MANIVELLE N°67 – CLAUDE

I like to take a step back from a project before writing the article. Let some time go by after delivery, re-watch the film through photos taken along the way, take note of difficulties encountered and new ideas opened up. In the end, keep to the same rhythm as for the rest of a bespoked project. Don’t rush into anything, just mature your decisions.

A few days after delivery, Claude e-mailed me again. He was able to write some very nice words on the spot:

As you can imagine, I couldn’t resist taking advantage of today’s beautiful sunshine to do my first laps on my N°67. A short 50-mile outing to get to grips with it on a route I know by heart, to validate our project’s 3 initial criteria: comfort, liveliness and reassurance.
It didn’t take me long to confirm the first point. It’s as if the road were smoother, a real magic carpet! And to top it all off, it’s pure silence, a real pleasure. Liveliness? A real trap. The N°67 is so playful that all he wants to do is push on the pedals like a deaf man… At the risk of ending up completely burnt out. Fortunately, when his legs aren’t up to the task, he knows how to be wiser, and climbing a mountain pass at full throttle remains a pleasure. A true chameleon.
Reassuring, it certainly is. After my big crash with my former bike, I was tense on every downhill. Its handling is easy to read, and cornering is done with serenity. I’m not going to blow up the lap times, but at least I won’t have any more loose necks at the foot of a mountain pass.

In short, it’s a great success. You’ve done wonders in sublimating the intrinsic qualities of steel to masterfully craft a bike that is in fact MY bike. It’s with great pride and pleasure that I’m going to take on new challenges with it, Paris-Roubaix Challenge in mind.

A huge thank you to you and all your team. I’m proud to be the owner of the Manivelle N°67 and I’ll be your best ambassador.

It’s delighting to read feedback like this. I felt extremely comfortable with this project, which was both a comfortable exercise – I knew I could fulfill Claude’s need for geometry – and a challenge with a first shot : designing the complete integration of a mechanical transmission.

I began by working on the most challenging part of the project: the front of the bike, with the stem and head tube routing. The stem represented a big day’s work. I started by working out the 3D details with the assembly of the headtube/headset/fork with me, observing path of complete with hoses and seaths, to observe the angles of bends and trajectories. Then I started making it, leaving myself a certain amount of freedom to adapt the design as the stem took shape. I felt in a state of flow from morning coffee to late evening =)

That’s why the craft of framebuilding, and probably crafmanship more broadly, is so beautiful and difficult. We pose a challenge, then create a bubble of confidence to meet it, relying on our skills, our tools, and the workshop playlist.

Thank you, Claude, for placing your trust in me. I’m delighted that your Manivelle N°67 is now with you, and that you can take on now some magnificent challenges.

Delivered to workshop on 06.02.2026