Some months ago I asked Mike Barry of Bicycle Specialties if he would make me a single speed 650B in the French style. The results are wonderful. I picked up the bike last weekend and the ride is sublime, the details too many to relate. I'm especially fond of the small Dutch rear light and the ingenious way Mike built the bag support. The hubs are Phil's flipfloppers so there are options. Because of the nature of the dropouts it's very difficult to get the fender lines precisely the way we would prefer but the bike looks fantastic, not at all compromised to my eye. The color in the photos does not do it justice.
Now unfortunately I have not been able to convince the computer to upload
these pictures to my Yahoo photos site. There are lots of pictures of my
other Mariposas, Herse, Singer, Rivendell, Berthoud, and others there, if
anyone is curious. It's been a long time since I put out this pointer but
if you like. Go to yahoo.com, click on photos, enter as a guest to the
site of dvicakrababa (that's Sanskrit for two-wheel daddio, as it
were...). There has to be an easier way. BUT the new photos of the
Mariposa 650B Singler were nicely posted on the Serotta Bicycles Forum in
their custom photos gallery. Here is the link:
http://www.serotta.com/
Also, you will find in that larger gallery the lovely Mercian that JB just painted for me. It's an 80s bike that I got for a song on eBay and then had repainted with a barbershop pole. I put on some old favorite parts, mostly of the era. I built it to ride, as I do all of my bikes, and I'm not so fastidious about period correct or such things.
I have a new Mariposa Racer on the way, built with 531 and a 1" toptube. Mike has lots of this tubing of yore and this one will have (because I asked) centerpull braze-ons and a few details of classic bikes but actually be built with modern parts (like Centaur Ergo). The key detail is the use of TA's Etoille which will allow us to use a Cyclotouriste crankset with 10spd derailleurs and shifters. I was trying to mix it up.
We have a new project on the boards. A new Mariposa with a Paris-Roubaix Campagnolo derailleur. It's not likely such a bike has been built since the '50s but those derailleurs work as well now as they ever have and it is _so much fun_ to shift.
Thanks to all!
Douglas Brooks
Bristol, New York