busyman bicycles

Leather Treatment

2012-01-24T18:05:00.000+11:00

Dan's heavy old beast (not sure what it is) with old school flip flop system and steel everything came in for some Busyman leather treatment. The Australian Bell saddle had seen better days, the leather had become so rigid that it had torn through releasing some of the rivets. So I've done what I could to restore it with moulded leather reinforcement glued underneath, heavy duty stitching around the tears and a new set of copper rivets. We decided to lace the skirt of the saddle in order to restore it to something more like the original shape and it's been well and truly moisturised with Proofide, olive oil and Gilles Berthoud's "Special Grease for Leather Saddles?".

And the bars were treated to some wrapping in 2mm vegetable tanned cow hide, moulded and stitched on. This should now age and patina very gracefully taking on a tan from the sunlight, dirt and oils form everyday use. And a little bit of hidden branding too.....

More Fluoro

2012-01-22T20:39:00.000+11:00

And this fluoro highlighted tape for this Parlee at The Cycling Edge.

Fluoro Kangaroo

2012-01-22T20:34:00.000+11:00

The fluoro orange kangaroo skin was a great find. This SLR Classic Gel Flow features ordered perforations backed with a bright blue. A belated addition for this Parlee at Cycling Edge.

Kumo Cycles' Rolling Clouds

2012-01-17T23:11:00.001+11:00

I just sent this Selle San Marco Rolls recovery off to Keith at Kumo Cycles. The motif is adapted from his head badge cloud with my decorative perforated contribution. The shape of the cloud has worked out really well with the shape of the saddle, overall I'm really pleased with the sharp graphic quality of the outcome. It will be adoring this frame in the near future.

Cars and Saddles II: Joachims Photos

2012-01-13T15:25:00.000+11:00

Busyman underside detail

Bonus matching bill-fold wallet

Golden Honey

2012-01-13T15:08:00.000+11:00

Perforated and backed with white leather

A set of fancy perforated toe straps and matching bar tape for Mark at Ventus Custom Cycles. Custom dyed to match a Brooks honey saddle, hand skived, perforated and stitched. Maybe we'll see this at NHABS 2012.

Look! Busyman Tape!

2012-01-08T19:58:00.000+11:00

Look, today the stars aligned and we finally had a chance to wrap Chris' new bar tape.

Neil Fizik Aliante: Subtle

2012-01-06T20:22:00.000+11:00

Very subtle needle perforations

Happy birthday to Neil

Going on his really nice new Cherubim frame.

Red Backed, Red Stitched

2012-01-05T00:07:00.000+11:00

Custom bar tape for Chris. Just waiting for a convenient time to wrap his bars. Skived edges for smooth wrapping transition, red stitching for detail, perforations for grip with red backing for both detail and extra cushion.

Cars and Saddles

2011-12-30T09:09:00.001+11:00

I just finished this set of saddle and tape for Joachim over in Austin, Texas. I really love the leather on this one, it's a vegetable tanned cow skin and comes complete with scars and all. It has a real authentic leather quality to it and with use it will polish up and deepen in colour. A pleasure working with Joachim, he provided me with a really clear design brief, including some very nice sketches, and left plenty of room for my own ideas. As already seen on the Serotta Forum .

Christmas Bike: Malvern Star

2011-12-27T09:58:00.000+11:00

That's the saddle I restored a couple of weeks ago. It's a Christmas bike so only posted now, post Christmas. A really cute Malvern Star, 24"step through restored by Fly in Horsham for his girlfriend. He repainted the frame, fenders and chain guard, had other parts re-chromed, got some wheels with a lot of spokes and asked me to match the saddle to the leather grips. Looking forward to seeing more of Fly's projects.

Malvern Star: Step Through

2011-12-16T09:58:00.000+11:00

Panelled, quilted and piped; a play on the classic quilted look saddle. The original was vinyl with fake embossed quilting. Now recovered in kid skin with real stitched quilting. An interesting project, quite a different beast to the modern sports saddle and requiring a modified set of techniques. Luckily we managed to find a leather that almost perfectly matches the grips Richard "Fly" sourced online. Red frame with new paint and fenders painted up to match the leather work. Looking forward to viewing the final product.

