Villin Cycles

[lex]

Yo, congrats on the new one.

Now, I was wondering if you'd discuss your metal working with an overview of your interest in the layered metals and the path you took to learn and employ it into some of your frames. As I told you when we first met, I had been pursuing sources for decorative layered metals, never thought to make my own. As usual, my cart sticks way out in front of the horse. (rear hoof drive).

Wow, Thats a whopper Wade. Ill do my best.
While spending one fine spring day skipping school at the beach I happened appon a lovely large bikini top floating at my ankles. Oh, Wait a minute, that was another story.
The one about the metal starts at an art show in Atlanta just after the turn of the century. This one also involves bikini tops but 'm gonna skip that part. I had been invited to DJ the show by my friend Ray. He once told me , while standing at the sink sipping some whisky, " When I was a kid, my grandma was stanin at the sink lookin at me, she was lookin at me real hard n I was waitin for somthin special, She looks at me n she says, (with a thick spanish accent) When I drink, --I drink by the sink". Ray owned the gallery and talked allot and the ladies loved him. one of those ladies was an artist he had invited to do the show. Her name was Vivian. She was thin, pail and pointy. Her satin black hair stuck out from her head like she had just stuck her tung in a light socket and liked it.
She had made a ring that, at first glance looked flawed to me. Appon closer inspection. however, I realized that what I took for flaws in the finish were actually different color stripes in the metal formed by mixing platinum and white gold. it was her only Mokeme peace. She said she was just starting to get good at it and proceed to show me several photos of herself naked. Well thats what i wanted but the photos were just of knives and other jewelry made by artists that she liked.
At that time I was like a fish outa water with respect to building and metal work in general but her work relay stuck with me. As I learned more about the practical aspects of mitering, welding, and frame stuff in general I researched Mokeme Gane and forge welded steel more in depth but having bit off more than I could chew already with the frame building I didn't pursue forging, besides, I didn't have a forge or anvil or any of the practical knowledge required to start.
Then I met Steve Bloom. Steve is a retired material Science Engineer. You wouldn't want to see him in a bikini. But you might, very well, want to let him teach you about smiting.
Steve and I were introduced by a chicken hawk of a woman named Lisa. She had just read an article about me in the Gainesville Sun. She called under the pretense of introducing me to a local blacksmith named Steve. She said he would be very interested in what I do. I reciprocated. She then proceeded to hit on me all the way to Archer and then later all the way back home. Tellin me that she had never relay respected her ex husband and that i should come for a swim. I thanked her for introducing me to Steve and haven't seen her since. About a week later I called Steve and asked If I could come help him out with his current projects and he said sure. he asked that I bring some cash for propane and some dark beer for afterward.
Its been three years since then. Not to sound cheesy but it was one of the very few things that felt to me like it was just meant to happen.
The first Damascus he helped me make I turned into HT badges. When I got better at it I used the forge welded steel (1095 steel and pure nickel in my case) for gussets and dropouts like the ones pictured next to my name. Last year I decided to use some of it to hold some tubes together on a bike. I wanted to have the frame done for the Richmond show. I couldn't finish it in time but brought it any way. Maybe it was a mistake to show an unfinished peace (1/2 painted) but it was to unique not to bring.
Rite now I am experimenting with Copper and pure Nickel. So far Iv made some HT badges, Some cable guides and one very rough lug. The real issue for me is how much time it takes to make just the Mok or damasks let alone all the cutting, grinding, sanding, polishing, and soaking in ferric chloride to develop the texture, then, perfect welding because once you have achieved the texture any more sanding will flatten it out, then masking and painting. The white one at the show in richmond took four months start to finish (its purple, and white with silver lettering finished) So price becomes, well you see where Im goin.
Thats the short PG version Wade. Hope it worked man. Let me know if you are interested in technical info (the order of operations is the most important part) for your personal use and Ill give you all the advice I can. Its not that hard it just takes a huge chuck of time.

Cheers,
Lex

[savine]

Nice story, what music was you djing ? I myself was quite a well known dj/producer back in 90´s till 03 and played in the States on tour in 2000, it was music that killed my bike racing but thank God I got back into it.

[lex]

Nice story, what music was you djing ? I myself was quite a well known dj/producer back in 90´s till 03 and played in the States on tour in 2000, it was music that killed my bike racing but thank God I got back into it.

