round 1
dan e boy
sf, 29 jul 2002
heskiltuna
(sweden, 1900s)
j. wis
(france, 1920s?)
peugeot
(france, 1960s)
rudge
(uk, 1930s)
this is a pet project of mine, thats just gotten started... ive been collecting silhouettes of vintage chainwheels for this for a little bit, and im always looking for more, so if you come across this page, and have a chainwheel design you think i might like, feel free to send it my way. im mainly interested in designs that dont have letters in them - which eliminates things like BSA, chater-lea, dayton, or any number of others... ive never wanted to get a companys name or logo tattooed on me, but distinctive chainwheel designs are far enough separated from getting, say, the campy winged wheel, which, cool a design as it is, i would never get tattooed...
the idea is a full sleeve, as a travelogue - whenever im visiting somewhere, or run into someone i want to get tattooed by (and have the $$$!), ill add another chainwheel or two (or 3, or...) to my arm. right now im working on filling up the upper arm, and once thats done, ill start working down towards my wrist from my elbow. as work happens, ill add the artists name, location and date, and move the chainwheel image up to the top of the page, as well as adding a blurb about the session. most of the designs will be 2" in diameter, though therell probably be a few 3" chainwheels, and certainly some 1" ones as space fills up but gaps get left behind.
i havent yet decided what the plan is once my arm is entirely filled with as many black chainwheel silhouettes as it can hold without overlap. granted, this is a good ways off, but... i have considered a background of some kind - perhaps a second layer of silhouettes, in deep red, "underneath" the black ones... or i may come up with something else, or even just leave it as is. a lot will depend on how the sleeve looks once its all filled, and theres no more room for further chainwheels in black - i doubt ill be able to decide what to do next until that point.
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round 1 dan e boy sf, 29 jul 2002 |
heskiltuna (sweden, 1900s) |
j. wis (france, 1920s?) |
peugeot (france, 1960s) |
rudge (uk, 1930s) |
i figured id start things off with danny - hes a friend of mine, and did my early-celtic/bretagne armband (left arm) some time back - hes a sometime sf bike messenger, and i knew understood the concept and appreciated it. hes working at sacred tattoo in oakland now, but at the time this was done in a back room in the mission. a good start to things, i think.
round 2 oskar, skin deep reykjavik, 26 aug 2002 |
magistroni? (italy, 1950s) |
mimosa (france, 1900s) |
schwinn sweetheart (us, 1940s) |
simplex (france, 1950s) |
did a semi-walk-in at skin deep with these - had only 2 days left of my week in iceland, and it looked like i had enough money to get ink, but where? i hadnt really done any research (my bad!) but found skin deep and it rubbed me the right way - helgi, im pretty sure, has been inking longer than anyone in iceland, and did bjorks tattoos, if i remember correctly. when i set things up, it was pretty loose, and i just figured it as helgi whod be doing the work, but it turned out to be his son, oskar. unfortunately, oskar didnt really seem to care much about the job, and kinda mucked things up, especially on the teeth. me, being totally fixated to getting tattooed in iceland, basically just let it happen. not something ill do again. i was pissed about it for several days, but came to the conclusion that it was at least partically my own fault, and that anyhow, the concept of the travelogue sleeve outweighed the importance of perfect reproduction. and now ive gotten used to them in their substantially imperfect state. that being said, next time im in iceland, ill be having helgi do a few just to even the score.
round 3 mod, tigerlily tattoos portland, 10 sep 2003 |
fonlupt (france, 1930s) |
i didnt have the $ to get ink while in paris for paris-brest-paris, so i figured i had to get work done in portland while on my way to cmwc. stayed a day longer than originally planned and took the train instead of riding to seattle, partially so i could drop by tigerlily (recommended by my good friend meghan) and see if there was time to do a couple chainwheels. mod laid out this one and the elgin (that toby eventually ended up doing in seattle - see below) but only had time to finish one before his next appointment came in. had probably the softest touch ive had to date from a tattooist. nice and smooth, good fill, and accurate reproduction. less than a week later, its almost fully healed.
round 4 toby, apocalypse seattle, 12 sep 2003 |
bj? (japan, 1930s?) |
elgin (us, 1940s) |
i was wondering where i might get ink in seattle when i noted a tattoo booth being set up inside consolidated works (where the cmwc art show and party hq was) - that solved my problem quickly! i asked about getting these 2 done, and rolled up my sleeve to show where, and toby exclaimed "youre that guy!" kinda caught me off guard, but it turned out theyd printed out this page in prep for working cmwc, cause theyd been looking for bike-related flash! nice coincidence, and toby was totally gung-ho about doing the work, and thats always a good sign - nice to have ink being slung by someone as into the idea as i am. went down pretty quick, despite the heckling from messenger friends and constant stream of people wanting to take photographs. a really nice session - good atmosphere, and a downright friendly tattooist! a pity i wasnt in town longer, toby - if youre ever headed down this way, drop a line!
