All of my bikes, with one exception, are named after variants on dodgy business: Crook, Villain, Rapscallion, Hood, and now Carpetbagger. No good reason. Just shadiness.

For the graphics on this build, I took inspiration from what is probably the most famous carpetbagger in the political cartoon lexicon, one Carl Schurz. You can read all about that here, if you like. My choice was less driven by personal politics than simply that he was caricatured with a wicked chinbeard and buggy eyes. Sold!

This was my lineart, hand-drawn loosely based on that cartoon, but with a few of my own flourishes and kept as a black silhouette.

I’m not proficient enough with Illustrator to do this kind of vector work myself, so i vectorized my drawing thusly. From here, my man Glue Junkie, who does all of the Team Lope and Third Rail Design Lab vinyl and sticker work, prepared my headbadge in exterior grade UV vinyl. Big head went on the head tube and smaller version covered a defect in the seat tube.

Beautifully executed, perfectly aligned with my mental image, and quite an eye-catcher on the road!

Follow this topic in the R3 Forum here!

Related posts:

1. Bike Build Process Log- Carpetbagger: Dinged and Spindled
2. Bike Build Process Log- Carpetbagger: Reclamation
3. Bike Build Process Log- Carpetbagger: Inspiration

Good news, Friends of Lope!
The official Team Lope Tyre Clubbe mechanic’s shirts are in, and they look great!

As you can see from our winsome model here, you’ve got the two-tone TLTC logo on one pocket, and your rider name on the other. Hand embroidered, with love, and soon to be found in a local bike boutique in the heart of hipsterism. But don’t let that deter you. If you want one, shoot me a message ( thom at third rail design lab dot com ) and let me know the quantity, size and rider names desired and we’ll hook you up. The price is a cool $35 bucks plus shipping, but I can guarantee, they are SWEET AS.

Once we have our Merch Store up, you will be able to order from the site direct, as well as enjoy some of our other wares.

Detail on the embroidery!

Follow this topic in the R3 Forum here!

Related posts:

1. Team Lope Commemorative Aids Lifecycle Shirts Available
2. Team Lope Bike Grrls – LongLeg
3. Team Lope Bike Grrls – I Love the 70s

I’ve been intending to start this series for over a year now, but to be honest, I’ve found the bike drawing component pretty daunting. Despite riding, taking apart, fixing, putting back together, admiring, lusting after or just thinking about bikes every day, I find them tough to draw. Tough to get the proportions right, as well as the perspective.

The idea behind this series was to draw fro real life, though frankly, it’s really drawing from a mental image. But it’s based on people I see on my rides. Granted, there’s some artistic license, both in making up for details unremembered or for design continuity. Anyway, this girl rode past me in Mill Valley. I was struck by how she seemed genuinely happy, grinning at me as she passed, wearing jeans, a flannel shirt, a puffy vest, flip flops, and a bowl helmet with a star on it. Most noticeably, it was the freckles and braided red hair. Cute!
Spotted on Miller at Camino Alto in Mill Valley!

Forgive the drawing errors in her fixed gear. At least I have a working drivetrain…

You will be able to find all the Third Rail Design Lab Illustrated Bike Girls in a gallery on the illustration site soon. Once there’s more than one.

High rez version can be found here.

Follow this topic in the R3 Forum here!

Related posts:

1. TRDL Illustration – Team Lope Bike Girl No. 2: Red
2. Team lope Artist Spotlight: 718c’s Krys
3. Team Lope Bike Grrls – MarieClaire Girl