Walked into this LBS today...
 

The first thing I spotted upon walking in the door was a brown suede repro Turbo saddle. I knew I was in the right place. It's a little larger than my living room, but very cool little shop, and the owner was pretty cool. They're opening another location soon, and said they would have some mechanic openings in a month or so. Looking forward to it, hope it happens! Supposed to start back at my old auto parts job soon, but it was only part time. If this is only part time I will be set, with a full time job between the two. If it's full time and pays decently, then goodbye auto parts. Have no rent or mortgage on the abode, just bills and taxes once a year. I don't need to make a killing to get by comfortably.,,,,BD


http://www.fletcherbikestudio.com/

Sounds like bliss.

Good luck!

Thanks Flog. Looked like a great place to work. So many inner city shops are messy and have inadequate air conditioning. This place was neither of these. Their product lines were very unusual and quite cool as well. Steel 29er frames hanging on the wall, clearcoated over bare metal. Bamboo frames waiting to be built.,,,,BD

Definitely not a Performance Bike franchise. :lol: Good luck in getting the job.

Sounds sick man, good luck with that.

Thanks for the luck. It might not be bad working both places either. Cost for both bike and auto parts? What would be cooler than that?:D,,,,BD


You see.. My S/O doesn't know it yet, but I am planning on ripping the body off of my Ramcharger, and building a rat rod body from scratch. With about 1000 less pounds of body, it will no longer get 8mpg. Closer to 15 hopefully, if I can keep my foot out of it:lol:

Something like this...:D

http://www.ratrodnation.com/forum/ra...built-rat-rod/

But what of the saddle? No link the manufacturer's webpage? Was it a actual Turbo or a good copy?

Selle Italia made reproduction. VERY nicely done copy by the original manufacturer.,,,,BD

http://www.velomine.com/index.php?ma...oducts_id=1531

that shop on taft is in my favorite part of town -- hyde park/montrose. one of the best bars in the world is nearby, rudyards on waugh. stop in before the kids arrive and grab a pint and listen to some uncle tupelo on the jukebox. they also have great cooks in the kitchen serving up tex-mex.

other big faves are catbirds (a laid back, hole-in the wall, french quarter jazz club) and the oldest bar in town, la carafe, downtown. that one is a beautiful place to drink a glass of wine, talk to the locals, and play old r&b on the juke.

Oh yes, been to Ruds plenty of times. As long as Fred is still tending bar, that's where I will probably end up after a hard day at the office:lol:. I am also a card carrying member of the Montrose Beer and Gun Club. I'll be within bike riding distance of Lankfords too, so I will never go hungry for enchiladas on Wednesday.,,,,BD

Does Fred still have his camo Hercules? I've been to Cecils a few times over the last couple of months, and haven't seen Fred sitting at the bar. Nothing is right with the world when he's not there to tell the wild stories of his youth.

http://www.montrosebeerandgunclub.com/

^ cool. i fell in love with a bartender there long ago. she was ... 'the one that got away.'

i saw more great and intimate shows upstairs than at any other club. houston bars blow away those here in seattle.

my friend told me he likes a bike shop on white oak. said it was near fitzgeralds ... where i saw frank black, yo la tengo, medeski martin and wood, robbie krieger, etc etc etc.

Bikedued, Man, I haven't been to Fitzgeralds since O2L was there (3 years?), I used to go quite often when I lived closer in. I didn't know about Fletchers, good luck with the application.

Brad

Blue Line Bike Lab, They're okay guys. But when I was in town one weekend, and had car trouble that nearly drained my wallet, and I had a carload of decent bikes. Volkscycle, PX10, etc etc etc. They refused to help me out a bit, and buy one at a reduced price even, to help me get back home. I had probably spent at least a few thousand bucks there since they opened in 05. I go back in there now, and even applied for a job there a month or two ago, but that situation is still in the back of my mind. They weren't obligated to buy one, and I realize that, but they even went so far as to act like the PX10 was not worth their time to resell.,,,,BD

When I saw the title of this thread my first thought was, did it hurt? Then I read this:
...and I thought, man, that must be a big saddle. :D

Hope you pick up a position there. It sounds like a great place!

You'd hate to see the cow, huh?:lol: Thanks. I have my fingers crossed.,,,,BD

is there a place in houston that specializes in c&v?

here in seattle, it's wright brothers, recycled cycles, and the columbia city co-op.

No one really "specializes" in C&V per say. A lot of shops here will tolerate them, and some actually like working on and owning them. For the most part it seems that they're mostly into selling new bikes. This shop had Michelin World Tour 27 x 1 1/4" skinwall tires? I have honestly never seen them before, anywhere! Not even in the dealer catalogs we had at the shop in Lake Charles. I love walking into shops that carry stuff that is out of the ordinary.,,,,BD

I am seriously thinking of outfitting a few of my bikes with these. They look great, real old school style.

http://thebikelane.com/product/miche...FYik4AodPRQAFg

.....Fausto, Eddy and Jacques are standing at the counter.

I just noticed they're not too cheap to buy park tool rolling stools, like my previous boss. The last thing he bought besides a refrigerator(to replace the one that burned up over a year before) was a set of hard stainless topped (and stationary, not rolling) stools that were too tall for most jobs besides seatpost replacements and bar wrapping. When he bought the refrigerator, I was shocked beyond words. He must have got a wild hair and decided to care for once:lol: It was like pulling teeth to get basic replacement items stocked for repairs. If it's Friday, and there's a race the next day, that is not the time to tell the customer, "We can order one for you?",,,,BD

Michelin World Tour
 

BD,
I tried them two years ago on my tourer. They didn't feel as responsive to me as the Pasella or Pasella TG, and the tread wore pretty fast. I began puncture flatting at about 1000 miles on the rear from small road debris/glass. On one of the final changes, I saw that the bead was tearing away on a small section, and I always kept them below the recommended pressure (which may have been 75 PSI, but I can't recall). Anyway, I wound up replacing them with Pasella TGs, and am happy with the switch. YMMV.

Cool shop, nonetheless. I hope that it works out for you.
Phil

Had a set of VERY worn Michelin WTs on a bike I got, sidewalls shot...but ANY old tire will do that!
Might have to try and get over to that shop next time I'm in H-Town...but that is close to downtown...I USUALLY avoid going down there if I can when I am visiting the folks (out NW of town)