Fairweather “Dodo”

It is my birthday today, and I’m very excited to announce this little project on this day. It will for sure be one of the memorable birthdays in my life.

It’s been 4 month since my last post about this project, but I’m happy to announce that the Fairweather Dodo frames, the frames I designed, are now in stock.

I built a few sample bikes, so let’s get into them.

The Dodo’s design is based from traditional rando frame, which are my favorite type of bikes, but with some twists to make the bike feel more comfortable as an Everyday Bike.

Following are the frame sizes and the height range.

– XS 155cm/5ft to 160cm/5’3
– S 160cm/5’3 to 165cm/5’4
– M 168cm/5’5 to 172cm/5’6
– L 172cm/5’6 to 178cm/5’8

The top tube is slightly long. The frame was designed to put sweep bars, but if you put 60-80mm stems, you should be able to run drop bars like a traditional randonneuring bike. By making the top tube longer, the wheel base becomes long, making the bike more comfy to ride.

We build a lot of bikes with front baskets. I’ve had some builds that the steering felt awkward due to the weight of the front rack and basket, so I focused on making a bike that doesn’t feel awkward when steering with a front rack + basket set up and I think I did a pretty good job. I want people to put baskets or front panniers if they ever get this bike.

For the rear, I decided not to put rear rack eyelets and instead just put fender eyelets. More eyelets can give the bike more versatility, but I wanted the bike to look as simple as possible and wanted to be a bike thats “not too much”. If you want to pack a lot of stuff and go on an adventure, I would recommend a different bike.

Kickstands are always great to have for Everyday Bikes, so I of course put a kickstand mount on the frame.

Here are some lovely details of the Dodo frame.
I used *PACENTI* paris-brest fork crow, my favorite fork crown. These special fork crowns are often seen on handmade frames such as my Frances or like Konno’s Ocean Air Cycles and also frames like the *CRUST BIKES* single speed lightning bolt and the *BLACK MOUNTAIN CYCLES* monstercross V6.

Most of the bikes that I think are cool had these fork crowns, so I had to use them for the bike I designed. These fork crowns are difficult to get and less affordable, so I’m pretty sure it’ll be a special feature for only the first batch of the frames.

I am a rim brake lover. I especially love cantilever brakes, so I put a rear brake hanger on the frame. I personally think that this detail is also often seen on handmade bicycles.

This was inspired by the “Hand Job” detail from Ibis frames.

The frames are made in Taiwan,  but I made sure to put cool small details on the seat stays, rear ends, etc. I consider bikes are tools, and I personally love having cool looking tools, since it’s something I use everyday. I’m sure there are people who can relate out there.

I just wanted some lovely details on Taiwan made frames. This wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for Rew10works a Japanese frame builder that we are close with. They gave me advice for the geometry, details and even the ride quality and I think the final product looks beautiful.

The name Dodo comes from a bird that couldn’t fly which went extinct due to humans killing them for consumption or capturing them for livestock. I thought the name fit the bike that is not fast and lower to the ground.

Another thing is that I thought the way that the bike industry is killing traditional parts like rim brakes and quick release hubs were similar to how they made Dodos extinct.

Bike parts will continue to evolve due to the industry’s selfish reasons, but traditional parts are generally cheaper and I wanted to give the old parts a chance to shine again, instead of rotting in the parts bin.

The Dodo is not a bike to ride on a big ride or to race, but I think it’s enough to ride daily.

The design of the head tube and top tube logos were done by our graphic designer Chaco. I think she nailed it.

One frame color.（at least for this batch）
The color is inspired by the feathers of Dodo birds, so I named it “Feather Grey”.

↑This is a build for myself.

I’d be very happy if anyone chooses the frames for their first bike or if anybody who has ridden many bikes for many years.

The frames are not rare and are not flashy, but I think they’ll be a great daily bike for you. It would be a dream of mine for someone to choose between a Surly and a Dodo in the future.

I would like to thank everyone at Blue Lug and you for letting this happen. I hope this frame will make people’s life more convenient. The frames are now available in all stores. The specs are on our online store.

This may sound weird from a bike shop guy, but these days, anyone can call a cab with a phone, ride rental bikes/scooters and use public transportation to get around, so I don’t think it’s necessary to buy your own bike. However, I do think riding your own bike  you love, that you move with your own legs can give a special joy to life. For me, riding bikes had lead me to lovely friends and having a beautiful family. I would love for the Dodos to be in the hands of people who have some good expectations on riding a bicycle.

Man, that was a long explanation. I feel old now.

Thank you for reading til the end.

Digital