Custom paint (part III): frames inspired by cars and motorcycling
Biker groove
Winner of the Outstanding Finish Award at Bespoked 2016, this Dondor frame from Bristol-based Engineered Bicycles was acollaboration with local artist Tim Cox. It’s packed with intricate detail, including an octopus and Halloween pumpkin, as well as skulls and a serpent’s head that hark back to Cox’s background in custom motorcycles. All the cables were routed internally to keep the frame clean and clear, ensuring nothing detracts the eye from the illustrations.
Do us a copy
Clients will often approach a frame painter with a vague idea of what they want, allowing the respective frame painters free rein on the final design. A customer provided Rob Nicholas of Colourburn Studio in Bristol with a photo of a BMW M1 Procar in BASF livery with the message ‘Full BASF please!” so that’s exactly what Nicholas delivered.
Read: Power couples – car and bike brand collaborations
Hue cares
The owner of this custom Rolo bike was after a very simplistic paint scheme, but a very specific colour. The frame had to match his 1971 VW Beetle that was painted in an original Volkswagen colour called Hippie Green. Rolo researched the VW archives and found the original paint number to ensure the match was exact.
Fine vintage
“The customer was a child or the Seventies with a soft spot for vintage Porsches,” explains Adrian Ridley of Bristol-based Engineered Bicycles. “It was a dream project for us as we were able to follow the concept all the way through from the paint – an exact match to the Porsche Gezel Metallic Gold from that era – through to the custom covered bar tape and saddle” (based on the ‘Pasha’ fabric used by Porsche in the 70’s and 80’s.) Painted by Tim Cox of TJC design in Bristol, who collaborates with Ridley and business partner David Fong on a regular basis (also see top), the bike clinched the Campagnolo Choice Award at Bespoked 2017. Picture courtesy of Bespoked/Ben Broomfield
Read: Riding with the gendarmes – Tour de France motorbike training with ASO
Stunt bike
Created for the 2017 North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS), the ‘American Jack’ design from Enigma Paintworks merges the Stars and Stripes with the Union Jack, plus calls out the logos in real gold leaf. If the overall design is strangely familiar it’s because the whole look of the bike is a conscious tribute to Evel Knievel, even down to the choice of font. The design won’t be to everyone’s taste, admits Enigma’s Founder and Owner, Jim Walker, “but it was perfect for NAHBS as it ‘slapped’ onlookers round the face and got lots of attention.”
Pig iron
At the 1971 edition of the famous 24 hour Le Mans , the German car manufacturer, Porsche, unveiled a 917/20 coupé painted in bright pink and the component parts marked out like the diagram of a pig in a butcher’s window. The ‘Pink Pig’ caused a sensation both on and off the track. Ali McLean of Fat Creations in Sussex was approached by a customer who wanted to replicate the design on a Brooklyn Machine Works frame, hence the play on words on the down tube: “We painstakingly modified the logo to keep it as close to original Brooklyn logo as possible.”
Custom paint (part I): six stunning personalised frames and the stories behind them
Custom paint (part II): six schemes with an arty theme
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