The bike industry is going the way of the automotive industry. Getting to be where it's harder to fix your own if something breaks down. Good to hear of this company striving to keep things simple.

@christopheroliver148

Жыл бұрын

Sadly, I agree with your metaphor. I got off the boat with Campy 10 Ergo and wheels I built hanging off frames Peter Mooney built for me. I don't see anything attractive in the industry or the bike culture obsessed with aero, carbon , Strava and wattmeters. I'm writing this as someone who took out a few race licenses when I was much younger.

@sepg5084

Жыл бұрын

Lol 🤣 Most bicycles sold around the world are less than $1000. If they price themselves out of the market by making all groupsets electronic, they'd lose profits. If they can make bicycles for less than $1000 with electronic shifting, then that would be real innovation. And bikes are not as essential as automobiles, so even i as a cyclist am willing to move on to other sports if cycling becomes too inaccessible for me.

@-IE_it_yourself

Жыл бұрын

i feel bad for the mechanics. it is les about tuning and more assembly. i know the latter is easier but after a while it gets monotonous is nice to play the bike and tune it up.

@ploegdbq

Жыл бұрын

​@Sep G Electronic groupsets might actually be already cheaper to make than mechanical groupsets. Mechanical groupsets (especially indexed groupsets) have a lot of fiddly internal parts that you must develop and manufacture internally, whereas servo motors and wireless circuitry can be outsourced. Electronic costs more now because companies figure they make more money by marketing it as a performance feature. It won't be long before cheap alternatives enter the market, and indexed mechanical will become exotic.

@johnnycab8986

Жыл бұрын

Fixing bikes is easier than ever for 99.9% of bikes being made today. Back in the day you would need waaaaaaaaaaaaay more proprietary tools than today. Even the most complex stuff like electronic is not difficult to learn. Building your own bike frame from scratch or modifying old frames is easier than ever these days.

This was fantastic. The simplicity and mechanical nature of bicycles is part of the romance for me. As the bikes and components have become increasingly complicated, working at a shop has been a difficult paradox for me. It’s great to see there are people out there focusing on keeping bikes simple, rebuilding parts instead of replacing them and emphasizing craftsmanship instead of technology. Cheers to everyone involved in this! 🎉

@julianshepherd2038

Жыл бұрын

Americans hate the present.

@RobMacKendrick

Жыл бұрын

Hell yeah. I dream of going into business with a bike you can work on. A good biking bike that mixes elegant design with durability and rebuildable, cost-effective component choices. Basically, everything the industry has abandoned.

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

GOOD!

@bikee1394

Жыл бұрын

Mechanics make your bikes yours and is not subordinated to an app, company and the electronics you cannot repair yourself.

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

@@bikee1394 No argument here, Fuck the app! and, all this electronics shit being rammed down our thorats by these greedy bastards who want to jerk you around and rip you off!

I have never dealt with SOMA before but this video has just gained them a new future customer. Great company ethos that deserves to be supported.

@dctruckguy

Жыл бұрын

Same here

@thelazyreconnoiter583

Жыл бұрын

I’ve been buying stuff from Soma for about a decade, they’re great.

@muzzarobbo

Жыл бұрын

same!

@johnfowler4820

Жыл бұрын

Me too

@-IE_it_yourself

Жыл бұрын

ya soma and surly were always good for that starting back in the 2000s

Definitely one of your best videos to date, I'm a 72 year old aussie and started riding on two wheels around 1958.Still ride on bicycles but don't get caught up in the hype. MKS , Nitto, Tange are part of my vocabulary.

@Fetherko

Жыл бұрын

Now I know how to pronounce Tange! 😊

@petesmitt

Жыл бұрын

@@Fetherko The Japanese pronunciation of Tange is tongay but the English pronunciation is tanj.

@ClockworksOfGL

Жыл бұрын

MKS, especially. Their cup & cone pedals are a godsend for year round commuting. Everything else gets destroyed in a matter of months. Recently went to a Grease Guard square taper BB. Guess I’m going backwards. 🤷‍♂️

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

@@ClockworksOfGL In reality it's a step forward.

