Maybe you’re the type of person that always hated wearing a uniform at school, or who prefers to discover some unknown band rather than just listen to the Top 40 music charts.
If that’s the case, it’s likely you’ll want a bike that’s a little bit different from the norm as well. And with the following options, and some creative inspiration, you can ensure nobody else will be rocking the same machine or funky colour scheme on your next Sunday morning club ride.
Just keep in mind that you’ll often pay a decent premium for something that hasn’t just rolled off the mass-market production line. – Neil Martin
Orbea Orca, from $3,499
Orbea’s MyO program gives you a wealth of options to custom-build and totally personalise any of their bikes. And when we say wealth we really mean it – with 22 colours, seven different types of wheels, five crankset options, three handlebars, two stems, three cassettes, four seatposts and four saddles available (for example) to transform a basic Orca into your dream ride.
Jay Taylor from Taylor Cycles is the the proud owner of the Orca pictured here which has the SRAM Red eTap group set for a superclean cable-less look to show off the aero advantage of the head tube and down tube profile, and also features right-side brake cable entry which is perfect for Australian left-to-rear braking and which eliminates cable rub.
Curve Belgie Spirit Ti, $8,499
Victoria-based Curve Cycling have made it their company ethos to “strive to give fellow riders new and exciting experiences via our products…”
That will certainly be the case with the awesome all-road Curve Belgie Spirit Ti featuring Ultegra Di2 and Curve Carbon Wheelset. As if the bike was not enough to make you stand out from the crowd, for an extra $1,000 you can enjoy a custom paint job to leave your mates drooling even more with envy.
Trek Project One
Trek’s online customization tool (projectone.trekbikes.com) allows you to spec every detail of their Madone, Domane, Silque or Speed Concept road bikes.
That means up to 37 colours to choose to place on 16 pre-designed schemes, plus a range of drivetrains and dozens and dozens of different components (you can even pick the tone of the decals on the wheelset) – ensuring the only thing limiting you is your own imagination.
PMB
Queensland-based PMB (paintmybike.com.au) have taken their experiences in vehicle smash repair and spray painting industries and translated them into bike customisation.
They offer a design layout service that translates your wildest and wackiest ideas into real life, plus full resprays which start at around $650 for a single tone but can go up to (and even beyond) $2,000 for more complex schemes.
So if you want a picture of a unicorn, or some Aboriginal artwork, or literally anything else you can think of, then PMB can help get it on your bike and make it truly one of a kind.