The heart of a bicycle is the frame,
and at the core of the frame are the materials and construction techniques tempered with the experience and expertise of the builder who brings them all together. This is what K. Bedford Customs is all about, fully custom bicycles built from the finest materials by massively experienced artisans, exclusively for you.
Steel has been the traditional matereial of the high end custom bicycle frame. I cut my teeth handbuilding steel frames over three decades ago. More recently newer materials, like titanium, have come into the picture, but manufacturers of top-line steel bicycle tubing have not been standing still. On the contrary, there have been advancements in steel alloy technology that allow me to produce frames with lower weight and greater durability than would have been imaginable just a few years ago. For each custom steel frame I choose tubing from Reynolds, True Temper and Columbus to meet the ride and performance characteristics requested by the customer.
Joining these steel tubes is accomplished with three possible methods. The first is silver brazing with beautiful investment cast lugs that come in many distinct styles and which can be completely customized with a unique hand cut pattern. The second way is fillet brazed which is done lugless, the tubes being joined with a brass fillet that is blended to make the tubes appear to be flowing into one another. The K. Bedford Premier line of frames are available in either of these construction methods and are all built as one-off, custom models for the specific individual.
The third way is Tig welding – a very accurate, clean welding process that has a simple no frills look. This process is the basis for the K. Bedford Tig Comp line of frames. These are very light frames offered in completely custom competition geometries in both Cyclocross and Road models. These frames are perfectly suited for the serious competitor or weekend warrior/club rider.
New for 2012 I am pleased to announce the addition of the Titanium Ti Comp Series to our full custom lineup. Titanium is a wonderful material for building bikes – very light, strong and corrosion resistant – beautiful buffed, polished or painted. Like our line of Ti Comp Steel frames, Ti Comp frames are joined by the process of Tig Welding. Like every K. Bedford Custom frame, your Ti Comp frame is built exclusively for you, to your measure and to satisfy your particular cycling desires.
When I finish construction of any frame, it’s time for a beautiful finish. Ti and Stainless Steel frames can be buffed or polished for a bright, durable finish. For the finest in painted finishes I work with both a very experienced local painter, Bill Mcdonald, and Bryan Myers of Fresh Frame who is a renowned master painter and an artist in his own right.
Each K. Bedford bicycle frame design is a blank canvas. I can build a bike with any geometry and to suite any taste and function – from high-performance race bikes to elegant Randonee bikes, Mountain, Fixie or Track. I look forward to making your dream bike a reality!