Malvern Star: 5 Star

2011-12-16T09:21:00.000+11:00

Only one photo worked out worked out for this shoot. Richard is giving a complete overhaul refurbish on a Malvern Star 5 Star. He had the bars nickel plated, polished up the ornate stem and had me apply this perforated leather bar wrap. Black on black with baseball style stitching and graduating perforation size. A new kind of classic.

JVG Guitar Method

2011-12-16T09:15:00.000+11:00

Jonnie von Goes of JVG Radio Method is about to receive this little customised Turbo. Listen to the show on Three Tripple RRR at 2pm on Sundays. Nice one, thanks Jed.

LOVE

2011-12-05T23:39:00.000+11:00

Northside Swift

2011-12-02T12:06:00.000+11:00

Customised Fizik Arione for Malachi at Northside Wheelers. More Northside stuff coming soon. Big thanks to Gayle in NZ.

Baum: Venom: Tundra: Busy Man

2011-12-01T12:24:00.000+11:00

Just received the picture of Rob's new Baum for which I did the saddle recover and bar tape. Really special bike.

Buffalo: Kangaroo: Moser

2011-11-28T19:22:00.000+11:00

A new saddle - tape combo for Andy's Moser refurbishment. Dan at Shifter Bikes is doing the mechanical stuff and Andy asked me to do the leather trims. Being born in the Chinese year of the ox is the reasoning behind the embossed buffalo skull motif. Kangaroo skin on the saddle and cow hide for the tape which is split down the middle and stitched through to a red backing. Hand skived and perforated.

Busyman!

2011-11-26T11:05:00.000+11:00

Some blatant branding for Dick Thikens, aka Ben.

Flite Max: Tubular Titanium

2011-11-21T21:21:00.000+11:00

Basic black recover for Duncan's favourite saddle. Going on his twelve year old Independent Fabrication mountain bike.

Flite: Casino: Cannondale Green

2011-11-21T21:17:00.000+11:00

A gift for Nigel from the folks at Lonely Planet. Auto upholstery grade leather, white with Liquigas apple green underlay behind the perforations.

Gervase: SLR Carbon

2011-11-14T20:26:00.000+11:00

Custom recovered SLR carbon saddle for Tim over in Western Australia for his second hand made wooden bike. I am really fond of this natural kangaroo skin dyed to a deep chocolate brown.

Venom Green Fizik Tundra

2011-11-10T07:30:00.000+11:00

Matching set of saddle and tape for Rob's brand new custom built Baum Corretto. The frame is metallic black with venom green and the saddle is styled to match in black kangaroo with venom green underlay. All the best for your exams Rob.

Happy Anniversary Moose

2011-11-08T23:05:00.000+11:00

The red stripe, inserted to pay homage to the original Fizik Arione, stops short to make way for the moose head motif. Happy anniversary Moose.

Dancing Braille: Double Straps and Leather Fizik

2011-10-14T18:41:00.000+11:00

For Robert in Queensland - some pretty heavy duty double toe straps with pink perforations to match the Fizik Arione recover in black kangaroo with Braille perforations. The pink is something close to 'Rapha' pink and the saddle says something like "f#@k art just dance". A nice little set, must do a black kangaroo saddle for myself one of these days. My latest leather pieces are two kangaroo tails in black, they're more textured and tougher looking than the main part of the hide.

Basic Black: Luxury Kangaroo

2011-09-30T08:41:00.000+10:00

Another basic SMP recover, this time in simple black, hand dyed kangaroo. It's a 'lively' leather with real character which will only get better with use. Dynamic is the model and Parlee Z3 is the bike.

Stitched Swift Swallow

2011-09-30T08:36:00.000+10:00

White SMP Composit recover with a swift swallow motif hand embroidered on the seat. To match Bridie's custom painted frame. The jury is still out on the embroidery application, I expect a finer thread will deliver a more practical outcome.