I emailed Soma when I needed help fitting a nitto rack on my bike. Jim himself emailed me and patiently explained how to fit the rack. I was dumbfounded that the president of the company spent the time to help me figure it out.

@yonglingng5640

Жыл бұрын

This is the advantage of smaller companies. I once enquired a few things with Zed Bike Wheels, only to be replied by Lee, the president of the company.

@tinmachine693

Жыл бұрын

That's what you call "Service"

@nthonyholden

Жыл бұрын

Jim is the real deal! I've emailed with him a handful of times over a few different parts questions. Always super attentive and helpful!

I just love the simplicity of the bicycle. Batteries and hydraulic everything… no thanks. Really excited to see the simple utility in this company. The Camry of bikes

@CNYKnifeNut

Жыл бұрын

You're really bad at analogies. They're just riding the trendy wave of selling nostalgia by giving you less and charging you more for it.

@JoshuaTootell

Жыл бұрын

Hydraulics aren't complicated. They are on Camry's...

@xmateinc

4 ай бұрын

@@CNYKnifeNutyea I don’t get the hype for vintage. They’re heavy bikes with bad gear ratios, and bad geometries. Shimano hydraulic brakes are easier than any mechanical brake to keep going.

Mr. Porter's voice is akin to a beautifully crafted cello, with a velvety baritone that flows effortlessly.

Thanks for showing us behind the scenes Russ! And Thanks for the support and all you do Jim/Merry Sales!

This business is a treasure! I want to support them and their business model as best I can.

This video is super super interesting! I'm a CNC machine setter, and cyclist, working for a small UK company with around 60 staff. We do a lot of limited number runs for our customers. I know nothing about business, but I'll show this vid to our current manager. I'm sure he'll enjoy it if nothing else. 😁👍 Best regards, Peter.

@bicyclist2

Жыл бұрын

Lucky you!

To funny I remember Merry Sales back in the days of the 1980’s when specialized was just selling parts out of a van. I worked in the South Bay of San Francisco in Santa Clara California at the “The off Ramp” on the El Camino Real “the real road” I remember the Merry sales rep stopping by our shop once a month. I would order my rare and hard to find at the time things like sew up tires or the odd handle bars or odd extra long crankset. To funny seeing this small distributor still is in business after all these years and still in San Francisco Bay Area amazing. I never realized this business went all the way back to the 1906 earthquake.

My family and I have been involved with the bike biz in NYC for 50+ yrs and I have seen a lot trends come and go. My father’s bike shop in Greenwich village on w. 3rd st in the ‘60’s did biz w/ J&B importers when they were in N.J. and years later I did biz w/ the owners son, Ben jr. (who sadly died while jogging!? ) I had Ben jr make me a run of 144 bcd chainrings in road&track for all of my old bikes bc they were getting harder to find every year. Same with steel toe clips and quill pedals. I had to read his catalog every month to see what was disappearing next! 5sp, 6sp, 7sp freewheels, chains, hubs, tubulars, tools…good to find out there are other retro- heads trying to keep the old tech alive!

Didn't want this discussion to end. Five stars. and a nice nugget at the end, a 13-42 cassette.

You just keep bringing it Russ. What a splendid interview. Jim is so into what he's doing and so verbally adept. I just loved the store room tour and especially the story about those hand painted bells. I had no idea a small item could have such a background story. You would have been a nice biking friend in the early 1970s when we used to just ride and explore by bike.

I worked at a small bike shop in the Bay Area in the 70's and Merry Sales was one of our suppliers. Their sales rep would call on us every week and was always helpful and knowledgeable. It's amazing that Merry is able to to thrive in the current environment and has adjusted their focus away from the unsustainable mainstream. Clearly they have generations of experience and relationships working in their favor. Products like Cazadero tires, simple drivetrain parts and frames that fit lots of different sized riders (including tall ones like me) will keep me coming back for more.

@kenpreston7579

Жыл бұрын

E-Bikes = Evil Bikes

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

@@kenpreston7579 "E-bikes" are, GARBAGE!!

