Product Description
This beyond stunning machine was a show winner at the 2012 NAHBS. It's a custom built Vanilla Speedvagen Cross Machine, in the "Surpise Me!" finish from the workshop of Sacha White. When you order a custom bike from Speedvagen, you can click the "Surprise Me!" box. This gets you a highly tricked out finish that's limited to 15-30 frames a year, a $1500 upgrade. Only 12 bikes with this paint job were ever made! This included genuine gold-plated dropouts and head tube badge, and painted to match Paul brakes. With the upgrade to Surprise Me paint, this bike would have retailed for $5850 for the frame/fork, and $8500 complete!
This bike has less than 200 miles on it, pavement only! (this info was verified with Vanilla Cycles) The original owner used it mostly as a display bike and Sunday nice weather ride, and traded it back to Vanilla for a new model early in 2017. Vanilla sold it to another guy who I acquired it from, who barely got a chance to ride it and had to sell for financial reasons. This is essentially a brand new bike, and you have to look VERY hard to find any signs it's been used.
It's not just a show pony, it's also a thorough bred racing machine that's got some victories under it's belt in the pro circuit. Laura Winberry of Bend, Oregon among others has raced hers with great results (though hers isn't this pretty!). The tubing is a very thin and light custom drawn mix of the best Columbus and True Temper steel offer. The seat stays are flattened and highly shaped, and there's an ENVE carbon seatmast cap instead of a standard seatpost (rare for carbon). The canti brake bosses are made by Paul, and go all the way through the chainstays, for standout braking performance. The dropouts are gold plated over stainless steel throughout, so you're clamping your axles to metal instead of paint. The cable routing is quite unique; it's semi internal. The rear brake cable runs directly through the middle of the seat tube down to the canti cable carrier, using only one cable stop near the head tube (this saves weight and friction within the brake system). The front brake cable enters the front of the stem, runs inside the stem, then out the center of the bottom of the stem to the brake. Complete bike weighs 18 pounds.
I can't describe all the tech features without writing a novel, so check these two links to Speedvagen's site for all the details: Click HERE and HERE
Condition
MINT barely used condition! It has less than 200 pavement miles on it. The ONLY wear to the frame/fork is one tiny mark in the driveside chainstay, small paint chips on the bottom of the fork ends, tiny paint marks on the rear brake arms, the slightest marks on the seatmast cap, and a bit of chipped paint on the stem where the top cap meets. Otherwise, the paint is glossy and perfect with NO scratching, chips, dings, etc. The photos really display the condition well.
Components are largely near mint to mint with no issues. Bike has been professionally tune, zero miles since. Derailleurs and shifters are pristine. Crank has only the slightest bit of heel rub and end scratching, near mint. Chain/chainrings/cassette, bar tape, tires, cables clean and wear free. Wheels are true and free of cosmetic marks (just light brake tract wear)
Frame size (see geometry charts)
*note that the seatmast cap has an adjustment range of 15mm. Vanilla told me there's a Ritchey cap with 25mm of setback that can be modified to fit this, and it's possible you could find a taller cap.
- Effective top tube: 56.7cm
- Seat tube: 53.5mm (compact)
- Minimum seat height (center of crank to top of saddle): 708mm, to center of rails, 681mm
- Maximum seat height: 723mm, center of rails, 666mm
- Head tube: 132.8mm
- Chainstays: 423mm
- seat tube angle: 72.8
- Head tube angle: 72.2
- Trail: 58mm
- Rake: 45mm
- Stack: 528mm
- Reach: 388mm
- Frame number: Vanilla told me they don't use serial numbers on these frames, but the top of the seatpost shaft (under the cap) has "2017JF" enscribed. Vanilla tells me this was done when they acquired the bike and sold it earlier this year.
- Weight as built: 18 pounds
Components
- Wheelset: Hed Belgium rims, DT Swiss 350 hubs (28H)
- Fork: ENVE carbon cross fork
- Headset: Chris King Sotto Voce
- Brakeset: Paul Components Neo-Retro cantilever, custom painted to match
- Crankset: Shimano Ultegra FC-6800 (172.5mm, 46/36t)
- Cassette: Shimano Ultegra CS-6800 (11 speed, 11-28t)
- Derailleurs & STI shifters: Ultegra 6800 11sp
- Seatmast cap: ENVE carbon
- Stem: ENVE Carbon, 110mm
- Saddle: Fizik Antares carbon rail
- Handlebars: PRO PLT
- Dropouts: Vanilla "Berzerker" dropouts, gold plated stainless steel
