About twelve years ago, as I visited Brent Steelman in his small Redwood City shop, I asked him about the TDF race that I was so enamored with at the time. "Hey Brent, are you watching the tour?" I asked. "Why would I want to watch a bunch of dopers?" He replied. "You mean all of them?" I probed. "All the winners and contenders," he confirmed.



I was a bit floored by his bluntness and self-assuredness. But as the years rolled by, I realized Brent was right. He is often right about a lot of things. And boy, does he make beautiful and functional bikes.



So I took my twelve year old son out there in Feb, 2013 and we talked about a variety of subjects. I wanted my son to learn about a man who builds and thinks and builds some more. I asked him why he doesn't attend NAHBs, the US handmade bike show. He said it mostly showcases new builders, hobbyists who are trying to make a go at frame building part-time. He said there was quite a bit of turn over every year and a lot of builders were giving away the farm, charging less than $2000 for a custom frame. "It just doesn't add up if you add up all the hours, expenses and want to make a living. I just want to make as much as my car mechanic," he explains. Brent's frames range from $4300 for a tig-welded frame and $5100 for a lugged one.







He sells mostly lugged road bikes these days as he's really hit his stride producing these works of art. He said his customers understand the quality of his work and appreciate the functionality, durability and repairability of these bikes. They hold their value too in our experience as an 8-year old alloy or carbon road bike is practically worthless today while a Steelman frame of the same age is probably worth more today than when it was purchased. And the owner usually finds as much form and function in an old Steelman bike today.



He made me the best esrpresso of my life as we continued to talk about lugs, Campy, and anything good under the sun.





We talked for hours as he listened to my son's thoughts and opinions as he encouraged him to have a strong sense of mission and purpose. That evening, my son Miguel said, "I learned a lot dad. He's smart and he knows what he wants to do." And one very encouraging development in the past few months after our visit is my son asks a lot of insightful questions about bikes, and about life.



We talked about the many trends today of adventure road bikes, disc brakes and wide rims. He said those were all old concepts except for disc brakes and that he's been extolling their virtues for ages. Wide rims, big tires are good but they're nothing new as he's been using them for decades. And adventure road bikes? That's all he's been building as his road bikes are meant to be ridden everywhere. Disc brakes is not for his steel bikes he says. It ruins the ride and weight as the frame and fork have to be overbuilt just to support the brakes.

Here's some complete bikes.





So if you're curious about a bike that will last you decades and if you want your next bike to be built by a man with the highest level of craftsmanship and integrity, consider Brent Steelman.

https://www.steelmancycles.com/
email: info@steelmancycles.com
telephone: 650/364.3939