Cluttering up the Works.

Greetings good peeps, and welcome to the Works. It is in this small two room studio in Bloomington, Indiana that I create all of the unique things that are featured at Wingnut Bike Works. That includes the stinged things, such as diddly bows and cigar box guitars, that I hand craft utilizing recycled materials and old bicycle parts.

The Works also serves as my artist studio where I enjoy painting when I get the down time to do so. I love the location, as it sits right on "restaurant row" in the central downtown area but space is always an issue in such a small place.

Oh, and did I mention that I also repair and build bicycles at the Works? This is another challenge when it comes to actual work space at the Works.

Then there is the always rotating inventory of stock that is continually coming in from my daily dumpster diving excursions. Thankfully I have Larry (the furry blue guy) and Rosco (the roadkill raccoon) to keep an eye on things for me.

Despite their efforts, however, those two are no better at getting rid of clutter here at the Works than I am as my "office area" will attest to.

Drinking dumpstered coffee and admiring my chaos, I decided that it was time to clear out some of the clutter in the Works and in my life.

Just take a look around and you will see what I mean. For instance, I have an ever growing collection of cheap sunglasses that I have found in the dumpsters over the past year or so.

Any one who knows me at all knows that I am hardly ever caught without a pair of these babies on, but I am starting to think that I might have a few too many pairs right now.

Additional to my own art work that is hanging and stacked all over the place, I also like to keep a few pieces from other local "street artist" on my walls. The above piece was done by a homeless guy known as "Artist Will". It was done on half of a broken door. I love it!

Even the T.R.E.A.M. garden I am working on out in back is getting a little cluttered. So I took another swig of mud and began to get to work on getting rid of all the things that are cluttering up the works. By the time it started to get dark out I had made some real progress.

To celebrate, and to help get rid of some inventory that is taking up space, I decided to throw a big sale in the online Wingnut Bike Works Etsy Shop!

Of course I have fresh clutter as of this morning, but isn't that just life all over? So if you are reading this then help me out by going to visit the online shop and taking some of my awesome clutter off of my hands? Sorry, but Larry and Rosco will not be for sale! My jewelry and art and unique stringed things will be however and I slashed the prices on everything to get it out the door.

Thanks for stopping by! Now go put something fun between your legs and RiDe YeR' BiKe!

HUGE SALE HERE!

Bike Swap or Flop?

After nearly two weeks of constant stress and preparation the day of the Bloomington Bike Swap finally arrived yesterday. It was a cloudy and cold day which started out with an early ride in the rain for me. I was hesitant to drag the Cigar Box Guitars that I had spent so much time working on making out into the rain and dampness. I was also worried about possibly ruining my original art pieces by exposing them to the elements. As the morning progressed and the weather still showed no signs of improving I was tempted to cancel. After a long inner debate, I gathered up some plastic bags and a tarp to begin loading my bike cart with WBW merch.

The weather continued to be grey and wet, but I did make an appearance and set up a small display. The turn out wasn't huge but I did manage to sell a couple of small Diddly-Bows and passed out some business cards while strumming like a lunatic for next few hours. I think it would have been an absolutely awesome Swap if the weather were nicer. The whole thing was pretty good in the end and it made me realize a couple of things. (A.) I have b een selling myself short on the pricing of the stringed things that I have been making and (B.) I really need to acquire some type of small, light weight and easy to set up vendors tent or canopy.

A big thank you goes out to Sharon and Kira for stopping by and lending a hand (and an additional table). I would also like to thank everyone who stopped by the WBW table, especially to those who actually bought my swag.

All and all I think it was a great kick off to what will be a kick ass year for Wingnut Bike Works.
Happy first day of Spring 2016!

Our Pack Pedals!

I just wanted to share this awesome shot that my GF, Kir-uh, took while we were riding on the B-line the other evening. BBig props' go out to the photographer for taking this action pic. with her iPhone while riding. I think that it came out great! This image captures and embodies the essence of our little pack. We don't have any money or fancy cars, we don't live in a mansion and most days we hardly have food, but we have got each other. That is enough to get me through even the darkest of times.

A pack that pedals together, stays together. Thanks for reading and ride strong!

The Bloomington Community Bike Project post open hours, FINALLY.

 After a long period of transitioning during which it seemed that the The Bloomington Community Bike Project hardly ever opened the shop to the public, it seems that they are once again opening the shop door to the community.

Over the past year I have repeatedly reached out to The Bloomington Community Bike Project by donating parts and at one point I designed some flyers for them free of charge as well. I really like the idea that I thought the BCBP supposedly stands for, a volunteer ran bike garage/co-op. Over the past 10 years I have donated bikes and parts and gotten a number of parts from The Bloomington Community Bike Project and up until the past few years it was always a fun and pleasant experience. Recently however that was no longer the case in my experiences in dealing with The Bloomington Community Bike Project. The shop itself became more exclusive and privatized in my opinion. It no longer seemed casual and relaxing but more like a "normal business". Every time I went there to find parts the shop was "closed to the public" and was for "volunteers only", even though their web site stated that the shop would be open during those hours. As my own unique bicycle oriented business grew I was hoping to volunteer my time and skills to something local like The Bloomington Community Bike Project, but when I went to ask about volunteering I was met by a rather dour expression and felt as if my asking about volunteering my time was an inconvenience for the young lady that had shown up late to open the shop and was moping around in the shadows of it's interior. She shoved a bike at me and offered no further advice or assistance. I no longer feel welcomed there by the people who are key holding "volunteers". The Bloomington Community Bike Project used to be a cool spot to hang out with friends and work on or build bikes, now it seems like they focus more on selling bikes to the community. Don't let my shitty experience ruin it for you, go check them out. If the are actually going to open there doors to the community once again.