The genius of this business model IS in it's simplicity. Thank you Mr. Porter and associates.

I love the comment, “Do you really want a bike that is only a 1 speed if you didn’t plug it in.” The sit down portion at the end was awesome. Thank you.

Most bikes sold over here in mid western parts of Germany are so called city bikes (like Dutch bicycles), second most are what we call tracking bikes (and you probably would call flat bar hybrids). In a lot of bike ships you only see one or two bikes with a drop bar. Sure they exist and you will find them, if you want them. But it's not the first bike people get or think about. Same for mountain bikes. As we don't have many mountains over here. In the bigger bike shops over here you can find much more cargo bikes than drop bar bikes. Same on the roads. However the common bikes over here are mostly cheap mass produced ones. Bought and used for daily usage. Or comfy stuff for holiday usage. They are usually not hand picked self build glories. For most people they are tools to either get them from A to B, or to provide them a nice recretional experience when they are on vacation, but nothing they actually think about in detail. So while most people over here probably ride bikes the way you promote, they likely would not have a use for this kind of business. Which is a very weird thought. I personally would like to buy from such a company. However I would aim for a local one. But good to see that you also have these in the US. Thank you for your great videos and especiallytgese kind of interviews that open up new worlds for a lot of us.

@HansensUniverseT-A

Жыл бұрын

Here in Norway it's mostly sport bikes, i started salvaging and restoring vintage Norwegian produced bicycles, they're much more comfortable and durable than the new garbage being churned out.

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

@@HansensUniverseT-A No argument here, Old School bicycles is still the best.

@HansensUniverseT-A

Жыл бұрын

@@michaelquinones-lx6ks The modern cycling industry is exactly like the automotive industry.

@michaelquinones-lx6ks

Жыл бұрын

@@HansensUniverseT-A I agree, the modern cycling industry sucks. Ill take old school anyday!

@BirdmanDeuce26

Жыл бұрын

A large part of the issue was the divergence/shift of cycling as a means of transport to a fitness/leisure/sport activity in the United States and Canada (and many other car-dominated countries with car-centred infrastructure) as the car overtook all other forms of personal mobility. Consequently, in the face of the bike industry pivoting towards "sporty" bikes like dedicated aggressive mountain and road race bikes to the exclusion of the simple and practical commuter bike, riding and desiring steel-frame "traditional" bikes has to be an active, conscious choice in the market. Compounding this further is that even if these kinds of bikes were far more readily available in the market, bike infrastructure (and all non-car focused infrastructure, for that matter) is so poor/limited in North America that customers would struggle to meaningfully incorporate them into their lives without a lot of difficulty. You can have some of the best products in the world, but it will matter very little if the people who buy them can't use them enough to make it worth their while.

We have nothing like this in Finland. Thank you very much, knew nothing about this company, 🙏

Right On!!! I've been riding bikes since I was 5. In place of a car whenever possible. I'm 70 now and have absolutely zero interest in racing. The beauty, simplicity, and sheer joy of riding a bike requires no hype.

Very entertaining for this guy here in his late 50's that's been into bikes his whole life. Thank you Russ and Merry Sales!

Extremely interesting and informative. Happy to see someone still focuses on making durable sustainable high quality bike parts instead of planned obsolescence and throw away product culture. Thanks to both of you!

@catherineseiferth259

Жыл бұрын

they are a great source for jis bottom brackets!

@theMusicWellOrg

Жыл бұрын

Sustainable! Excellent perspective.

I'm so glad there are people like you Russ and Jim in this industry!

Back in 1978 when I got out of the Army I ran into a good friend that rode a bike everywhere, he didn't own a car. He was riding a SOMA sort of an English Racer style bike and it was a beautiful black. You could tell the quality was in it. I loved riding bikes my whole childhood so I went to the bike shop to get a bike. I ended up with a ROSS because I couldn't afford the SOMA but that bike lasted me 22 years before I bought another bike. My last bike purchase was two years ago and I went to Carl Strong to have him build that frame but I did get sucked into the electronics and hydraulics. It's a great bike with only the fork being made of carbon. I am still considering buying one more bike but I want it to be old school with mechanical shifting and rim brakes. And I like the look of the old school headsets and quil stems. I think maybe a SOMA, even if I have to buy the frame used is a dream that needs to be fulfilled.

