Bossi Grit | Dave's Custom Build
A titanium forever bike as adventurous as its colour scheme
The brief
Dave was looking for his titanium holy grail -- one bike to cover all of the road and offroad ground he wanted.
For this level of flexibility, a Bossi Grit was just the ticket.
The bike
As this bike would be used both on-road and off-road, we opted for a 2X setup to ensure that there weren't large jumps between the gears.
To add to the versatility, we also built two wheelsets: a Bossi carbon 700c wheelset with Panaracer Gravel King Slick tyres for speedy road riding, and one custom-built 650b wheelset with Teravail Rutlands for extra volume for gravel use. Having two wheelsets is a huge time- and sanity-saver as you can simply swap your wheels out as required, rather than spending ages changing tyres and sealant. Less time cursing rim beads = more time riding!
Dave had a very particular colour scheme in mind, and wanted purple accents plus tan handlebar tape to match the tan tyre sidewalls. Tan bar tape is surprisingly hard to find, but after much searching we managed to get our hands on the perfect shade in a Salsa Gel Cork tape.
Purple is also a tricky colour to match — nearly every manufacturer has their preferred shade of purple, and it's nowhere near uniform. After a lot of experimenting, we managed to create a consistent theme throughout the build, including a Garbaruk lockring and jockey wheels plus Hope headset spacers and seat post clamp. The purple titanium bolts were a nice touch, and, of course, we custom-matched the hand-painted head tube and chain stay. As you do.
After these hurdles, the rest of the build was a piece of cake.
Dave had taken an SQLab 612 road saddle to try on his other bike while he was waiting for the Bossi, and loved it, so his Grit was given the same model. (This is a common thing with SQLab saddles; once people try them, they usually want them on all of their bikes.)
For a finishing touch, Arundel stainless steel bottle cages not only matched the frame but will also last forever.
Want your own very particular custom titanium bike? Get in touch.
