Or you could just buy some grips
Tired of riding the same bike as everyone else? Take a look at some of the options there are to really make your bike stand out amongst the crowd.
>>> Are these the 12 coolest paintjobs of all time?
With the news that Trek is offering a new ICON range of premium custom paint jobs for it’s Project One custom bike program we wanted to look at some of the ways you can make your (new) bike that little bit special and unlike any other bike in your scene.
Custom options from bike brands
Trek’s Project One program has a range of stunning paint options including the new ICON colours.
1. Trek Project One
At the top of the tree is Trek. What you might not know about this behemoth of a bike brand is they offer not just one level of customisation but two distinct levels. Called Project One, this allows you to cherry pick colours, add your own decals and completely change components, suspension and accessories. For mountain bikers Trek offers this scheme on three of its key models, Fuel Ex, Top Fuel and Procalibre. It has just launched a new range of paint finishes called the ICON range, a selection of premium level paint jobs that go that one step further to make your bike pop.
You can go pretty wild with the Project One colour choices.
But if you want to take it to the very pinnacle of customisation Trek also offer a Project One Ultimate scheme. Sign up to this and you get to sit down with the designers at Trek’s Wisconsin headquarters to create a one-off paint scheme that can incorporate a full range of components for a truly unique looking machine. Obviously these schemes don’t come for free, whilst you can swap with a range of colours for no extra charge, premium paint finishes like the ICON range will add a few hundred pounds to your bill and take a few weeks to complete. For the Ultimate scheme, well you know that isn’t going to be cheap, but you know that at the end of the process you will be left with a bike that will be as far removed from a standard Trek as it’s possible to be. You can have a play at configuring your own Project One build here.
Pretty much every aspect of the frame finish can be customised using MyO.
2. Orbea MyO
MyO, like Trek’s Project One allows for a greater degree of customisation than simply choosing between a couple of colour options. Looking at an Alma hardtail, Oiz short travel cross country/trail machine or the enduro ready Rallon? Then you can begin cherry picking the finish and componentry thanks to Orbea’s simple MyO online configurator. Want to call your bike Dave? You can add names or messages onto the frame as part of the customisation process too.
I shall call you Dave.
3. Orange
Want an Orange? Then you can cherry pick the frame colour, decal kit and upgrade/change the colour of selected components. Put all that together on Orange’s website and a new, pretty custom machine will be winging its way to you from its Halifax headquarters.
Go to the Propain website and start speccing your dream build.
4. Propain
Like Orange, Propain (and a few others) offer the ability to customise the paint, decal and component options for each of it’s models. Want a Tyee enduro bike with pink decals, olive grips and mis-matched suspension? You can do it.
5. Get a custom paint job on your existing bike
If you aren’t looking at shelling out on a new bike anytime soon but still want to put your stamp all over your ‘steed’ then why not look into getting your frame resprayed to your liking? There are several companies based around the UK that will be happy to indulge your paint job fantasies (for a price). If you just want a basic paint swap and don’t want to spend a fortune you might even be able to get an automotive spray shop to take on the job.
Who can forget Peaty’s farewell Santa Cruz paintjobs? All done by Fat Creations.
6. Fat Creations
Probably the most highly rated bicycle artists (calling these guys bike painters is definitely doing them a disservice) is the team at Fat Creations. Between Ali’s skill with the paint gun and Bex’s incredible eye for the finer details they have produced some stunning examples of bicycle art for some of the biggest names in the sport. There’s a pretty big queue of people waiting to get bikes created but if you want the best you’ll be prepared to wait as well.
This isn’t a decal. All of the images on the #rideforcharlie tribute Scott are hand-layed and painted.
Fat Creations are not the only company specialising in custom bike spraying, check out other talented artists such as Ooey Custom Paint, Kustom Flow, Cole Coatings Workshop, Colour Tech and Argos Cycles.
Get a custom frame built for that proper, one-off mountain bike.
7. Get a completely custom frame made for you
If you want to go down the complete custom route then you’ll need to get a bike frame made exactly to your specifications. There’s plenty of frame builders out there, many of which are based in the UK and can build pretty much any type of frame you want and out of any type of material. Want a unique hardcore hardtail? Look at brands such as BTR, Shand and Curtis. How about a full suspension? Well most of those brands as well as other like Starling produce all types of bouncers. Want something a bit more exotic, look further afield at the likes of brands like Italian company Titici – a company that can produce a full carbon frame to your exact geometry.
8. Buy some coloured grips
Or you could just buy some grips.