hello joel,
Regarding the ride of the Taylors that I own, every one them rides so wonderfully! I know the subject of ride quality is, well.... subjective with many variables coming into play. Yes, the welding on a Taylor can appear can appear to be a little cobby at times, especially when its next to our immaculate Jeff Lyon tandem, but ride quality super cedes that perception. The paint, box lining and graphics are superb in an old world craftsmanship way. That said, the paint isn't up to the exacting Baylis standard.
Regards, Dave Martinez Fremont Ca Jack Taylor Tourist (made to measure) Rann trailerbike Curve tube Triplet Clubman (wifes bike, Clubwoman?)
joel metz <magpie@blackbirdsf.org> wrote: agreed! ritchey and slawta do awesome fillet work.
and the taylors work always has had that utilitarian aspect to it - norman never really cleaned up his lugs, either - i tend to think of his work as an ugly duckling in many ways - a testament to his skill as a brazer far more than to his skill as a finish worker. the bottom line with the taylors was always the ride, not the look, and i hold a certain appreciation for that attitude...
-joel
At 11:52 -0400 08.29.2006, oroboyz@aol.com wrote:
>I thought I should inject here some comments regarding filet brazing.
>
>Norman Taylor was lauded for his filet brazing experience and
>skills. JT bikes are way cool; I have one beauty in my collection
>that I value immensely. Plus I have handled and owned a large number
>of Taylors and can say that the joinery skills are very competently
>done... but "industrial" in aesthetics. It's true that Norman never
>dressed or finished his fileted joints, and that is relatively
>apparent. There are uneven sections, little ledges and lumpinesses
>that show his "hand", sort of like noticeable file marks in other
>frames...
>
>But if you want to see that level of strength and integrity and more
>yet with higher & more refined artisan skills, you need to look at
>Tom Ritchey or John (Landshark) Slawta's work. These guys lay down
>an initial filet that has an almost perfectly blended radius,
>virtually no ripple or variance in the profile. I have a raw
>untouched tubing joint by Slawta at my shop that any of you could
>examine and you will see that John barely has to touch the filet
>before going to paint. There are other North American (many mountain
>bike & Off topic) guys who also have developed this craft/skill/art
>to a very very high level. It is a simply unparralled and amazing
>level of handwork
>
>It can be argued that there is no useful purpose to "sweat the look"
>to this degree, that the bike is a tool, yada yada, but these
>builders who can do it, do it amazingly well. Better than any before
>them! Even (gasp) vintage/classic builders!
>
>You know I love the old stuff BUT the current top makers of steel
>bikes (don't make me list them) are making the best crafted bicycles
>ever made, period (my humble opinion.)
>
>My three cents,
>Dale
>
>Dale Brown
>cycles de ORO, Inc.
>1410 Mill Street
>Greensboro, NC 27408 USA
>336-274-5959
>www.cyclesdeoro.com
>www.classicrendezvous.com
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: freitas1@pacbell.net
>To: magpie@blackbirdsf.org
>Cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
>Sent: Tue, 29 Aug 2006 11:22 AM
>Subject: [CR]re:Jack Taylor Fillet brazed frames
>
> Joel probably knows but the Fillet frames are extremely light even
>with the additional brass. I had always thought a lugged frame would
>be lighter.
>My Marathon Tourist is one of my lightest bikes
>BOB FREITAS
>gray skies in MILL VALLEY,CA
>
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--
joel metz : magpie@blackbirdsf.org : http://www.blackbirdsf.org/
bike messengers worldwide : ifbma : http://www.messengers.org/
magpie messenger collective http://www.magpiemessenger.com/
portland, oregon
==
i know what innocence looks like - and it wasn't there,
after she got that bicycle...