I'm curious about the possibility of dying the bast or staining the bamboo.

Aniline Dye will work fine.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...type=3&theater

Can't see the image. Not public?


Would be cool to incorporate colours. I've seen some great looking composite layups where the fabric was a carbon-kevlar weave with colour in the kevlar.

Try it now.
Remember that Kevlar sands poorly..

Dunno. I can see it. Very rich! Almost can't tell it's bamboo.

I see it now. Almost looks like Chinese lacquer.

SUCCESS!!!

And - DOH!!! - a failure!


Just picked up bike from LBS where they have done the headset, bottom bracket and fork steerer cutting magic and so on.

Rode it across town to home:
- goes in straight line
- front shift performance is good
- looks fantastic!



However, the DOH! moment is that the carbon seat stay is only suitable for a long reach caliper, so the standard brake does not work. Didn't cross my tiny mind at all to check that, so i'll need to either swap out this unit for a long reach one or get some of the extension brake shoes (not ideal, but I guess OK for the rear brake). Neither are easy to get in Hong Kong, so I'll have to wait a week until I'm in London with this bike. The shops there are more likely to have these parts to hand.

On the plus side this means I probably have good clearance for a fender!


I'll get some bar tape on it later today and hopefully have photos tonight or tomorrow.

YES!!!

I knew you could get them.

BDop OFFSET HOLDERS

I'm not sure how premium your build is, but this is cheaper Nashbar Long Reach Road Brake Caliper___

Wouldn't get one any quicker.

First proper ride today. Up The Peak and a couple of minor climbs.



Ignoring the lack of rear brake and how odd that feels, the ride was fine. Bike has no obvious flaws or wobbles.

I did have one small moment with a high 'pucker' factor when the handlebars rotated forward a few degrees on the first descent, but luckily I didn't die and I stopped and tightened that up!




I won't be able to fit a tall bottle into a cage on the bottom of the down tube, but I may take shorter bottles and it will take the storage caddy bottle. The mounts are too far up the tube due to the position of the lug.

Build details:
New parts include Columbus Carve fork, headset, stem, seat post.
Second hand Ultegra 10spd, handlebars, pedals

Weight with pedals, cages and computer mount - 9.2kg (20.3lb)

Wow that looks really good Johnny!

That's looks as good as anything Calfee offers. You've got the touch. Speed Park Cycling also in Taiwan carries the offset brake adapters. They sell on EBay as joeyangair2010. Item 141002225951.

Thank you, but maybe I shouldn't show you the close up photos!

I could have easily spent another 3-6 hours sanding and tidying things. You can still see tool marks in places. If I was making a living from it I'd have some better jigs and tools to ensure a neater and quicker job, and I'm pretty sure that Calfee isn't using a brush for his clear coat.


Maybe I have the touch of knowing when I've hit 'good enough'. What is the rule? The Law of Diminishing Returns.


I am very happy with this and if it wasn't for the rear brake whoopsie I'd be happier. Each bike is better and I'm learning more tricks every time.

By the time I've made about 15 of these I might be good enough to consider selling them commercially.


I think that if anyone passes me by and with only a quick glance says "is that a Calfee?" then I'll be very happy!

Everyone is their own worst critic. Perfection is not easy but if it were what would be the fun in doing anything. I just finished watching all of the instructional video's for Calfee's Kickstarter kit and there is a judicious amount of filler putty used in the final finishing. Bamboo bikes are after all a handmade product and shouldn't look like they were produced in a laser guided factory. The end result loses some of its appeal then.

I was surprised - not as much as you - by the need for long reach calipers. My only experience with needing them was converting a 27" wheel frame to 700c. But live and learn. At least there is a reasonably priced commercially available work around.

Mik Efford out of Melbourne, Bamboo Bikes Australia , started out just like we all do and is now selling his creations. He's even devised a frame testing machine to test the strength of his joints. His blog is worth a read if he's new to you.

I'll be happy if somebody simply asks if I built that when they look at my creation.

Functional rear brake - made today's ride much more enjoyable.