The Bloomington Community Bike Project

The Bloomington Community Bike Project

Get my original art work for a steal!

Click to find out more!

Due to my current limitations on space I am getting rid of some of my larger pieces dirt cheap in hopes of clearing out room for new works that I am putting out.

Fresh Paint!

I have been throwing together some fresh images and slicing the Mylar again. The focus of my latest stencil designs is "Sexy Girls" and "Bicycles" (of course!). So far I am pretty pleased with the resulting pieces that I have been able to spray out using them. I will be doing a limited run of each stencil and will sign and number each piece and listing them in the W.B.W. shop.

 

I will post here when the first releases are ready and listed.

It's official! Wingnut Bike Works is opened for business on Etsy!

Go check out my unique merch and help keep this old kid from getting "a real job"!

Wingnut Bike Works Etsy Shop!

Critical condition.

Critical Cycles is a new kind of fixie company. They state on their website that:
    "What matters to us most is getting as many people out of cars, off their sofas, away from their desks, and onto a bike. That’s why we offer many sizes, colors, and the best prices anywhere on the web."

Yeah, that pretty much nails it! I agree all the way, and that is one of the reasons that I was so stoked to come into possession of a Critical bike of my own a couple of months ago. I had been wanting a single speed urban ride for a number of months and had started a conversion and bike build in my head when this flat black Beauty showed up in my life. I just couldn't resist keeping this one for my own personal ride. This Critical was just the fixer upper that I needed!

"Fixie style bikes are fun and very simple. They blend the speed and efficiency of a track bike with the flat or upright handlebars of a mountain bike to make the ride a little more comfortable. They are generally the preferred mode It was this simplicity that I crave! I really like the sleek look of a bike with little or no cables and over the years of riding various mountain bikes and road bikes I have come to detest deraileurs and their constantly failing or breaking completely at the worst possible times. I am going to be honest with ya' here. I am just not "hard core" enough at my current age to ride a fixed gear bike on a daily basis. I prefer the casual ride of a single speed, but that is just my preference.

The Critical bike has a distinct fixie style with it's BMX style handlebars. These fixies use a steel frame and fork, and come equipped with Protek cranks, Sunrun freewheel, KMC chain, Well-Go pedals, and Promax brakes.

SPECIFICATIONS

    Frame: Hand-Built Steel Track Frame

    Geometry: Bar Spin Clearance & no Toe Overlap

    Drop Out: Horizontal Drop Outs

    Rims: 30mm Super Deep-V Double Wall Rims

    Hubs: Flip Flop Hub with Single-Speed 16T Freewheel and Fixed-Gear 16T Cog

    Tires: Wanda City Tires 700x23C

    Chain: KMC 1/8”

    Headset: 1 1/8" Threadless

    Stem: Promax Alloy 25.4mm clamp size diameter

    Handlebar: 25.4mm BMX Handlebars

    Grips: Kraton Rubber Track Grips

    Brake: Rear Promax Brake with 22.2mm brake lever clamp diameter

    Bottom Bracket: NECO 68x110 Cartridge Sealed

    Pedals: 9/16” Chrome Well-go Pedal with Leather Strap and Chrome Toe Cage

    Saddle: Critical Cycles Pista Saddle

Not a bad line up, but I immediately discovered that a few upgrades were in order to make this ride truly mine.
The Critical also came with the factory flip-flop rear hub with the option of using the included freewheel if you are not into the true fixed gear thing like me.
So far it all sounds good right? How about when the rubber hits the road?
I have to say that the Critical is one of the more comfortable bikes that I have ridden. It is a fast bike, like you would expect from a road style track bike, but more comfortable and sleek.
This bike is also relatively lightweight and easy to maneuver in tight spots. Good for the concrete jungle! A fast maneuver saved me from being side swiped by an SUV just today!
The gear ratio is a little tall for climbing hills but I never had a problem with standing on the pedals and it cruises along the flats comfortably. Speaking of pedals, the cheap strap pedals that come stock on a Critical are sh*t! The pedals are not completely flat on both sides, and it would be nice to have that for people that are not using the toe clips and straps. I personally don't care for the straps or clips at all, but again that is just my personal preference. Overall, the handling of the bike was quick but still comfortable )other than the pedals)— not wobbly or loose but not too tight.

The frame welds looked clean, and they were representative of a well built bike.
The brake pads were wore out. I will need to replace those with haste!

Other than minor issues this is just the type of minimalist and fun bike I was looking for. I think it will be perfect for my next bike build and for my personal ride as well!

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• Best Road Bikes Under $500
• New Fixation: The Pure Fix Hotel
• Teaching Your Child How to Ride a Bike
• Re-cycling.
• Pedals and paint!
• Pedal Power! (bicycling documentaries)
• B-town Bike Scene!
• This Bike is a Pipe Bomb?

Mail time!

Look what came in the mail today!

I know that receiving 500 business cards from Vistaprint is hardly blog worthy to most people, but I am totally stoked. Seeing the logo in print on business cards is like some kind of affirmation in reality for me! I am so anxious to get to the part that I really want to do, and that is build and work on bikes!

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