The Philly Bike Expo is a showcase of bikes made by master craftsmen from around the world and local, aspiring bike builders.
In its 11th iteration, the Expo showcased bikes, frames, tubeset kits, lug kits, tools, and consumer accessories, as well as seminars on things like how to build your own frame, how bikes are broadening diversity and inclusion efforts for riders and industry pros, how to get fit for a bike, and more.
But the eye-candy and main attractions were all the custom bikes. Check out a few of them below.
Master framebuilder Dario Pegoretti passed away in 2018, but his handiwork was still on display. His son took over the family business and continues to produce amazing-looking custom fabricated and finished steel bikes.
The finishing of the seat cluster junction looks seamless.
Pegoretti was known to execute unusual paint jobs — if a customer specified something they did not want, this was as good as asking Pegoretti to include that element on the finished bike.
To be sure: this bike came from Dario Pegoretti’s shop.
Head badges are an artform in and of themselves.
This decal indicates who, where, and when this specific Pegoretti frame was fabricated.
Some builder signatures were scribbled directly onto the Pegoretti frames.
A bespoke commuter bike, basket and all, sat alongside custom-made racing bikes.
Before the days of CO2 cartridges, one needed a handpump for roadside inflation. This Champan bike features a frame pump that nearly disappears when mounted to the frame.
The lugwork on this Chapman is as artful as it is functional.
The latest Shimano Dura-Ace shifters, c.1990.
Would you keep this commuter bike locked up outside for all to see its amazing lugs and detailed paint, or hide it away for safety?
The Shimano Dura-Ace rear derailleur, SRAM cassette, and KMC chain look unused and shone brightly.
Once upon a time, Campagnolo made adjustable dropouts.
Frontier is a Kansas-based frame fab shop, which opened its doors in 2018. It is owned by frame builder Beth Morford, who trained at the Yamaguchi Frame & Stem Building School, in Rifle, Colorado.
This Frontier bike looks ready for the Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships.
Hydraulic brake levers? Of course!
Chain tension is very, very important.
The seatstays offer plenty of clearance for mud — or even bigger tires — on this Frontier.
The metallic, iridescent red paint contrasts well with the muted, but still shiny silver.
Mel Pinto was a legendary bicycle importer located in Purcellville, Virginia. Pinto died in April 2021, but his love of elegant racing bikes lives on, partly in this all-French component road bike.
Pinto was 97 when he died. While Wayne Bingham (right) took over the business, it will be still recognized for Pinto’s enthusiasm and love for racing bikes.
Alan is an Italian bicycle manufacturer founded in 1972. It still builds road, gravel, and ‘cross bikes in carbon and aluminum.
The Stronglite 53/39 crank turns a chain that passes through Spidel front and rear derailleurs.
Many of the components of the 1970s and 1980s— Campagnolo, Gipemme, Simplex, Spidel, Mafac, and more — all had a very similar, super-shiny appearance.
A generation ago, a five-speed “straight-block” freewheel was not an unusual sight on a road racing bike. The Spidel rear derailleur is mechanically actuated with down tube-mounted Simplex friction shifters.
Before index shifting or hydraulic brakes, piloting a bicycle required art, skill, and maybe even some luck.
The beautiful execution of merging different metals into a single form.
For this tribute bike, Alan even created a head badge especially for Pinto.