Going Strong

US-based frame building veteran Carl Strong reveals his ethos, his process and what might just be his next bike.

- James Defender

Whether it’s robustness, stoicism, possessing courage or just out-muscling an opponent, the conditions of strength seem highly desirable in a bike. No wonder frame builder Carl Strong chose to stick his surname on the down tube. Yet, while the typical attributes of strength are present in a Strong frame, they aren’t the man’s primary motive.

‘My ethos is to be really, really practical,’ says Strong in an avuncular now look here, son tone that manages to be authoritative without being dismissive. ‘Don’t do anything that doesn’t add to performance, and start with the customer. Draw them into the process, educate them if they need educating, be proactive, and collaborate.’

It’s an approach that could be applied to a range of businesses, but it’s one Strong has been honing since he first started building frames out of his nan’s garage in Montana in 1993. Since then he’s ‘probably built around 3,500 frames’ in everything from steel to carbon fibre, but today his main stock in trade is in that most exotic of metals: ‘Titanium. These days I do 90% titanium, and 60-70% of that is all-road. It’s a tough category to qualify, as in a sense it covers everything and nothing. Certainly disc brakes have opened up a lot of possibilities, allowing for wider clearances for tyres that could never fit under a rim calliper.