As one of Britain’s great scions of the handmade bicycle tradition, it must be incredibly satisfying for Chas Roberts to look upon a frame he created over 15 years ago after it’s been restored so lovingly. It would even give most Briton’s a swelling a of pride to see that Union Jack on the top tube, and I daresay there would be more than a few Britons that have had the pleasure of owning a Roberts — given the family’s 50-year-long heritage.
Charlie Roberts began building frames for numerous British marques, including Holdsworth, Claude Butler and Freddie Grubb. Roberts Cycles per se originated in the early 60s and was joined soon after by his teenage son Chas, now the present manager. Chas endured a long apprenticeship, brazing together racks and carriers before finally being allowed to produce a frame that carried the Roberts name.
This Roberts SLX lived in the garden shed for 15 years before being renovated. Originally a shade of ‘Roberts Hot Pink’, the owner applied the current cream hue in 1994 during a summer internship, and has only recently been brought back to a rideable condition. It just proves why a quality, custom frame is such a worthwhile investment. Even after a 15 year hiatus, a hand made frame will still look as timeless as it did back then, and have the capacity to contain so many more memories than an off-the peg, mass produced bike.
Big thanks to Ricardo Wang for sending photos through of his Roberts, I’m sure he’ll be getting more years of pleasure from it now it looks so grand.