Special Red Turbo

2011-09-23T08:50:00.002+10:00

Before (how much nicer is Feride's photo, she has the eye)

As I've said before, I really like this worn old red Turbo, there was something special about it, the beauty of the worn leather. Not so functional though. The refurbished saddle has had some minor foam repairs and is now recovered in red kid skin. The owner's name subtly monogrammed around the back of the seat and the logo badges retouched with red enamel. Now off to NSW.

Have Been Busy

2011-09-23T08:05:00.000+10:00

Daffodil Detail

The Companions

2nd Go Prologo

I have been busy doing stuff, the latest piece finished was this SMP Dynamic in black kangaroo for Steve's saddle duo. I thought I'd include a detail shot of my Gregg's daffodil just because it's a new kind of thing for me. But actually the real latest work I've done is a Turbo Special recover on that heavily patina'd saddle I posted recently. That one soon.

Roo Prologo

2011-09-19T21:52:00.000+10:00

Prologo carbon saddle refurbished in what appears to be becoming the new Busyman classic. Two perforated patches on either side of the rear seat section. The leather is kangaroo dyed by me, the perforations are backed with grey calf skin. Very happy with this one. It also has a friend taking the trip back to Adelaide in the same parcel, a SMP stratos recovered in the same black roo leather, photos of that one later.

Double Daffodil

2011-09-17T13:34:00.000+10:00

Also just finished this Turbo Matic recover for Gregg. After some considerable thought on how to embellish the saddle Gregg settled on a Daffodil motif. I'm really happy with the Daffodil design, my first iteration had the flowers placed symmetrically like the one on the left of the saddle. They have a Japanese family crest aesthetic to them. Hand painted roo leather, subtly raised daffodil motif. New take on an old technique.

Fancy Singles for Shifter

2011-09-17T13:28:00.000+10:00

Just finished these fancy single straps for Shifter Dan's new bike. Goes with this and this. Zoe's bike came up beautifully, looking forward to seeing Dan's come to fruition too.

Choc Casino Concor

2011-09-12T17:18:00.000+10:00

On it's way to Newcastle this Chocolate and terracotta Concor Casino recovers a pretty old Concor saddle. The original logo detailing at the back in the form of the US flag. Also a slightly deeper profile that most Concors I've work with. Bag Napa chocolate colour on top and terracotta kangaroo underlay.

Fancy Turbo Patina

2011-09-10T09:19:00.000+10:00

I am really looking forward to the custom restoration of this nice fancy Turbo. Definitely in need of some repair, a shame to lose the old lived in antique leather. I love this saddle. The foam will be repaired, the leather replaced, the badges reinstalled and a subtle personalised detail added.

Manubro 4 Manubri II

2011-09-05T17:36:00.000+10:00

Second batch of Manubro 4 Manubri bar tape is on its way to Richard Sachs in the USA. Lots of red and a few white. This time with black foil printed logo.

Flying Man

2011-09-02T00:18:00.000+10:00

For Richard's restoration in Brisbane.

Sachs Tape MKII

2011-09-02T00:09:00.000+10:00

The next batch of Richard Sachs bar tape is almost complete This time with black logo print.

Vuelo - Technologika

2011-08-20T21:54:00.001+10:00

Vuelo

2011-08-14T08:08:00.000+10:00

A little preview of something in the pipeline

Roma

2011-08-14T08:03:00.001+10:00

Happy Birthday Roma

Gentlemen's Craft

2011-08-05T18:37:00.000+10:00

Mick Peel - Busyman

Xu Duo

Next Door - Shifter Bikes

Lether, wool, paper and steel: My work is about designing through crafting. It is as much about the material and technique as it is about the design.

Sachs: Cat: Scott

2011-08-05T18:33:00.001+10:00

Richard Sachs - Bespoke Catalogue

Siamese Lynx

My new Scott: Ridden once, then exiled to the gallery

Endless Cycling Gallery and Boutique: Fashion Design Mobility and a bunch of other stuff (books, clothes, busyman tape & wallets, stainless cages and Firefly bikes).

