Dave Moulton's Blog

1.) 1983 Custom

Owned by the original owner, Chuck Schmidt. This frame was built in the Masi shop in San Marcos, CA before I moved into my own frame shop later that year.

(CLick on a picture to enlarge, click again to return here.)

2.) Chuck's custom

Much of a custom frame is hand made, like this rear brake bridge. The barrel shaped center was made in a machine shop in England; I brought a number of these with me when I came to the US. The seat stay re-enforcers are hand cut from a peice of tubing. 

3.) 1983 Custom Touring

Owned by the original owner David Ball. This paint job was the one that inspired the paint on the Fuso that would follow later.

4.) FIrst generation Fuso

Intoduced in 1984, the Fuso was originally offered in four different color schemes. This charcoal grey and red was my favorite and was the most popular.

5.) His and hers matching custom frames

These two touring frames owned by the original owners Lynn and Steve Kesling. The dropped top tube ladies frame is particularly rare as I only built three of these. The matching paint is original.

6.) Fuso Lux

Many people lamented the short lived John Howard frame that I only built for a year in 1983. To fill this need I introduced the Fuso Lux in 1986. It sported a chrome chainstay and dropout faces.

7.) My Recherche

This is my personal bike. Built in 1985,I bought the frame in 2007 it was New Old Stock, and had never been built up.The Recherche was a private label frame built for San Diego bike store owners Kent and Kyle Radford.  

8.) An early Fuso Lux

Like owners of the custom frames, many are original owners. (They will not part with them.) This one is owned by Gary Blessing. Decals on the Lux were burried under 8 clear coats and sanded smooth, before the final clear coat.

9.) First Generation Fuso

Another shot of the bike in picture #4. The deep red was achieved by spraying a candy-apple red over a bright orange base coat.

10.) 2nd Lux Model

Later Fuso Lux frames had engraving on the seatstay caps, and rear brake bridge. This bike is owned by Dave Shultz.

11.) Fuso Lux

The decals on the early Lux model were gold lettering and collored chevrons in keeping with the theme on the original Fuso. 

12.) 753 Lux

A Fuso Lux built in Reynolds 753 tubing. The bike is pictured against a backdrop of Mt. Humphreys, the highest peat in Arizona. The bike is owned by Steve Strine.

13.) Recherche

A Recherche owned by Loren Youde. The Recherche was built from 1985 to 1987, there were only a little over 200 built.

14.) Custom Touring

Another shot of the frame show in picture #3. Custom frames built after January 1982 had an engraved bottom bracket shell.

15.) 1985 Custom

A really nice custom with lots of chrome, owned by Russel Rollins.

16.) 1981 Custom

Another original owner, Ken Meyers has this one. Built in 1981 in my spare time, as I was working full time for Masi back then. This one was built in Reynolds 531 tubing.

17.) Recherch

Another shot of the Recherche shown in picture #13. Originally the Recherche was only offed in red, later it was offered in Blue, Yellow, Black and White. The red is the same bright candy-apple red used on the eary Fuso frames.

18.) Custom Touring Frame

This is the frame of the bike shown in pictures 3 and 14. It was on display at the Interbike Trade Show.

19.) 1981 Custom

Another early one from the Masi shop in San Marcos. No engraving on the early frames. This one has clamp-on gear levers, and non recessed brake bolts. (Really old school.)

20.) Chuck's Custom

Another nice picture of Chuck Schmidt's bike featured in the first 2 pictures here.

21.) 1985 Custom

The rear end of the frame shown in picture #15.

22.) My Recherche

Another shot of my personal bike. Shown here is the fork crown that was unique to this model. The Recherche was essentially the same frame as the Fuso. Same specs and geometry, Little features like this crown made it different

23.) The man at work

This is me tack brazing a frame in the jig.

24.) 1985 Custom

Russel Rollins white and chrome custom shown earlier. The head tube logo said Worcester, England. This is where I had my original frameshop. The decal on the seat tube clarified that the frame was built in California.

25.) Custom Touring

The chrome head lugs on the custom touring frame featured earlier. All frames here have the original paint. In the case of custom frames it was done by me.

26.) John Howard

The John Howard frame had seat stay caps engraved with John's logo..

27.) Track Tandem

I built the track tandem for Roy Swinnerton and Trevor Gadd, two English sprinters who rode this machine in the 1998 World Championships.

28.) The man and his bike

Not my personal bike, much too large for me. Posing outside my frameshop just outside Worcester, England. Around 1976.

29.) Fuso Max

This bike was built for a photo shoot and trade show. I was built is Columbus MAX oversize tubing. The handlebar stem was hand made by me, one of a kind. I have no idea where this bike is now.

30.) Ladies Frame

Custom ladies touring frame shown earlier. Note the rear brake cable routing through the seat tube.

31.) 1985 Custom

The white and chrome custom frame shown earlier.

32.) Fuso Max

Head tube shot of the Fus Max frame just shown. Note the hand made steel stem and the fork crown detail.

33.) 1983 Custom Criterium

Original owner Gary Yama sent me these pictures. The criterium frame had heavy duty seat stays, and a track fork crown.

34.) 1985 Custom

Note the hand shaped arrowhead treatment where the brake cable goes through the top tube.

35.) Terry Shaw's Custom

This is the personal bike of Terry Shaw, owner of Shaw's Cycles in Santa Clara, just South of San Francisco.

36.) The man, the beard, and a bike

Taken a month or so before I left for the United States in 1979.

37.) Fuso Max

Another shot of the Fuso Max showpiece. Note the seatstay treatment. The seatstays were oval in shape making it difficult fit at the seat lug.

38.) 753 Fuso Lux

The stripped down frame of the bike featured in picture # 12

39.) Custom Crit

Another shot of Gary Yama's custom criterium bike. A  good shot of my four "m" logo, and engraved track fork crown. The fork blades were modified to round-oval-round.

40.) Ladies Touring

A pretty shot of a pretty little bike.

41.) 1985 Custom

Russel Rollins white and chrome custom.

42.) Custom Touring

A close up shot of the seat treatment of the custom touring frame shown earlier. Also shown is my signature that is on all custom frames.

43.) 1985 Custom

I only built 216 custom frames in California between 1981 and 1993. These all chrome frames with just the main tubes painted are even rarer. If I have shown a lot of pictures of these it is because the are the most striking.  

44.) The man with a torch

Another shot of me with the brazing torch. Note my little hammer at the ready to close any gaps in the lugs. After all framebuilding is but refined blacksmithing. 

45.) Fuso Max

Fuso Max, built in Columbus Max Tubeset. Built around 1993 as my business was winding down. This bike was featured in an article titled, "Transition from the Old to the New."

46.) Fuso Max

Owned by Phill Strong of San Luis Obispo, California. This photo is one of my favorites. The rustic wire fence and the grass are a stark contrast to the smooth lines if the bike.

47.) Fuso Max

The Columbus Max Tubeset came with special investment cast lugs and fork crown. Integral fitting, this crown gave a pleasing one-piece finished look