Soda Pop

Howdy.
Having a blog is kind of pointless if you don't update it regularly. I've been falling off this process lately because of weather, holidays and a lack of ideas.

One dude getting after is is Nick B @ Thrash Bike.

Seems like half the world is without work, but we've been shipping bikes to some far flung places. Israel, Russia, Japan, Germany..thanks folks. And thanks for buying handlebars! Holy smokes..going very quickly. Anyway, these should be here soon. They are apparently in transit. We'll QC them, and send them on their way to stems around the globe.

Anyway, one bummer is that Charlie busted his wrist again. Apparently some of his work didn't go over very well at a campus poetry reading and some sort of punch-up resulted. Well..that's complete lie. His work went over VERY WELL.

So send Chaz some healing vibes. He's a damn good bike rider anyway you slice it. Frighteningly fast on a DH bike, builder and rider of Very Large Trails, and a street rider in the J. Stricker mold.



What else? Looch get's busy. As per usual. I don't know what makes Looch tick, but I recon about 3 oz. of it would get me through this winter.


Abbitt's nearly healed. I can't wait to see him riding again. I have feeling Los Tonics are going to really come into their own next year.


Erik J & Hank built 'em sent this over. If you know what this is..well you are either a man (or woman) of age, taste, or both.


What else? Walter Barcelona photos next.

_

Buried Alive / Lemmy / Holidaze

Howdy. Sorry about my lack of updates. I've been buried with work and snow, and have had some internet problems to boot. I've tried to get back to everyone, but if I haven't be patient! Bars should be shortly, so bar want-ers will be bar have-rs pretty soon. Trying to arrange an economical shipping method hasn't been fun.



So if you follow my blog at all, you are aware of how little danger or adventure I usually experience. This snow created a small opportunity for both. Thanks snow!

On perhaps the complete opposite end of the adventure scale is Lemmy. Pretty good interview.



What else??? I've got lots to post, but right now cleaning my house and getting food lined up for tomorrow is going to have to jump the front of the line.

Hope all is well, and you are spending time with people you care about.

-L

Sail.

What's up?

New website is nearly there. I've being saying that for a year, but when you are Tonic Fab...well, our potatoes are baked, not microwaved.

I know my way around some engineering software and a photo editing program, but I don't know anything about putting together a website.

Anyway, the new site looks good. Very good. It's easy to navigate, and the photos are amazing. Thanks Cory.

What else? Well it's snowing here. Got in a brilliant ride last Saturday before the snow.

Other news? Charlie busted his wrist again. Charlie (Chaz) is an incredibly good bike rider and only getting better.

The good thing about time off your bike is the opportunity to focus on the mental aspect of riding. I know when I was broken I created a version of how I wanted to ride when I got back on a bike, and it's been very useful.

Anyway...the economy sucks, but All Time Highs are selling incredibly well. Over half sold within 2 days. Wow. All I have have to say is Thank You!

Tonic Fab is a small, and delicate operation. Someone throwing down for a handlebar is big deal to us. Sorry if I've taken a little to get back to you, but I've had so many e-mails about these bars, it's taken me a little time to get back to everyone. These bars are excellent, and I think everyone should be very happy with them. They should be shipped this week. We'll QC them and send them out immediately.

What else?

We are running a small end of year sale.

Basically, if you order a frame this month we'll ship it for free.

The only rule is that we have to be able to ship it USPS. If you order NOW and want a Black or Blue Howie or Coated Fall Guy...we can probably get it to you before X-mas.

This is Walter's bike. He's sent me some incredible photos from a trip to Barcelona I'll put up shortly.



What else?

This is probably the best blog entry I've read in a while. Taj talking about his old bikes. I can relate to his love for the Holmes. The Holmes was my last 20". A very good bike indeed.

-L

A fork in the road...

Hey..a quick and crude glimpse of something coming down the road at Tonic Fab. I know carving a heart into a lug is a big deal among indie builders, but how about manually machining your own drop-outs? Anyone else doing that?

Yeah drop-outs. Not the sort you may have spent time with outside of High School, but rather the type that are attached to the bottom of a fork leg to hold a wheel in. That's right, fork. Sorry lovers of rigid MTB forks, this ain't for you.




-L

Breathe Easy

Well, I've got photos of bikes and bars and deals and whatever, but this is really good.

Portland band, The Dandy Warhols, have organized the Breathe Easy project.

I think their words are better than mine in terms of describing this project:

"Called Breathe Easy, the project calls on the talents of artists like the Raveonettes, the Black Angels, J Mascis, Saul Williams, Midnight Movies, and of course The Dandy Warhols, to bring their separate musical perceptions and abilities to finished product. Genre becomes loosely articulated; what unites the pieces is the emotion, the spontaneity that comes from collaboration and inspiration. It’s music that conveys both the individual contribution and the integrity of the whole.

Beginning October 21, 2008, a series of 12 tracks will be sold digitally at specified Breathe Easy sites and embedded stores, and 100% of profits will go to the Three Rivers Land Conservancy.