Endless Busyman

2011-08-05T18:28:00.000+10:00

A few Busyman leather things for sale at Endless Cycling Gallery and Boutique.

Also Hers:

2011-08-05T18:25:00.000+10:00

The matching bar wrap with a few superfluous needle holes - woops!
Fully customised brake levers too - nice job Dan!

Gedemin Peel

2011-08-05T18:23:00.000+10:00

A couple of detail shots of some illustrations by Gedemin Peel (my brother). Part of the Fashion Design Mobility exhibition on at Endless Cycling Gallery and Boutique until August 13th. Great drawings Ged, well done!

SB Stars

2011-08-05T18:16:00.000+10:00

A Turbo I recovered with the corporate livery for Shifter Bikes. It's taken me a while to get a photo.

His:

2011-08-05T18:14:00.000+10:00

For Shifter Dan: Kangaroo dyed black with red backed perforations.
His and hers for a lovely matching pair of single speed townie bikes.

Hers

2011-08-05T18:11:00.001+10:00

For Shifter Zoe: Natural kangaroo with red backed perforations.

The Bicycle and the Jacket

2011-07-23T08:44:00.001+10:00

the toiles, patterns, drafts, films, photos, drawings and collages.

Here are a few snaps from my exhibition which opened on Thursday evening down at Endless Pedal Gallery and Boutique. My jackets are shown in various unfinished stages for a couple of reasons. It's partly an exercise in knowing when something is finished enough rather than than taking something to an over-finished state. It's also about the process of making and leaving some evidence of the making process and technique in the finished (un-finished) piece.

Busyman Tailored Jacket #3 - Denim

Busyman Tailored Jacket #1 with Scott Reincarnated

Left: My toile. Right: Jiwon's beautiful drafts.

Our dining table and Shifter Bikes next door.

Xu Duo's collages & Tamara's seated trousers

The trousers are for the seated body

The exhibition is part of the State of Design Festival and is open until August 13th, 2011. If anyone wants to place an order for a bespoke tailored bicycle friendly jacket I'm keen if you are.

2011-07-22T08:07:00.000+10:00

On the way out

Swirly matress saddle

Fancy fender flaps

Baseball stitched grips

Faith from Treadlie Magazine commissioned theses leather highlights from me for her new bike and entry in the Treadlie Made to Measure exhibition. Check it out at Design, Made, Trade this weekend.

Fashion Design Mobility: Exhibition

2011-07-13T22:07:00.000+10:00

If you're in Melbourne next Thursday or some time over the next month drop in to the Endless Pedal Cycling Gallery and Boutique to see my Fashion Design Mobility exhibtion. The exhibition is the product of a RMIT undergraduate fashion design studio, which explores, through fashion design, ideas and issues of mobility in an urban setting.

The exhibition will open on July 21st at the Endless Gallery and Boutique at 6a Wilson street South Yarra, 6pm-9pm and run through until August 13th.

Thanks to Gedemin for making the invitation

This project was an opportunity for me to indulge my passion for the hand made, to fine tune my tailoring techniques and to explore the notion of designing through making, all in relation to the bicycle. The students have created work that is both unique and highly refined. My tailored pieces will be exhibited alongside the student works which range from film to illustration and garments

A Fox Called Stitch

2011-07-12T18:42:00.000+10:00

Fox and Mouse

The little fox turbo is a Busyman donation to the prize pool at Pushies Galore in Brisbane this weekend. Kangaroo leather, hand dyed with applique stitched nose and eyes. He's a cute little character. Seen here with mouse.

Bro 4 Bri Revealed

2011-07-12T08:13:00.000+10:00

Check out the washing machine post featuring an article on the bar tape project for richard sachs. This is what the Bro 4 Bri thing is all about. Soon to be available through the sachs website.

