BIKE BUILDS

We build unique bikes tailored to your current and future needs.

You’ve been riding for a while now and have developed an understanding of your needs and preferences—what works for you, what doesn’t, what kind of riding you enjoy and don’t. Your experiences on the saddle have led you to a vision of a bike that you can truly call your own—to fit you like it should and take you wherever you want to go. One that rides like a dream!

From choosing the right frame and components to suit your type of riding, to helping you source everything required to make your dream bike a reality, to then building a bike that is a perfect reflection of that vision—custom bike builds are a forte we’ve mastered over time at Pedal in Tandem.

THE BUILD PROCESS

Here’s how we make your dream bike a reality.

WHAT WE BUILD ON

These are lifetime builds that can be morphed in various ways for different applications over the owner’s lifetime. We usually build on Surly, Soma, Araya, Veloci, Velo Orange, Scolarian, Merida or Giant bicycle frames, depending on the application. The types of bikes that we typically build are touring and gravel bikes, and also super-light, barely street-legal race or climbing bikes.

SURAJ's SOMA FOG CUTTER

Suraj came to us with his requirement of a bike that would be versatile enough to handle road racing, sportives and even light touring. He was also clear that he wanted a bike that was not only high on function but would stand out aesthetically too. We built up this dream machine on a Soma Fog Cutter frameset. We went with the tried and tested 105 workhorse for his gruppo and a beautifully finished Suzue wheelset. Nitto, Soma and MKS finisining bits completed a classic bike that would stand the test of time in both form and function. Suraj has since ridden the bike everywhere - be it Pedal in Tandem weekend rides and adventure cycling tours or weekend BBCh amateur races or a couple of TFN’s. Whatever he throws at it, this baby just keeps on rollin’.

JUGGY'S SURLY OGRE

The idea of a custom build for Juggy stemmed from a conversation about an electric scooter he had booked but was yet to receive. The topic quickly veered to his new found love for cycling and about all our adventure cycling tours. By the end of the conversation he had set his mind on getting a bike built and cancelling his electric scooter booking! You go, Juggy! Since then, he has used his bicycle almost every day for everything from morning city rides to errands to weekend explorations and several long tours organized by us. From the outset, it was clear that the Surly Ogre was the canvas on which to paint his masterpiece. With Velocity+Bitex wheels, a Deore XT/SLX gruppo, Surly Moloko bars, a set of Panaracer GravelKing and another set of Comet Hardpack trail tyres, he had a true beast in his hands - a bike that is as much fun shredding the trails as it is crunching miles on mixed-surface roads.

RUPA'S ARAYA MUDDY FOX

Rupa wanted a bicycle that was comfortable, of good build quality and aesthetically pleasing. Her use case was countryside explorations with Pedal in Tandem and a few other solo rides. The Araya MuddyFox frameset fit the bill. With it’s 90’s rigid fork MTB roots, classic looks and built-in versatility, we could easily pull in all the elements to fulfill her needs. This frameset can take rim or disc brakes and if you go the latter route, then you have a choice of 26” or 27.5” wheels. With the tried and tested Shimano Alivio workhorse, a set of Araya wheels, along with Nitto finishing bits, the bike came alive in all the ways Rupa dreamed it would.

MANISH'S SURLY CROSS-CHECK

Manish had visited us a few times to get his hard-tail serviced and was happy with our workmanship. He was also looking to build an all-road touring bike but had no idea that we do custom builds (yes, we haven’t been very good at talking about the things we’re good at!) so he never brought it up. He had already been searching and talking to another bike shop for a couple of months when he decided on a whim to come in and ask us, at the off chance that we could whip up a build for him. That’s when we made a deeper connection, talking about all the builds we had done for customers as well as the in-house builds that we use on our tours. It all clicked in a jiffy and this beautiful Surly Cross-check was conjured. Manish has since done many of his rides on it, including several challenging brevets.

SRINI'S VELO ORANGE PASS HUNTER

Srini was clear from the outset that he wanted a chromoly steel frame for reliability, durability and comfort. He was looking for a build that could serve as an endurance road bike to start with, but versatile enough to be morphed into a gravel or touring bike should the need arise. From our initial scouting, the VO Pass Hunter showed up among a few others. It is famed for being quick off the blocks and responsive while still having that comfortable and plush ride of a well crafted CrMo 4130 frameset. Its well thought out design and ability to ride well both loaded and unloaded, makes it a phenomenal all-road bike. Along with some of the Surlys, Somas and a few others in this category, the VO Pass Hunter is right up there in the current wave of the all-road bike revolution! For Srini, we spec’d the build with a SRAM Force groupset, fulcrum wheels, TRP Spyre brakes and Cinelli finishing bits - for an aesthetically pleasing, high-performance, all-road machine!

DHEERAJ'S ON-ONE DEEDAR

As the lead rider on most of Pedal in Tandem’s adventure cycling tours, I ride a Surly Cross-check that caters to most of my needs - it’s my daily driver, gravel bike and cross-country mile cruncher all rolled into one. What I was missing was a trail bike that would serve me well in the local trails as well as more serious off-road expeditions in the Western Ghats and the Himalayas. In my search, I noticed that On-one’s Deedar frameset had gained a strong local reputation in the UK market for it’s no-nonsense, super slack trail geometry, with internal dropper routing, packaged in some sweet Chromoly goodness. That’s the frame I chose and the parts were meticulously sourced over a period of time to put together the build - Stan’s NoTubes Crest rims, Bitex hubs, Rockshox Sektor fork, Manitou Jack dropper post and the outstanding SRAM NX Eagle groupset. I absolutely love this bike! It has recently served me very well in the challenging trails of the Dandeli region.

SIVA'S SURLY STRAGGLER

Siva had been on a bunch of our adventure cycling tours and seen several other riders’ custom builds before approaching us for one. His requirement was a bike that is quick on the road but could handle a bunch of mud and gravel sections with equal grace. We spec’d out a Surly Straggler gravel build for him. The SRAM X7/X9 MTB groupset gave him the wide range he was seeking while the Surly Truck Stop drop bars and Panaracer Gravel King tyres gave him the control he needed while exploring fire and gravel roads in the countryside. Siva has since ridden this bike on a bunch of our cycling adventures in places like Kodaikanal, Yercaud and the Karnataka coastline, to name a few.

Tell us what you need.

We would like to hear from you.

GET IN TOUCH

WE LOVE WHAT WE DO AND SO DO OUR CUSTOMERS.

What we love most about our passion-led business is engaging with you, dear rider.

Harish Raghavendra

Going to PIT is like visiting friends. They love bikes as much as you do! Great service and complete knowledge of everything about cycles. Dheeraj and Poojya are the type of people you'd want to hang out with even if you weren't there for business. They have well planned weekend rides too. My safe house for my ride. Cheers guys!

Mats Kuruvilla

You realise how passionate the PiT team is about cycling when they don't hard sell their existing inventory but instead, take the time to understand your cycling needs and goals and then recommend specs even if they don't have it in stock or carry it. Even when it came to accessories which we all tend to go overboard with, Dheeraj recommended I cycle around a bit and then decide what I really need. This is me hitting the customer service jackpot! Dheeraj, who is extremely friendly & knowledgeable, is always willing to talk about cycling and it is common to see other customers popping in just for a chat, myself included!!