So stoked to see the channel blowing up, Russ. This is the kind of content that will never get old. Catching a glimpse into the inner workings of these beautiful little corners of the bicycle industry is an absolute treat; we thank you for it. Also, can't freaking wait to see what you and the Soma team get up to in the future. Long live the front derailleur!

We need more bikes as transportation content. Blue Heron Bikes Berkeley focuses on this segment. Please stop by if you want a custom built SOMA.

I like what is being said in this episode. Being simple and functional are fundamentals of cycling. More power to you guys.

Merry seems integral to connecting so many bicycle manufacturers to their customers and to each other. Until this interview I was unaware of the Rivendell/Merry connection and how important it is to both companies. This interview also drives home the need for retaining the mechanical bicycle. You're doing great work Russ -- very proud to be one of your Patreon supporters.

This place is like an absolute treasure trove of cool stuff! Love the Nitto section!

Wow, love this video for so many reasons. _Thank you both_ for everything you're doing to promote *_simple_* bicycles and bicycle products.

Great video! Cycling is supposed to be a simple thing. Let’s keep it that way👍

The old suntour stuff was fantastic. I started building bikes out of old parts about 20 years ago using my local bike coop as a source. This isnt a plug for the new project you have but it kind of is. Those ratcheting downtube and bar end shifters are the absolute king of components. Indestructible....very good utility......and just engineered perfection in how they operate. I cant wait to see how yours turns out. I am sure hoping it will be mountable either as a bar end or downtube (on a clamp or existing frame boss). I'll be ordering for sure.

"Fundamental need for something that works with everything." No wonder he appears to get along so well with Russ.

I hadn't known about the long and distinguished history of Merry Sales, so thanks for filling us in. Their products and customer service are excellent. Last November I ordered a Nitto dirt drop stem, but didn't realize I had ordered the wrong size until several months later, well after the 30-day deadline for returns. In an email I asked for forgiveness, and they gave me a refund after sending instructions on how to make the return. So cool that you're collaborating on worthwhile projects.

What a cool interview! It's so awesome to see folks like Jim and Grant who are so dedicated to the same ethos of cycling that many folks here are-something functional, simple, and with user-repairability. So many ways to have fun on two wheels. Thanks, Russ and Jim, for having this chat!

Hadn't heard of this gentleman or his company until this video but really a neat guy. Thanks for sharing and I appreciate how open he was. I enjoy the inside baseball stuff

This was such a cool video to watch because it draws so many parallels to a hiking equipment company I work for in Australia. Jim is so similar to my companies owner too.

I love that the were able to rebuild their Japanese business relationships after the war.

Totally fascinating. I had no idea Merry Sales went back 100+ years. The vide and ethos is fantastic.

Wow, this was great Russ. What a fascinating interview and peak inside an aspect of the industry we've taken for granted for decades. Would love to learn more!

This is soooo cool Russ. Thank you for having us along.

This is so awesome. As someone who still uses a quill stem it's good to know they are still out there 😮.

Fascinating interview. So glad you guys exist.

I'm so pleased to have seen your interview with this interesting and far sighted gentleman. This is encouraging for the future of cycling. More power to you

Interesting - Before I began watching these videos I didn't give a thought to planned obsolescence for bicycles. Good there's a company like Merry Sales around to help us keep our older bikes going. So Earth Tones are in fashion. My bike has embedded earth from many places. Good that it's in fashion.

This video makes me feel like I’ve found my home among bike enthusiasts. It touches on so many things I love about bikes and connects me to both the history and the contemporary practitioners. Thanks so much for creating content like this! 🙏🏻💚

Simply wonderful! Words cannot express my appreciation for this interview. Thanks so much! Would love to see more interviews with industry leaders in this nitch.

wow this was a fantastic video that really satisfied a lot of curiosities for me. very impressed with Jim and have gained a deeper respect for what Merry Sales does. thanks Russ!

i like what he said , thats why i am so in love with my simple steel touring bike, yea its heavy and clunky , but i can go almost everywhere with it , its comfortable , i ferry both my kids on it a the same time , and its sturdy.

