[Closed] Is it possible to build a MTB entirely from British made manufacturers?

No

can't do spokes.

bencooper could make some spokes, he has a machine, see the "what was the last thing you made thread"

Be awesome if you could though

Remember Rover? They were British designed and made.

It would have to be single speed too I reckon

Drivetrain a bit of an issue unless you want to go SS (who makes chains in the UK? Reynold?)

Reynolds tubing frame/fork by any number of decent UK frame makers
Hope hubs, BB, headset, brakes, seat clamp, stem
Middleburn cranks and chainrings
Brooks saddle
USE seatpost, lights
Wouldn't fit gears anyway, so only need a rear cog, locally available.
Chain - do Renolds still make bike chains?
Bars - Renthal

So tyres?

Orange for the frame and hope for almost everything else.
Bars - Renthal

But its gears and tyres where I think you will have the problem. Do Dunlop still make bike tyres?

do it ! while they still exist !

Jesus. This thread. Again.

bencooper could make some spokes, he has a machine, see the "what was the last thing you made thread"

At the moment I can only cut and thread - I can't do the heads and elbows. So I don't know if that would still count 😉

It's the little bits that'll be tricky. Nipples. Inner tubes. Chains. Rims. It'd have to be singlespeed too.

h1jjy - Member

Orange for the frame and hope for almost everything else.
Bars - Renthal

Would look well on top of an A4 S-Line TDI.

Google says you can get Dunlop tyres and inner tubes.
For gears, how about a Sturmey-Archer geared hub?
Google has found spokes too at Central Wheel Components
Could be a goer

theonlywayisup
For gears, how about a Sturmey-Archer geared hub?

[url= http://www.sturmey-archer.com/en/contact ]Sturmey Archer[/url]

Sturmey Archer went foreign years ago

theonlywayisup - Member
Google has found spokes too at Central Wheel Components

They'll be for a motorbike

No, and I'd not really want to. It's a silly flag waving exercise.

Renthal don't make the bars in the UK...
And orange don't make their hardtails here and a FS would mean you need a shock which wouldn't be UK made.

bencooper - Member
bencooper could make some spokes, he has a machine, see the "what was the last thing you made thread"
At the moment I can only cut and thread - I can't do the heads and elbows....

Could just joggle instead of having a head. It's just as good.

Hope dont make the bearings in there stuff.

Would make a good article for a magazine, anyone know of any that would take it on? Should get guy Martin to do it.

Why the hell eould you want a made in Britain bike? It would be expensive and rubbush. Tyres you wont get. Dunlop are now ownwd by americans and they make most tyres in europe now, whst about the base materials, really for a properly nationalist bike the steel or aluminium must be home grown indigenous metal, none of this imported muck and what about the air in the tyres if you could get some? There's far to many Johnny foreigners over here using our english air to breath so the air in your tyres may have non British exhalations in it. You'd be able to tell as that would be the first bit to escape when you have a puncture as all foreign air is lazy and is only over here for the benefits.

Jesus. This thread. Again.

This.

It's an interesting thought experiment for some and pointless for others. If it's pointless or repetitive to you read another thread.
I think it would be hard actually to make a one country bike whichever nation you chose, with almost every manufacturer globally sourcing, even shimano I think make stuff in Taiwan.
Depending on your reasoning, patriotism, environmental etc, it might be possible to minimise the miles the parts have travelled, do SRAM still make gearing in Europe? I reckon a European bike is doable but not a 1 nation, assuming you are not making anything as a one off.

Wooden frame, but then how could you be sure the water the tree received only came from clouds that were formed over the Uk?

do SRAM still make gearing in Europe?

Did they ever?

If you actually want stuff made in the UK, rather than UK designed it's even harder. As said, Hope don't make their bearings here.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/totally-british-bike

Wooden frame, but then how could you be sure the water the tree received only came from clouds that were formed over the Uk?

[url= http://bamboobicycleclub.org ]These hipsters could help.[/url]
I'd reckon you could source UK grown Bamboo, possibly even hemp string or similar twine, but epoxy? Maybe.

Then there's drivetrain, could you go old school and track down a chain from an ancient Raleigh on similar? Or does it have to be a chain drive? Could you source UK made belt or shaft drive parts?

How about tyres? Who makes bicycle tyres in the UK anymore?

Are Renthal UK made? If not what other options might there be?

I reckon it could be done actually but most of the parts would have to be either bespoke or old/used and the sticking points won't be the major components it's always the sundries, tyres/tubes, cables, bearings...

Then you need to ask the question, why bother? What point would you be trying to make?

Interesting idea, I don't think you could make something that is actually worth riding without making a few compromises.

Frame: Curtis AM7
Forks: Non Uk (Euro - Marzocchi?)
Wheels: Burgtec hubs, are Hope rims uk made?
Bars/Stem: Burgtec Ride Wider & enduro stem
Pedals: Burgtec
Headset: Hope
Grips: Renthal softs
Brakes: Hope
Seat post: Burgtec carbon or non UK dropper
Cranks: Hope/Middeburn
Gearing: Works or Hope N/W ring with Shimano rear mech/block

I guess everything else would have to be non Uk but at least it'd be worth riding.

jamesfts - Member
Interesting idea, I don't think you could make something that is actually worth riding without making a few compromises.

There never was a point in history where there was a completely British bike except maybe Kirkpatrick MacMillan's one, or the first ordinaries.

Going back a few years - just take tyres which made the modern bicycle viable. Where did the rubber come from? Where did the cotton for the tyre carcass come from? Not from here.

Or the steel - where did the trace materials in the steel come from? Not always here.

But the point I think is as British a bike as possible, ie your money is employing as many UK residents as possible (and they may not have come from here either - sorry Nigel).

Supporting our own sounds like a worthy idea to me.

are Hope rims uk made?

No.

Frame: Curtis AM7

Apart from China / Malaysia what one country could provide all the bits you need?

I thought about trying this a few years ago and gave up almost immediately, deciding that in the extremely unlikely event that I managed it I would probably only want to ride the thing once.

I think you'd get a greater percentage of British bike if you build a vintage bike from NOS spares,

I suspect the last 100% British bike probably came out of somewhere like the Raleigh factory some time in the 80s or possibly even the 70s, and it won't have been a very good bike either. I'd be interested to hear otherwise though.

Putting aside all the "this is a pointless thread" grumbling, I think it is actually a bit sad from a historical perspective. The 'safety bicycle', what you'd recognise as a proper bike, rather than a penny-farthing or hobbyhorse, was invented here. Most of the basic technology and standards behind bicycles originated in Britain, from the spoked wheel to chain pitch, from bottom brackets to ball-bearing sizes. The reason we have weird imperial numbers underlying bike fittings and fastenings today is because the technology was pioneered by UK manufacturing. And it's all gone, we basically threw it away. All we have left is a handful of very niche artisan framebuilders, and a few oddities like Brompton, Brooks and Pashley.

Compare that to France or Italy, which have certainly declined relative to the Far East, but still have companies like Mavic and Campagnolo who can hold their own on the cutting edge of bike tech. Bit of a shame, I think.

[url= http://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/poll-results-does-it-help-sell-a-bike-if-it-is-made-in-britain/017314 ]Who would buy a British bike?[/url]

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If it were possible .. Why buy British ?

Because voting with one's wallet is literally the only authentic vote we have in this bipartisan globalist climate ...

Pretty sad if folk can't see any worth in supporting homegrown industry - I love imported goods as much as the next person - But who can disagree that an economy with less manufacturing and more service industry is a healthy one ?

Zero growth post industrial economics is heartbreaking ..