?

Thanks

The bike rides like a dream. It climbs better than my IRO and is much more comfortable.

My experience with David was great. He is very easy to work with. I wanted this bike to have the same geometry as my Vitus 979 and it matches it perfectly. The frame took about 3 weeks longer than expected(3 months total), but it was worth the extra time.

The bike rides like a dream. It climbs better than my IRO and is much more comfortable.

My experience with David was great. He is very easy to work with. I wanted this bike to have the same geometry as my Vitus 979 and it matches it perfectly. The frame took about 3 weeks longer than expected(3 months total), but it was worth the extra time.

Sound good! Just what I wanted to hear. I know craftsmen-artisans can be a bit...difficult at times. By the way, what are the color patches on the fork? I assume it's a decal, but what is it?

Sound good! Just what I wanted to hear. I know craftsmen-artisans can be a bit...difficult at times. By the way, what are the color patches on the fork? I assume it's a decal, but what is it?

It's a club, heart and diamond

what a fantastic looking bike. if you're ever up in the Plano area, please bring that up to Plano Cycling so i can drool on it a little bit. i was wondering if there were any fabricators up here in the Dallas area.

looks fairly vintage/ old school...why'd you opt for a 1 1/8 threadless? just curious.

what a fantastic looking bike. if you're ever up in the Plano area, please bring that up to Plano Cycling so i can drool on it a little bit. i was wondering if there were any fabricators up here in the Dallas area.

looks fairly vintage/ old school...why'd you opt for a 1 1/8 threadless? just curious.

It's 1" threadless. I really wanted a lugged stem and I didn't like the looks of a quill lugged stem..I also really wanted the bike to look custom

I haven't been to Plano Cycling in a while. My son plays hockey at the Stars cneter in Plano quite a bit. Next trip I'll come over

Damn, the lugs kill it.