Teasers

The branding

The tailored jackets for bicycling I'm working on

Richard Sachs Tape Has Landed

2011-07-10T09:05:00.000+10:00

Wait for the big release!

Some colour variations on the famous Richard Sachs workbench!!!

Ready To Go ATMO

2011-07-04T23:07:00.000+10:00

Finishing touches

48 rolls of various length

And some random extra bits

The bar tape for Richard Sachs is finally finished. One cow's worth is 48 rolls with random extra bits for filling the gaps and seeing what it looks like with a golden logo. ATMO!

California Bear

2011-06-28T18:04:00.002+10:00

The California Bear for Jackie on a Regal(esque) saddle. To adorn Jackie's Marin fixie which has another version of the bear as its head tube badge. The bear is built up with two blended layers that are skived to fade back to single in areas. A fun project thanks to the skill, humor and patience of Simone, my lovely intern.

RS Emboss Session 1

2011-06-25T19:27:00.000+10:00

The first two pieces

Piece by piece through the machine

I keep scorching my fingers!

The sunlight was splendid

Fresh out

The old stuff or the new stuff?

Sachs' Tape

2011-06-25T00:39:00.000+10:00

Prolly's Photo

Emboss Test

I like it, subtle branded. The texture it adds will give a nice feel to the grip I think. Coming soon.

Waiting for the Bread to Cook

2011-06-25T00:29:00.000+10:00

The pattern

Natural kangaroo with pale green/grey perforations

Waiting for my weekly loaf of bread to cook, no new photos of all the busy work I seem to have been doing, what better to do than post some images borrowed from another blog

I finished this saddle and some matching bar tape last week, for myself, for my first carbon framed bike. Salvaged from Matt's misfortune the frame is repaired and repainted, the groupset is Italian and special, and maybe I will be able to keep up with the fast guys now by the time we reach the top of the hill.

Featured on Prolly is Not Probably

2011-06-22T07:34:00.001+10:00

John Watson of Prolly is Not Probably visited my workshop last week and shot some beautiful photos that remind me of the finer details of the space in which I work.

This is one of the saddles that left the studio last week, a matching groupset of saddle, tape and straps for Ben from Skye. Soon to adorn Bens blue Ken Evans. I've been so busy there hasn't been time to photograph my latest work. There are heaps of images in Prolly's blog post including Jackie's California Bear Regal and Richard Sach's bar tape in progress.

Sabi The Dog

2011-06-06T23:19:00.001+10:00

Customise your favourite saddle with a portrait of your favourite dog. Sabi the funny dog in natural kangaroo skin and tan dyed highlights. Tape hand dyed, stitched and perforated to match. On its way to Singapore tonight.

Chestnut Antique

2011-06-03T11:35:00.000+10:00

Selle Italia SLR (brand new) with matching tape for a Baum build. All hand dyed to specification. The saddle is kangaroo, my new favourite, and the tape is matching cow. Tape edges are skived to a feather edge and it's backed with another leather for some cushion and contrast through the perforations. Lots of handwork here with a little help from a machine.

Red Belly Black

2011-05-28T17:53:00.002+10:00

This tape is heading your way Richie. Hope you like it, let me know the required length.

Natural Kangaroo

2011-05-16T22:22:00.000+10:00

Dan's design for Zoe's bike. Could hardly call it the finishing touches though, he's making custom finishing touches to just about every component on the entire bike. Natural kangaroo hide with fine red detailing to match the signature on the Phil Wood hubs.

Vespa Low Pro

2011-04-29T11:46:00.000+10:00

Just finished this low profile scooter saddle for a really old Vespa.

All hand stitched

It's going on this.

Rich's Tape Installed

2011-04-21T07:04:00.000+10:00

Gutter Lunch MDMA?

2011-04-19T20:37:00.001+10:00

Hand embroidered Rolls, no seams. Gutter Lunch remains a mystery. MDMA = Melbourne District Messengers Association. If it get ridden I don't know hoe long the stitrching will last.