The Three Rivers Land Conservancy is a non-profit organization that works to conserve and preserve land by the Clackamas, Tualatin, and lower Willamette Rivers against urbanization. The Dandy Warhols and the Three Rivers Land Conservancy believe that conserving land and protecting against errant urbanization creates stronger healthier communities now and for future generations."

Anyway, I really dig the Dandys, Spindrift, Saul Williams, and of course the BLACK ANGELS!!! Who would have guessed they all could have come together, and for a good cause no less?


Here's J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) getting busy with the drummer of the Dandy's and the Black Angels. The opening riff sounds like Danzig's "Am I Demon" but played on bass and then it goes completely sideways and awesome from there.


-L

A man walked into a bar....

Howdy.

Sometimes the unexpected happens. Our bars are done. The Tonic All Time Highs. Kinda hard to call them Tonic Fab because we didn't make them. These are made in Taiwan. Good luck finding a vendor who can produce a butted, swagged and bent piece of aluminum tubing in this country. The Taiwanese didn't invent any of those processes but they pretty much own their orchestration to produce the modern mountain bike handle-bar.

2 years in the making? I've lost track to be honest. So what's the the big deal?

Well these are BIG to begin with. 30" wide. I realize this a bit trendy now, but to be honest I could care less. It's not like we looked around and noticed everyone running wide bars last year and decided to get after it. Tonic Fab is a NW bike company. That's North West.

Anyway, the width is only part of the story. Anyone can import a wide bar (only a handful can actually produce one.)

The quick story is this: I wanted a MTB bar which felt like a Slam Bar. This means more back sweep and less up sweep than the usual MTB standard. The wider your bars are, the more your wrists will enjoy the back sweep. The bar is a little flatter across the top too. Again personal preference, but it all adds up to a very comfy place to get busy.

The rise is pretty standard. 2.25" rise. Basically the equivalent of a standard up sweep 2" MTB bar. Maybe a little taller.

The bar is based on the material(7075) and butting profile from a bar I know to have a very high strength to weight ratio. We didn't set out to re-invent the aluminum handle bar...just apply what we know works to a something we like a LOT better.

Speaking of weight, All Times come in at a safe 350grams.

The cool thing about these bars is that they feel amazing on both my Fall Guy as well as my Heckler. This is a lucky coincidence because after riding these bars, I'd hate to go back to the standard stuff on either bike.

Anyway, these obviously aren't for everyone. For the moment, this is as far into handlebars that I want to go. We can't please everyone, but I do think many people will be pleased with these.

Price: $65 Bar Only
$130 Bar + Thomson X4 Stem.

Color: Anodized Black. Low key graphics.

Sorry I just couldn't justify further delays for colors If you want them painted, we can certainly accommodate you. Just ask.

Available: Will arrive by the end of the month.

If you are in Japan, contact TKC Productions, in Germany, A Town Cycles.

We don't have a million of these, and it's hard to say how quickly these will go. Order now or forever hold your peace.



Excellent week-end. The weather (mostly)was perfect. Wound up getting one last mountain bike ride in before winter becomes a wet and cold reality. Went to an incredible show at a local Elks Club (Run on Sentence) and pulled the headliner out of my car in one piece. Sweet.


There's Chris. Did the Rapha ride last summer and is about to get a kick-ass pump/jump track running in his back yard. Good times ahead.


Bueno! Seriously brilliant conditions. Those are All Time Highs on the Heckler.


Raya dug the ride too. You know where you can save a few $$? Pets. Turns out a piece of an old branch is just as good as an $8 pet store tennis ball.


And now for something completely different.

This has to be the most bizarre car culture I've ever seen. I don't know if I want to be one of the guys doing doughnuts, or or the dude behind the wheel of the car that looks like it's...aimed down? Gotta respect the commitment and utter strangeness of it.




-L

Thrashbike / Misc...

Howdy. Hey, better enjoy all this old information on our website while it lasts..a new one is near at hand!

Speaking of the Internet..It's a great time to be loud and naive!

It's also a great time for music. Anyway, Tonic Fab has a Myspace page. I wasn't sure what Myspace was for, but now I know: finding out about bands. There's a new feature that allows Myspacers to put together 10 song play-lists. Here's ours.


Anyway, we shipped a grip of frames yesterday which felt good. A lot of hang-ups at the finisher again, but we'll get that sorted. If you are German, and want a Tonic, get in touch with this guy: A Town Cycles.

We've got some Howies in black, blue and orange ready to ship. So, if you want a Tonic for Christmas, now is the time. We've got some Fall Guys too..just get in touch! We've also got a strange Fall Guy...I'll put some photos up later.

Next, Thrashbike. Los Tonic and pro-photographer, Nick B keeps this blog up to date. He did a Top 5 with Looch a little bit ago.


I think Windell's might be open next week-end again?


Like attention? A Baby Alpaca is surprisingly effective. Probably better than a Lamborghini, and a lot cheaper.


A couple more photos from Brendan in Vancouver.


Did some trail work last week-end. There used to be a trail here.


Anyway, a new trail is going in to replace what was here and it's looking pretty much awesome.


-L