October 2026
Three weeks have passed again since the last edition. The colorful leaves are quite evenly distributed, half still hanging in the trees and half of them already on the ground.
After many weeks of no sales and general silence, we got a good bunch of orders in and business is looking up again. We have 17 frames left of the first batch of 88 pieces!
We got a couple of positive responses to the Dynamo Routing Guide (link), which is nice. I was also expecting some commentary on how things are easier this way or that way, but haven’t had any so far. Feel free to share your thoughts on it via email or in the comment section.
We get to do quite a lot of wheel builds, frame preps and dynamo routings nowadays. Doing the internal routings has become kind of fun actually now that the process is quite honed and straightforward. But a solid half or more of working hours is still sitting at a computer, which isn’t great.
A note we have made on instagram posts is that the perfectly clear side shot of a bicycle is always the most liked. If the perspective is a bit slanted, or with any other artistic touch, the amount of likes is reduced by one third at least. We don’t care that much, but it’s just interesting to see. Whether it's the algorithm preferring this style or actual peoples behaviour it's hard to say.
We still have issues with the stems. We now have one piece with strengthening brass fillets done at Fort, but the look is now different and we still need to decide whether to safety test it or not and what the final product is going to be like. If we sell these as “prototype” stems, it doesnt make much sense to test them as the next batch will be different and will need to be tested again.
Here's the new version in its raw form and the old one in the back:
Let’s see what happens with them. Still no idea when they would be for sale.
For the art supplement, here's a selection of haiku from Bashō (1644-1694). I recently found the collection ‘The narrow road to the deep north and other travel sketches’ in the little take-a-book library just outside Tunk HQ so it seems fitting to present them here.
To keep a tunk-y theme, the ones particularly attractive for those familiar with bicycle touring were chosen.
~
In the sun
Of a cold winter day,
My shadow had frozen stiff
On horseback
~
Higher than the lark
I climbed into the air
Taking breath
At the summit of a pass
~
This grassy hermitage
Hardly any more
Than five feet square,
I would gladly quit
But for the rain
~
Bitten by fleas and lice,
I slept in a bed,
A horse urinating all the time
Close to my pillow
~
I picked my way
Through a mountain road,
And I was greeted
By a smiling violet.
~~
Translated into English by Nobuyuki Yuasa
Until next Times
Tunk Crew