Yeah, I was sponsored by Pro Flex when music yanked me away from racing. In the beginning i spun a lota hip hop then around 95 when drum and bass became available in the US I started collecting and playing that. First solo then with my two friends Will (mc3-dt) and Rich (Rasa) we went by the name C03. The characters were the first letters of our tags at the time. We played on four turn tables and added guitar effect pedals as we got more mad more into it.
It was a text book beginning. We played parties at first then landed a monday night at a place called,, awah, Im straining to remember, I must have been partying a little at the time. Oh yeah, The Side Bar. did that for a little while then were asked to play the roof top at a place called Simons for big parties. I always liked watching the sun come up and dropping New Dawn by DJ Die.
Simon started bringing big name D&B guys over from the UK and Germany like Goldie, Grove Rider, LTJ Bokem (sp?) Panaciea, Ronie size and his crue, Smith and Mighty (the best D&B show I ever witnessed btw, true masters) ecx. and from the U.S. Darra and DB , Disel Boy, Dread and then there was us. We opened for them at simons then would usually travel to play at there local gigs. The traveling part was so titsy. Before we ever landed a gig in gainesville we actually started a night in Keni Alaska at a coffee joint while we were working at the keni movie theater waiting for jobs at the big cannery to open. That still sounds weird to say. it was fun though and the locals dug it.
In 98 we decided we were getting too big for this town and made the decision that ultimately ended our music carriers and moved to San Francisco. Lots of other good stuff came out of it but unfortunately we couldn't afford to live there as fresh new to the city djs. We got gigs but not enough. Eventually we all were hired to work at Fredricksens (a hard wear store on Filmore) and I moved back to G-ville in 20000
Ya know, If you used to race you may know my buddy Harlen Price. He races for Indy Fab. Hell probably kick my ass for dragging him into this but oh well hahah. Harlen was around for the early days when we actually modeled in fashion shows then played the after parties. I think we actually met modeling underwear for Si Cosper. Thats enough of that though. Im sure if I had ended up a politician those are the photos that would have surfaced. Aaand helped propel me to political success. hahaha rite.
It was a blast to travel and we always found a way to come back with empty pockets and big smiles.

Getting to be a resident at Simons and later the Soul House exposed me to tons of great music. What kind of music did you play and produce and what name did you go by?

[Jonathan]

What about you?

Lex-

I'm looking for places to make a splash. I've been involved in the cross scene for 4-5 years so it's natural for me to make some effort there. I think it would be great to have you at a few races this winter since I think if we expand our exposure everyone wins. I also think we have a huge number of enthusiats who need to be educated. In Orlando we have a few really strong shops who sell the big brands and they make up for most of what I see on the road. So yes, I think our state is a challenge, but it's also almost untapped and as a whole we have plenty of people who can afford handmade goods.

Jonathan

[WadePatton]

Good story, and a glimpse into the sort of writing I expect from the Lexster. Thanks for the offer but, No, hell No, hell effing No!* I don't need any distractions from getting my basics down and polished up some. It's great that someone is doing the special extra and you be they. The first time I met you, you had a "hammered" looking lug thing going. IIRC that was labour (yes, the British spelling, Richard says it makes me appear to have proper upbringing, or at least schooling.) intensive as well.

The real question is why do you make it so hard on yourself? Is it a suffering necessitated by the bike-style mindset? Or are you punishing yourself for so many unfinished floating bikini stories?

*well, maybe later when making furniture for a flintlock.

[Dornbox]

Mokume Gane is perhaps better than beer. Ok well not really but it's equal on a different plain. I fell in love with this stuff years ago, knifes, jewlery, etc, but dropouts! Where's the pick and what was your process bringing that idea to fruition? I think I'm piggy backing on Wade Pat's question so don't worry about responding directly.

Love the lines of your bikes!


Best,
Chris

They must have downloaded slowly!

[lex]

I'm looking for places to make a splash. I've been involved in the cross scene for 4-5 years so it's natural for me to make some effort there. I think it would be great to have you at a few races this winter since I think if we expand our exposure everyone wins. I also think we have a huge number of enthusiats who need to be educated. In Orlando we have a few really strong shops who sell the big brands and they make up for most of what I see on the road. So yes, I think our state is a challenge, but it's also almost untapped and as a whole we have plenty of people who can afford handmade goods.

