Mixte Migunani

Utilitarian bikes, can't have enough of them. While online galleries are packed full with beautiful road bikes and mountain bikes, we must remember that one of the undoubted purpose of a bicycle is to carry a person—and also his/her goods for that matter—from point A to B. These purpose built bikes can be beautiful in their own ways.

Imam Wiratmadja believes in the mantra that bikes are built for transport, not just sport. The brain behind the Cyclor movement, that sucessfully brought some people back on their saddles again, Imam wants to build a bike to fit his transportation needs. A bike with upright riding position with minimal maintenance, and able to carry more stuffs than ordinary bicycles.

Imam came with an old, unbranded mixte frame. We figured out that fatter tires were in order to give smooth ride, and this frame delivers ample clearance for 32mm tires with fenders installed. To provide better braking, caliper brakes are ditched in favor of a pair of Shimano XT V-brakes, a decision that leads to us brazing brake bosses on the fork blades and the lateral stays. We finished the frame in sunburst orange metallic, to make this bike stand out even in the crowded traffic.

To go with the minimal maintenance requirement while providing wider gearing range, we built Shimano Alfine 8-speed rear hub to Araya TX-733 rims. Alfine dynamo front hub provides power to illuminate the road when the sky turns dark. The chainring and cog ratio is strangely low, at 34/20T, but that is just how Imam rolls. Upright riding position was brought by Velo Orange Tourist handlebar, some unmarked short uprise quill stem, and Selle Royal saddle installed on a zero-offset 25,4mm BMX seatpost.

The interesting front rack was bought in The Netherlands through Imam's relative. It was made of aluminium, and clamped to the headtube so it won't swing during maneuvering. The rack is sturdy enough even when Imam have to carry 19 liter water bottle home—one of the tasks this bicycle is built for.

The multiple uses of this bike leads to its name, Migunani—Javanese for "something purposeful".
Check out our other mixte builds here, and here.