One of your best interviews. Great video!!

Thank you both for everything you do for this community!

Great video- thankful that people are still appreciative of cyclings simplicity.

This was a fascinating interview thank you so much for it.

I am a massive Soma fan and have a Fog Cutter. These guys give so much consideration to their frame design, aesthetic etc. Their prices are great too! Keep up the good work

TIL I've been pronouncing Nitto, Dia Compe, and Tange wrong lol.

Such a wonderful video and interview! Thank you Russ for all your hard work in keeping the fires of simplicity in the bike world alive.

Cool to see the face behind a company I’ve been sympatico with for a long time. More respect than ever for Merry Sales. Thanks for this.

"That's my sister. We get along great!" - That means they just had a fight

@OWLyMULLET

3 ай бұрын

too funny

The most interesting and eye opening interview you’ve done to date. Well done Russ. 👏

This is so timely. I've been thinking about a new bike build and saw a stellar Soma on my morning walk. Then came home and saw this video. Had no idea about Merry Sales! Amazing insight into the part of the bike industry I resonate with. Thanks!

WHY am I crying watching this? Maybe it’s the Soma Surly and Waterford in the garage, when you chase the dragon it goes, surly Soma merry sales nitto Japan

Super video. Thanks to a few guys around like you two that keep the simple, functional bike around.

Insanely important conversation. Enlightening.

I miss slow Sunday’s working at a bike shop thumbing through the Merry, QBP, Trek, and JnB catalogues. They were the Bible’s of the shop.

What an excellent interview. I learned a ton. Thank you!

Great story I ride a soma saga triple. Love the simplicity. Commute to work almost every day. 40 miles round trip. Full fenders racks love the bike and live your channel. Thanks

Cool behind the scenes, and I appreciate the niche this company occupies

I am so psyched that I found your channel years ago. So many products and ideas that never would have occurred to me, as well as companies like this to get the products from. I can tell you as someone who is a long long time cyclist, but short short time mechanic (I am using that word very loosely) your channel is a big time help to me.

Thanks for getting this interview together. Great to hear about the logistics of getting a simple part like the friction shifter available to the interested customer.

Absolutely one of your best informative videos. I’ve recently built up my own “gravel type” bike using a 20teens Novara Safari and I am so glad that I’ve hung onto 30 years worth of components. I like the term “insular”. Right about now though I’m regretting giving away my Soma Smoothie frame that I had crashed and also my 1997 Novara Team MTN frame built from Prestige tubing. When you flipped that frame’s tubes with your fingernail it sounded like Swarovski crystal.

My plan was to just sample a few bits of this… And I listened and liked this video all the way to the end.

My road bike is a Soma Smoothie I built for myself in 2009, second bike I built and I haven't changed a thing on it, besides swapping in a carbon seatpost. Rides like a dream, I've done several double centuries on it.

Somafab is the site I look at weekly. I've always needed something from them with all of my builds. This year, I was blessed to build up a Soma Percadero, a wide tire rim brake performance bike. Of course Russ come up with interesting results and comments with his experimentations.

Just when you think it can't get more interesting, you produce another landmark special. Primo.

I have a 2013 Soma Juice machine mtb and I love it. It was really nice to see and learn the history of Merry Sales, SOMA and of course everything else that this distributor does. Great video!

Great Video. I am a Soma rider and have alot of there components on my bike. So good to see the people behind the brand. Thanks Russ!

Thank you for this amazing interview. Great job Russ.

What a fascinating insight into what it takes to produce the parts for party pace bikes. Thanks for the great video!

I moved the drivetrain from a racy specialized that I should have never bought over to a blue Soma es frame several years ago and have been so happy with it. I use it on everything from glorious rides on mountain roads to getting groceries. So cool to hear the backstory to the company and Merry Sales.