Jonathan

Building what you ride makes alota sense to me too.
Where can I get a look at the race schedule for this winter? Id like to come check it out and share a few beers.
Lex-

[lex]

Good story, and a glimpse into the sort of writing I expect from the Lexster. Thanks for the offer but, No, hell No, hell effing No!* I don't need any distractions from getting my basics down and polished up some. It's great that someone is doing the special extra and you be they. The first time I met you, you had a "hammered" looking lug thing going. IIRC that was labour (yes, the British spelling, Richard says it makes me appear to have proper upbringing, or at least schooling.) intensive as well.

The real question is why do you make it so hard on yourself? Is it a suffering necessitated by the bike-style mindset? Or are you punishing yourself for so many unfinished floating bikini stories?

*well, maybe later when making furniture for a flintlock.

Nice, Labour, I like that. Im a labourour.
Word play aside (for now) Ac or not I don't mind doing the work. In fact I like it.
When I was growing up working crappy jobs I came up with a qualifier for keeping a job. It was "would I be ok with dyeing while I had this job" not necessarily dyeing because of the job but you get the picture. There have only been three qualifiers.
Wrenching at a bike shop was one of those jobs. Working with wood was another and frame building.
Frame building has a much more narrow focus than the other two due to the minimalistic perimeters that not only define what a bike frame is or can be but also what the difference is between a good and just OK frame.
Every one here has seen the beautiful unpainted photos of a perfect shore line. For dudes like us those images can be inspiring. There also where you will find Art that transcends simple craft. My question is "What else can you do ?"
I'm not interested in fashioning some Baroque iconoclast BS. I want to explore what is possible. What no one has tried yet, while, (and this is the important part) not detracting from the Function of this simple beautiful little peace of minimalist engineering. Cuz function trumps form in the bike world and with good reason.
So what's game? Whatever's there. Steel. A medium. I decided to explore steel as a medium. That led me to forging and eventually Mokeme and its that exploration that I relay enjoy. The process is what fascinates and drives me what makes it ok to sweet and bleed and die.
Lex

[lex]

Mokume Gane is perhaps better than beer. Ok well not really but it's equal on a different plain. I fell in love with this stuff years ago, knifes, jewlery, etc, but dropouts! Where's the pick and what was your process bringing that idea to fruition? I think I'm piggy backing on Wade Pat's question so don't worry about responding directly.

Love the lines of your bikes!


Best,
Chris

They must have downloaded slowly!

The functional parts are all Forge welded steel. A mix of 1095 and pure nickel. The Mok wouldn't be strong enough on its own to hold up to the stress of ridding.
Lex

[Jonathan]

Building what you ride makes alota sense to me too.
Where can I get a look at the race schedule for this winter? Id like to come check it out and share a few beers.
Lex-

www.floridacycling.com

I think there is a date in Gainesville.

[lex]

I just took a look at the site. They have a tentative date for the G-ville race. Feb 6th and 7th.
What do you think about doing a boothish thing together?

[Craig Ryan]

Hey Lex, this has been interesting reading, thanks! For someone with no background in forging metal, what you are doing with those drop-outs in the post above? Are you combining two dissimilar metals by folding and smashing on an anvil? Then, are you cutting the drop-outs out yourself from a slab you make, or are you taking it somewhere where it can be handled more easily with water-jet or laser or something? It would seem there's a tremendous amount of labor going into one small part of the bicycle. They look pretty cool.
Craig

[Jonathan]

I just took a look at the site. They have a tentative date for the G-ville race. Feb 6th and 7th.
What do you think about doing a boothish thing together?

Sounds good to me.

[lex]

Hey Lex, this has been interesting reading, thanks! For someone with no background in forging metal, what you are doing with those drop-outs in the post above? Are you combining two dissimilar metals by folding and smashing on an anvil? Then, are you cutting the drop-outs out yourself from a slab you make, or are you taking it somewhere where it can be handled more easily with water-jet or laser or something? It would seem there's a tremendous amount of labor going into one small part of the bicycle. They look pretty cool.
Craig

Hey Craig,
It is alota work. Ill try to make the explanations as short as possible for easiest readings sake but if you have more questions about the details don't be afraid to ask. I like talking about it.

