Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

Sizemore 2011 Oregon Manifest Bike

Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest

The Oregon Manifest is an annual competition that brings together some of America’s top framebuilders in a quest to design and build the ultimate utility bike. The Manifest believes that the Revolution won’t come on the saddle of a race bike or specialty bike, but in the rack or panniers of a utility bike. This is Sizemore Bicycle’s entry, a robust machine that reveals much about Taylor’s refined sense of design.

Clad in a finish I saw on many of the bikes in Amsterdam when I was there, Taylor is anticipating the effect the elements will have on a true utility bike. A custom fillet-brazed stem clasps the front rack, the deck of which is crafted from salvaged bamboo. When you’re done stacking the rack with groceries or a slab of beer, the front stand neatly folds out of the way. The fork-mounted lamp is powered by a Shimano dynamo hub that’s been laced to the classically-profiled H+Son TB14 rims. In accordance with the weathered aesthetic, Taylor hand-painted his own branding on the down tube. A Kensington cable lock has been integrated into the frame, which will provide sufficient security for ducking into the grocer or bottle-o.

It’s a fitting addition to Taylor’s portfolio, you can see more on the Sizemore website and Flickr.

Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest
Sizemore Bicycles 2011 Oregon Manifest