I've just come back from leaerning to weld (braze) and build bikes out of steel. It was brilliant fun and interesting.

The course I went on was the two day balance bike course at the bicycle acadamy, Frome. Check it out here: http://www.thebicycleacademy.org/course ... ng-course/

During the two days you saw, file and braze a frame together which then gets sent away for spraying. You get a little balance bike that you made yourself to give to a future bike packer.



There are longer courses that go much further into design and building concepts. One course sees you building a very sturdy bike that is sent to Africa to be used as a cargo carrier.

Very low student/teacher ratios. If you are lucky enough to get the chance (i.e. got £400 to spare on a holiday) then do it. Other students I chatted to were moving on to designing their own frame and making their own bike. Aspirational suff but completely do-able. For me having a go at brazing steel together and being able to see my little one ride a mini bike is enough to make me smile.

Awww, that's soo cute!
I like brazing, bicycl wise I've only retro fitted a disc mount to a frame, but it looked neat and has worked all it's life.

Thanks for sharing Greenmug - you reckon you'll do a full size bike sometime?

: )
The best kids bike ever, and one you can make yourself.. good work!

That looks great ... I'm sure 'someone' will be made up with it.

I keep meaning to buy myself some tubes and a lug set and break my bottles out. I fancy putting together an old school tourer but other things keep getting in the way

Dave Yates does a five day frame build course with only two students per course. Build your own road or MTB frame ( not sure if you can do a 29er though). £950 per course plus cost of consumables, fully booked until 2014 unless you can get a cancellation.

I recognised you on their instagram feed! I was supposed to be starting the advanced course today, but due to a quiet spell with work, I can't afford it. Though they have been vaguely exciting and let me keep my deposit towards another course next year. So I'll be there at some point next year. Can't wait.

I should maybe have qualified the pic above to say that is the one off the website. My child will start their biking life thinking bikes go round in a slight arc and that welds are supposed to consist of chunks and beutiful iregularity.

If you've seen the instagram you'll see the cake I sent them. Some sticky toffee goodness to thank them for staying until 8PM on the second day to push me through to the finish line. How many training courses would do that?

If it wasn't such a very long way for me I'd take up the opportunity to hire out the benches (£10 an hour I think) to practise the skills. I think with hard work even a numpty like me could create their own steel frame.