Those dropouts above are the first ones I did. They have 4 different steels along with pure nickel. The more recent ones I'v been making contain only 1095 (high carbon steel) and pure nickel. The nickel provides more visual contrast to the 1095 and also softens the end product enough to keep the material from becoming too brittle. I also do not heat treat the end product like knife makers do. The heat treating process ads to the hardness of the material by trapping the carbon atoms in between the Iron atoms when heated and cooled very quickly by quenching in water or oil. that helps a knife stay sharp for longer but also makes the material much harder and prone to fracturing due to an impact.
By cooling the end product slowly (annealing) I allow more carbon atoms to settle next to the Iron atoms producing a steel that is less hard and more tough and able to give and rebound when impacted.

To make a slab I first clean between 6 and 8 1/8 "x 1" x 6" peaces of 1095 and .028"x1x6" peaces of nickel and alternately stack them. Then I use a mig welder to weld the ends of the peaces together and weld a 2' rod to one end to use as a handle (it falls off after the first few hammerings) then I fire up the forge let it get yellow hot (1800-2000 deg F) and put the peace in, rotating it occasionally. Once the peace is yellow all the way through i remove it and liberally apply borax to the peace and place it back in the forge for a few. Then its time to hammer it together. My friend Steve has an old 1902 50# sliding hammer powered by a 5 horse motor that we use to weld the peaces together. i then cross my fingers and go to work.
The hammer is pretty intimidating to use at first. It can relay hurt your hands if you are holding the slab even a little off of square but once you get the hang of it its sweet. A good hit can feel like a good golf or tennis swing.
Once it is fused then you heat it back up again and start to draw it out to about a foot then mark the center, grind it clean fold it and add more flux before heating and re fusing. Then repeat until you have the # of layers you are going for.

You can manipulate the pattern that the metals make by twisting and drilling and other stuff like that but i relay like the organic patterns that occur when the normal work is done. Thats about as short as I can make it but like I said, If you are interested in more detailed explanation of any aspect just ask and Ill be happy to dig deeper for ya.
Thanks,
Lex

[lex]

Sounds good to me.

Cool. We'll have to hit Satchels while you here.

[Craig Ryan]

Thanks for the explanation Lex. I think going off into forging is pretty cool. I think it's also interesting how you inset your seat stay caps.
Craig

[steve garro]

Damn, Dude - you have a power hammer! bitchin'! thanks for all the time taken to type all your responses. good stuff. just wanted to throw down a "Howdy" - Garro.

[lex]

Thanks for the explanation Lex. I think going off into forging is pretty cool. I think it's also interesting how you inset your seat stay caps.
Craig

No worries Craig, thanks for asking.
About the seat stays, That was the way I started doing it back in the first few months when I didn't relay know otherwise. Now, Iv done it so many times that its just the way it feels comfortable to me.

Lex

[lex]

Damn, Dude - you have a power hammer! bitchin'! thanks for all the time taken to type all your responses. good stuff. just wanted to throw down a "Howdy" - Garro.

Hey Steve,

I wish it was mine man. It belongs to my buddy Steve Bloom. Its so rad to use, though, that Iv actually had dreams about it (nerd). I wonder if my wife is suspicious? Hahaha

This was cool. About three months ago I helped him replace the clutch mechanism (a curved strip of leather 2"x1'). To do it we had to attach a chain winch to the rafters and lift the whole top of the hammer body up about two feet so get to the part (it had been 20 years since he had done it last). What I thought was cool about it was that the main shaft that the clutch is attached to rotated on two big U shaped solid lead surfaces that have to be poured to fit. Steve kept saying "be careful" cuz if you dent the lead on the edges he would have to hire someone to re pour them and apparently there arrant too many dudes who know how to do it any more (did I mention that the top of the hammer weighed several hundred pounds)
Needless to say I was relieved after every thing went smooth and the job only ended up taking a couple of hours. I was just stoked to be able to work on something that was that old.

Cheers,
Lex

[Jonathan]

Cool. We'll have to hit Satchels while you here.

I just realized the Gainesville race is in December, you must have been looking at the road schedule. I'll send you the revised schedule, but I'm all in no matter.

now for a question.........

I am very interested in what you do with fabrication and metals, just not interested in me doing it which begs this question in my mind. How do you view your part of the niche? Do you want to be perceived as someone who does very special things or a builder who does everything?