Oh yeah, this is my desk at work, my real job. Lists and spreadsheets and knitting needles.....

Honey Walnut SMP

2011-04-16T10:53:00.000+10:00

James' 2nd Busyman covered SMP Saddle. This time the base is a full carbon fibre shell with Inox alloy rails, the leather is kangaroo hand dyed by me to match some honey coloured Brooks leather bar tape. The idea is that the saddle and bar tape simultaneously take on their vintage patina with wear, sweat and leather conditioner. In other words they age gracefully.

A difficult saddle to cover, it required a different template pattern and to make things more interesting the rails are not removable.

Destination: the saddle will complete James' new titanium Baum Corretto custom build.

James' Baum Corretto

A Danish Friend

2011-04-11T19:47:00.000+10:00

On the ground in Copenhagen, the Yellow Kangaroos have arrived at Larry vs Harry. Soon Busyman will officially be their friend.

Danish Kangaroo Casino

2011-03-31T19:43:00.000+11:00

This pair is on its way back to Hans at Larry Vs. Harry in Copenhagen. Hans sent over an old Kashimax Aero and Ritchey Bassano Ti for the busyman treatment. Reworking a couple of my prevoius perforated pattern designs in Kangaroo leather, hand dyed yellow, the saddles will be featured on a couple of L v H cargo bikes.

Motor Spares: Again

2011-03-22T22:38:00.000+11:00

The catalogue page

Received a scan of this catalogue page in my email today. Thanks Curtis for sending it through, I'm still intrigued about the origins of my Motor Spares built Master Sports. One of Curtis' work colleagues found the catalogue in a mate's shed.

My Motor Spares built Master Sports

547 Elizabeth Street

Fleur de Lis: Wilier

2011-03-20T11:22:00.002+11:00

Selle Italia Gel saddle recovered for Matt's new Wilier. The fleur de lis, or Florentine Lily in Italian, motif is adapted from the Wilier logo. The bike has the Italian green, white and red as a small detail near the fork tip as do Matty's new shoes. He's going to be nicely (but subtly) coordinated.

Success Twins

2011-03-17T20:56:00.000+11:00

A nice pair of Selle Success Turbo F1 saddles restored with black leather. A basic recover replacing the cracked old vinyl.

Two Tone Leather & Wood

2011-03-15T15:11:00.000+11:00

This set is for Dick's new two tone hardwood Renovo build. I'd never seen these frames before but there's something kind of enchanting about them. The build will include Ghisallo wooden rims and of course these matching busyman leather finishing touches. The leather was selected to match the timber colours as accurately as possible with the aid of digital photos. The base is a very nice and light braided Fizik Alliante. Happy timber riding Dick.

Split Tape

2011-03-15T13:48:00.000+11:00

Just finished this custom order bar tape for Richard in London. Destined as the finishing detail on his soon to be completed Baum. Custom Aussie frame, custom Aussie bar tape. Black full grain leather tape split through the centre and then double stitched with purple thread and backing.

2011-03-07T07:51:00.000+11:00

Casino Concor MKIV - color matched for re(wind)cycle's latest Merckx project. A more refined and streamlined version of the Casino perforation pattern. Feels like I'm getting there. I love doing the handmade, the process of making yet I'm always striving for perfection, to eliminate any tell tales signs that indicate hand made.

Shiny Red Italian

2011-02-24T08:27:00.001+11:00

Basic re-cover, complex shape,hand stitched, retained badge, simple, organic... For Louise...

Black Cherry Cross

2011-02-17T17:56:00.000+11:00

Some black leather bar tape for Frank's new Parlee z5, it's a slow project build but he's promised to show me the bike when it's done. The plan is to lay the tape over some gel pads for added cushion cumfort. Fancy cross stitch tripple perforated, the fanciest bar tape I've done, and each piece measures in at around 95", that's a lot of individually punched holes. Single layer of bag nappa cow hide, 1 join on each piece but potentially the bar will be fully wrapped before reaching the join.

I ought to do some nice tape for my Hillman.

