New Site

Howdy. Like Tonic Fab, but can't stand the decrepit site?


Go Here.

Nathan..doing something amazing at the Arvey.



-L

Cool Shirts!

Falling off the creative blog train has advantages. It opens up a little time which I have failed to use productively. I guess that's called taking break.

Anyway, we are QC-ing the bars and haven't sent any out yet. Should get these out by the end of week. We've got to be sure these are good.

Here's a little outside-the-box promotional thinking.

Charlie Parson (0:52) answers the question "If John McCain used rap music, would he have appealed to younger voters?"
That answer is no.
Poor Charlie probably had to be threatened to do this.

Zane Paul(?) @ 2:40...selling margarine, or just rapping about it, Zane hints he is not one to f-with.

I'm just impressed with those shirts. Great design.



-L

Stranded on a Desert Island.

Howdy..just got these in today.

It's a partial shipment sent via air. Sending them all via a plane was just too expensive, so the rest are on the water. Scheduled to arrive 1.20.09.

Knowing our luck some sailor will end up stranded on an island somewhere with nothing but Tonic All Time Highs to eat. Which is fine..I requested they come wrapped in a lead proof shower curtain so if a lead paint huffing dock worker sneezed on them they'd still pass a CPSC check and be safe for "Consumption."

The good news is our bars could be fashioned into a makeshift snorkel and ground to sharp point to function as spear for fishing. So yeah, someone's going to eat because of these..stranded sailor or maybe even us. Maybe.

Anyway, the bars do look well executed. I mean it's black aluminum handle bar... feature-less and quite possibly the most boring thing you'll bolt to your bike. Seat post clamps have more game than handlebars. If you want something that screams "look at me" this ain't for you. Bike parts are crappy way to draw attention to yourself anyway. If you want to draw attention to yourself via your bike, mount a milk crate to the handle bars, stuff an E.T. doll into it and go blast something.

There is a special centering graphic on the back of the bar and folks will have to find out for themselves what that is.


We'll check them over and send them on their way. Thanks to the folks who stepped up for these. No they aren't sold out. The balance will be here on the 20th.

$65 for the bars.
$130 for the bar and a Thomson X4 Stem.

$15 domestic shipping / $25 International.

I feel a Tonic Winter Jam coming this way.....




-L

Beginnings and Finishes.

Howdy 2009. Heading in the right direction yet?

2008 wasn't a bad year for Tonic Fab. Sold some bikes, developed some new ones, made a few friends and avoided eye contact with our enemies.

We've got a lot to improve on. Obviously our website needs to be changed. The world needs a better sense of who we are and what we do.

What else?

Internally, we are getting some things dialed-in. Or at least less dialed-out.

Anyway...
The most popular Tonic finish last year was the "coated" finish. It was a struggle at times getting it done on time and correctly, but that's how it goes.

So for the new year, here's a new finish we are working on. It's pretty expensive, so if we offer it, it'll be an up-charge. Not sure exactly, but figure around $100. It's a plating process. It picks up every detail on the surface of the material. We are still getting it dialed in..but this is a good first stab, and I figured I'd gauge interest before we proceed. I think someone might like it. Do you?





Here's an overview of this bike. It's one of 2 bent seat stay Fall Guys. Rare animal. One went to Russia. Who knows where this one will end up?



-L

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