Built to Go... Fast

When I was just a boy, the biggest poster that adorned my bedroom wall was not of a Countach, Pamela Anderson, or N*Sync (hey, I won't judge). It was a majestic 120 x 80cm glossy picture of an SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest spyplane in the world. You might spot its cameo on movies like Transformers or Deadpool, although it was pictured of being able to take off and land vertically on the later (spoiler: it is not). The Blackbird was the most advanced reconnaissance aircraft of the time, designed to reach highest altitude and velocity to outrace the Soviet Union's surface-to-air defence missiles during the Cold War.

Pias Scarab Homecoming to Taiwan

A short video from when the head honchos of Pias Cycles and PEONFX brought two Pias Scarab prototypes in a pilgrimage to the frame's birthplace at Taiwan. Both frames are still living happy life, Acit took his 54cm prototype on our epic Baluran adventure.

A Finish Only A Mother Could Love

For years Cannondale have been making brilliant aluminium frames under the CAAD moniker, which means the decision making behind the purchase of Aldeo Plato's 2015 CAAD8 105 was a no brainer. But knowing the nature of this blog, you'll rarely found us babbling about a factory-stock bicycle...

Wheelbuild: Old Meets New

Over the years of wheelbuilding business we've stumbled upon one particular rim that seems to be a favourite for many applications: H Plus Son's TB-14. We've built them into e-commuter, track, gravel-grinding, and even recently, cyclocross wheels. This time, we built them into a nice set of road wheels. A special one on that matter.

Here Comes The Boss

Frequent visitors might already knew that besides working as mechanic at Pancalen Cycles I also designed frames for Pias Cycles. So far I have three Pias frame designs under my belt. You've probably seen the road and cyclocross frames before, now let me talk you through the redesign I've done to the frame that put Pias Cycles on the map, the Agra.

Wheelbuild: High and Low

Say whatever about disc brakes on 700c-wheeled bicycles, but one of the advantages of such design is the separation of braking function from the rim. This means longer rim life since you don't have to replace them every other season after the sidewall become too thin to handle the tire pressure.

Not a Diamond, But Lasts Forever

Working on bicycle repair business for quite a while, we occasionally stumbled upon some iconic bicycles from different eras. This just goes to show that even though it was agreed that the conventional double-triangle or diamond design is regarded as the most efficient means to construct a bicycle frame, some people went through further means to think out of the box and created something that will be remembered forever; whether to achieve significant improvement or just to be able to stand out of the crowd.

Urban Pursuit

Track cycling aficionados are familiar with pursuit-styled track frames. Mainly designed for pursuit events, the most noticeable feature on these frames is the forward-sloping toptube. This feature is achieved by shortening the headtube length that further lowers the cockpit height, which leads to more aero riding position needed to complete the pursuit races.

With the popularity of urban fixed gear riding getting on the rise, some bicycle manufacturers brought the pursuit-styled frames back to the market; one of them is Affinity, with their Lo Pro model.