Frank found me in Bicycle Victoria's Ride On Magazine.

Arena Bikes

2011-02-11T14:23:00.000+11:00

All different but all the same - soon to be revealed at Arena, Melbourne Park.

Thanks Thuy Vy for the amazing photos.

Folksy Tape

2011-01-29T13:40:00.000+11:00

Inspired by my Master Sports/Motor Spares bike, I recently completed this fancy stitched and perforated tape. The leather is quite soft and fairly thin so no need to skive the edges on this one, they will just mould and blen with use. The underside has an added layer through the centre for extra cusion, so at any point there will be three layers of leather once wound onto the bar.

First Bike

2011-01-29T13:34:00.000+11:00

I remodelled the former Shibori Animal bike for my father inlaw. At 60+ it's his first bike and he couldn't be happier. Complete with monogram saddle and thumb shifter for rear derailleur. I hope you like it Baba.

Honey Doubles

2011-01-29T13:22:00.000+11:00

These hand stitched double toe straps were custom made for a De Rosa fixed conversion coming out of Saint Cloud later this week. Copper rivets to match the rails and rivets on the Brooks B17 Special. Hand stitching - sometimes I think I might be a little crazy. It's a little more distinct than machine stitching though.

Customised SMP 209s

2011-01-26T09:17:00.000+11:00

I recently recovered this pair of SMP 209s for Peter at The Cycling Edge. Both were recovered because the customers wanted a sleek saddle without embroidered graphic embellishments.

The 209 has more padding and therefore more dimension which made it quite a challenge to recover. It took a couple of iterations to get the pattern right, to achieve a smooth finish over the saddle shape I added an arched dart hand stitched across the back section. Another pattern for my library.

A Friend Pays a Visit

2011-01-22T21:22:00.000+11:00

Nice sleek basket

New natural kangaroo Rolls

Aged patina on the natural leather grips

Alison dropped by this afternoon to take a few photos for the blog. I finished this bike for her a year ago, originally it was powder coated 'Onga' green. Since then it's been recoloured this subtle misty mint, had a back rack and chrome basket attached and just last week we replaced the old mattress saddle with this kangaroo covered Rolls. She's looking great, aging beautifully and looking more and more refined each time I see her.

Today Alison came with a basket full of offerings: Fresh eggs from her hens and blackberries from the garden.

Kangaroo, Concor, Casino, Banana

2011-01-21T10:43:00.001+11:00

For Stephen in LA, inspired by the recent yellow Regal in kangaroo and and the Casino Concor Crossstitch.

Saint Cloud

2011-01-18T07:49:00.001+11:00

Recently completed this San Marco recover for Nick at Saint Cloud. Complete with corporate Id.

SMP Vegan Leather

2011-01-17T11:11:00.000+11:00

A first for Busyman: This special edition 60th anniversary Selle SMP has a basic recover in 'Lorica', aka Vegan Leather. It handles in a similar way to some leathers but is slightly less supple than I would prefer. Nonetheless I managed to recover this SMP which is the most complex form of saddle I've tackled. So, very happy with the outcome. Any vegan folks out there who might like their saddle recovered just email me.

E for Engin

2011-01-05T07:59:00.000+11:00

White on white perforations

Custom recover for Steve in Connecticut, USA, to sit atop his currently being built custom Engin. The base saddle is a Bassano made in Italy, stamped "Orbea", presumably from his previous bike. A really neat shape and nice to work with.

Emma's Purple 20's

2011-01-02T22:32:00.000+11:00

The Saddle

The artwork - by Emma and me

The fancy stitched and perforated bar tape

Purple powder coat, swapmeet wheels, new long reach brake callipers and a range of other bits. Singles speed.

The Lady

2010-12-23T23:32:00.001+11:00

For Malcolm's saddle, taken as a direct copy from his painting. When finished the saddle will be on his restored first generation Malvern Star mountain bike. Hopefully ready for Christmas tomorrow.

