An Evening with Independent Fabrication 2007

The 2007 Independent Fabrication party was a blast! Matt Bracken gave a great presentation to a full house. He touched on everything from custom fittings to material selection. As promised the shop was full of exceptionally beautiful handcrafted bicycles. In addition to the bikes, Mamma Lucia keep our bellies full of top notch Italian eats.

The following morning about 16 of us ventured out on a 35 mile road ride with Sir Speedy himself, Harlan Price. We cycled on some of the beautiful back roads Frederick County has to offer.

We would like to offer a special thank you to Mamma Lucia, Lara Bar, Hammer Nutrition, Park Tools, and of course Independent Fabrication. Their combined efforts help make this years Evening with IF one to remember.

More Pics here.

Single Speed Steel IF Deluxe

As I mentioned in a previous post the single speed fever is now an outbreak. Here is a single speed Independent Fabrication Steel Deluxe that I just had to share. For you gram counters she tips the scale at 24.11 lbs. as she sets.

Harlan Price will joining in the fun!

We are excited to announce that Independent Fabrication endurance racer Harlan Price will be joining us on our Sunday morning road bike ride the day following our IF party. For those of you who have been on the moon with your fingers in your ears singing “Bang, Bang, Bang Went the Trolley” and are unaware of our event here it the low down:
We will have IF bikes available for demo from 10:00-6:00 on Saturday, August 25. You can take a spin on the award-winning XS, the SSR stainless steel frame, and even some of their bikes that debuted at the 2007 North American Handmade Bicycle Show.
Saturday evening at 7:00pm the president of Independent Fabrication, Matt Bracken and CFO Joe Ingram will give a presentation.
On Sunday, August 26th at 10:00am there will be a road ride with Matt, Joe, and Harlan. Riders should bring their own bike but may have the opportunity to ride an IF demo bike if they so choose.

White Brothers & Origin8 29er Forks

Recently I had the opportunity to compare two carbon 29er mountain bike forks, White Brothers Rock Solid and Origin8 Black Ops. I have not ridden either of these products for any length of time so this is not an evaluation or ride report. What I noticed was based on appearances these two forks are identical. From the crown to the drop outs every detail (except graphics) appears the same. The Origin8 fork sells for around $249.99 and weighs 784.2 grams. The White Brothers costs around $359.99 and tips the scale at 821.5 grams. The difference in weight could be with in the range of expected variance.

With this information it is clear that both companies are using the same Asian manufacturer. It is possible however, that the forks are made in the same plant but different materials and carbon weaves are used. I can not assess the materials used in the forks or construction methods. This post is not intended to be discouraging and I make no claim as to the quality of either fork. I simply found it interesting and wanted to share. I should also note that I have no fundamental problem outsourcing and view it as sometimes necessary. I, for example, am not even typing this entry myself. I have a contract with a firm in Asia that I let pound the keyboard for me ;)

Tom Rinker Dictated but not read