Soma was a bike brand that I had never heard of before. After waiting over two years for a custom frame, I was informed that the builder was going out of business. With a refund in hand, I searched for a replacement frame. Soma had a model called the Speedster, with polished lugs and Tange Prestige tubing. Beautiful garnet paint job. After riding the bike for about a year, I knew that something was amiss. I needed a lugged stem. I found a picture of one on the internet, but couldn't find anyone who was selling it. Out of desire and desperation, I emailed the Merry company asking if they would add the stem to their inventory and after a short time, they did. My Speedster gets complements on sponsored rides all the time. On one particular occasion, I found a couple admiring my bike as I was returning to it from a mid ride sag stop. The man was a friend that I had lost touch with many years ago and with his new wife. Needless to say, it was a great day for a ride and a happy reunion for both of us. Thanks Soma,

This is a great video. Thank you so much for making the effort to produce such an informative presentation.

I’m from Singapore and I thoroughly enjoyed this awesome video! So much history! I learnt so much. Thank you for creating and sharing this video. Much appreciated! Thank you Sir. Namaste.

Great information! Love Merry Sales contribution to the industry. A die hard Soma fan here. Valhallen, Double Cross and New Albion Drake sitting in my garage. Thanks for posting this Russ.

Thanks for the great video with many interesting historical nuggets. I started buying too many parts (and a privateer frame) from merry sales/soma since hearing about them on your channel a few years ago. Thanks for the patreon discount! Saved me some $

Excellent interview! So fun to meet Jim and get the Merry Sales tour. When I built my Some Grand Randonneur a few years ago I built it up with parts from somafab, rivbike and reneherse. It is thanks to people like you, Russ and Jim, that this was possible.

Home run Russ! For me this is easily the most interesting of your interviews. Common sense in the bicycle business, who knew?

Awesome video! I’ve had 2 SOMAs and love both. I’ve had great email interactions with Jim and others on even super simple requests and questions. I guess I’m not suprised that they are working with you on your super secret projects! Great company.

Great interview, Russ! A really cool San Francisco company. I enjoyed this video a lot! He was so open about his business and history.

Excellent video! Thanks, Russ and Laura...and Jim! Very, very interesting.

Ordered my SOMA Jawbone frame and fork this Spring. They are one of the few manufacturers that build frames for big riders. Sadly I've had the frame sitting in a box for more than a month because the custom wheelset I ordered (for big riders naturally) was backordered until last week. Just got word they are being anodized and the wheels will be built this coming week, I'm psyched to get riding!

I remember going to Merry Sales regularly in the late 1970's to pick up Sekai 10 and 12 speeds for our East Bay shop. Sekai's were nice lugged steel framed bikes, with a numbering system for the models, from the entry level Sekai 400 to the top of the line Sekai 4000. (There were other models, but we carried the 400 > 4000.)

The thing I love most about the bay area are shops like this. Thank you Path Less Pedaled for making us aware of places like this. I just wanted to share that I switched to using a bike as my main transportation over 7 years ago. I'm no racer either. I've saved so much money and my health is so much better. Like anything you do there are pros and cons but if you can give up the car and ride a bike I think you will be pleasantly surprised the freedom it gives you.

Fantastic interview and tour! I didn’t know a lot of this history and context. The video was very enlightening! Congrats on a wonderful production! 🎉❤

I had an issue with my Merry Sales order - a few years ago, and Jim answered the phone then stayed on the line to help me sort things out. Their products are great so is their customer service. ALSO, very interesting history: SOMA, Surly and Joe Breeze! THANKS RUSS!

Cool video, thanks! My current bicycle is a SOMA Fog Cutter. Good to see the history behind the brand.

Thanks for doing this! A great and detailing of how to sensibly move forward without all the unnecessary stuff!

Thanks Russ, for the video. We need companies like this to keep existing. A company for me to look at for parts as my bikes have last generation drivetrains/builds or older on my CX bikes.

This was excellent, thanks for posting!

interesting tour. all the best for these kind of companies!

Great coverage, as usual... so awesome!