For Jess' Boyf

2010-12-23T23:22:00.001+11:00

I made this custom wallet. Full grain cow on the outside, kid skin inside with hand stitching.

Double Straps - Monogram

2010-12-23T23:15:00.002+11:00

Kangaroo, cloth and cow

With doule keeper fit with single cages

"LMNM"

Though strictly speaking not really a monogram, these kangaroo tri-laminate double toe straps feature the new (surprise) owner's initials - hand embroidered. New to my repertoire of techniques this method allows for finer line work lettering to be applied to the straps. The colour is the natural undyed kangaroo hide which will quickly darken to a light tan when exposed to sunlight. Ben, I hope they are well received.

Casino Arione

2010-12-14T07:46:00.000+11:00

The "Casino" design is back again by popular demand, reconfigured this time to fit the shape of Tim's Fizik Arione.

Aslan for the Pinarello

2010-12-13T07:27:00.000+11:00

A new take on the cross stitch

The classic Turbo embellished with the face of Aslan. A little something for a long time admirer.

Regal Yellow Roo

2010-12-08T22:14:00.000+11:00

It's not easy to find yellow leather in Melbourne. Nor is it easy to find nickel plated rivets in 15 - 16mm diameter. Mark knew the shade of yellow he needed for his recently acquired San Marco Regal, Taubmans call it Retro Gold. Eventually we managed to pull the project together with a really nice Australian twist too. The leather is kangaroo dyed to just the right shade of yellow. The rivet caps are actually the tops of press studs polished to a high shine. I've been wanting to attempts a Regal recover for quite some time now, thanks for the opportunity Mark.

Casino Concor Cross Stitch

2010-11-28T22:49:00.002+11:00

From the back - fully molded

Red & White cross stitch

Casino Concor dot pattern

The bar tape - double stitch / single perforation

James' 2nd Busyman saddle. This time a variation on the "Casino Royale" perforation pattern on an old Concor Super Corsa. The saddle also came to the Craft Hatch Market today and seemed to inspire a few imaginations. Tomorrow it goes in a bag and off to Gloucester, NSW, with custom leather bar tape to match.

Motor Spares

2010-11-28T22:34:00.002+11:00

The Motor Spares / Master Sports bike is finally finished. Latest finishing touches are the Busyman bar tape and saddle. I took it to the Craft Hatch Market today at Bikefest for its initial unveiling. It was liked by many. After the market I took it for a spin around the Yarra Boulevard under the first clear skys we've seen for days, the the 28mm tyres handle the rough surface beautifully.

Farme, fork, bars and stem original from the Kensington gutter

Custom Busyman bar tape - stitched and perforated

Ghisallo wooden rims - hand made in Italy hand laced by
Shifter Bikes distributed by Cycling Edge

That's Mum on the wall keeping an eye on things in the bike room

Bumble bee saddle motif - an excerpt from the Peel coat of arms

Ride: Lynskey

2010-11-14T12:45:00.001+11:00

The Lynskey Helix with Busyman saddle

Busyman bartape

The bar tape was actually $130

Featured in the Ride Magazine issue #50 is a Lynskey Helix Ti bike complete with Busyman Bicycles custom leather bar tape and recovered Arione saddle. The review is a gret plug for me and my work and gives a very positive review of the bar tape in particular. There is unfortunately a bit of an inaccuracy in the 'fine print' where the price of the bar tape is quoted at $250. The actual price was $130 for two pieces of tape that each exceeded 2m in length and were fully mannually perforated using a single hole punch.

So if youy're considering some custom leather bar tape don't let the $250 price tag scare you off, it's not true.

Bleached White

2010-11-11T17:54:00.000+11:00

Skulls, bones, skeletons, ghosts.

A nice new mixte ride for Garth's wife.

Bone Head

2010-11-03T06:49:00.000+11:00

The defined cheek bones are kind of creepy, suggesting a smile.

The skull and cross bones motif seems to be regaining popularity. This time all in white for a ladies bike on a fairly plush Viscount. The saddle's for Megan from Garth.