round 5 monica, house of tattoos amsterdam, 22 nov 2004 |
solida "cats" (france, 1910s) |
the last time id been in amsterdam was before this project started, but it was always high on my list of places i wanted a bit done, if for no other reason than the bike culture. so when i headed back there in 2004 for the ex's 25th anniversary fest, i asked my friend keri for a recommendation, cause i knew shed just been over there doing some piercing work - and she pointed me at monica, who turned out to be enthusiastic about the bit, especially since it involved cats! overall, a really good experience to kick off the variations in size of the chainwheels (this one is 3" diameter) - house of tattoos is perhaps one of the most spotless shops ive ever been in, and a good light touch as well. im really happy with this one!
round 6 rudé waterzooi, tin-tin tatouages paris, 29 nov 2004 |
swiss army (switzerland, 1930s) |
id missed getting ink in paris in 2003 while i was over for paris-brest-paris, so this was a must on this trip. everyone i asked about paris said tin-tins shop was the only place worth bothering with, and though i cant vouch for that, i can definitely vouch for it being a top-notch shop. tin-tins rep speaks for itself, and the rest of the crew there are quite talented as well. rudé did really fast and clean work, and ive got a crisp 2.5" chainwheel to show for it. his response to the project is typical of what ive been getting lately - i tend to walk in with a perception of this project as kind of my own little dorky bike geek idea, but the more i do this, and the more it takes shape, the more the response from artists is really enthusiastic - almost always i get a response along the lines of "thats a really great idea, something really personal and unlike anything ive seen!", which is really great for me to hear. i always figured that this idea was always gonna be something that only i would "get", but artists like rudé are proving me wrong. thanks!
round 7 rob merrill, goldfield's tattoo san francisco, 05 apr 2005 |
u. dei (italy, 1930s) |
the first of 2 sessions by friends in san francisco before the portland move. i know rob from his time working at the freewheel, and figured hed be a great choice for a bike-related tattoo. i agonized for some time over whether i was going to do this as a 2.5" diameter chainwheel (too small, didnt stand out enough), a 3" chainwheel (same size as the cats from round 5 right next to it) or a 4" chainwheel (seemed almost *too* big...) before finally deciding to have it done 3.5" diameter. since the framebuilder umberto dei is one of focal points of my collection of bicycle ephemera, this one has prominent placement on the front of my shoulder, above the armpit, at about the same level as the solida "cats". a great, relaxed after work session that finished cleanly and was almost entirely healed up a week later!
round 8 barnaby, mom's body shop san francisco, 14 apr 2005 |
stronglight touriste (france, 1940s) |
sirius (austria, 1890s) |
the second pre-portland move session. i worked with barnaby when i first moved to san francisco some 10 years back, and have been meaning to have him do a bit for me for ages now, so its high time i followed through. i felt awful for having to nix barnabys placement of the sirius to obscure one of my half-moons because of spatial foresight, but i have to think about these things in terms of how much room there is to place other chainwheels... barnaby is the fastest tattooist EVER. insanely fast. told me to go look in the mirror, and i thought hed just finished one, but nooooooo... my nerves were telling me hed worked on two, but my brain refused to beleive it. crazy fast. and a top notch guy to boot. sorry it took me so long, barnaby!
round 9 yoni zilber, adorned new york, 30 jun 2005 |
specialties t. a. (france, 1950s) |
another 2.5" chainwheel, inner arm, almost directly above the fonlupt (round 3), and obscuring (at least partially) one of the crescent moons of my moon phases armband. ny adorned came recommended by barnaby, and he didnt steer me wrong - a really really nice clean shop, with friendly staff. yoni was great, considering that this placement is a pain in the ass - theres no real good position in which to get to this portion of the underarm, which makes it difficult for both artist and the person getting tattooed. sure, inner arm and armpit area tattoos are painful, but really it wasnt that bad compared to the inevitable wrenched shoulder from the neccessarily uncomfortable postioning required. despite that, though, yoni made things a breeze, really comfortable experience considering how blasted awkward it was!
round 10 |
fonlupt (france, 1930s) |
hiawatha (us, 1940s) |
2 more 2" chainwheels to pretty much finish up the space left in the inner front side of my arm... these will fit in between the specialites ta and peugeot chainwheels, and will be the last 2" chainwheels that will fit on my upper arm - after these, its fill-in work with smaller chainwheels, and then i can start inching my way down my forearm! exciting!
round 11 |
 empire (us, 1940s) |
 simpson lever chain (us, 1890s) |
 tribune (us, 1890s) |
these will begin the fill-in work with smaller cogs and chainwheels to finish it up before i can start working down onto my forearm. the empire will go between the j. wis and heskiltuna (round 1) and the magistroni (round 2) and swiss army (round 6), probably all somewhere around 1.25" in diameter.
round ? |
 unknown (us, 1910s) |
planning ahead... this will be a 2.5" chainwheel on the top side of my forearm, slightly to the outside, about 1/3 of the way in from my elbow.
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round ? |
 williams (uk, 1950s) |
once im down that far, this will be another 2.5" chainwheel on the underside of my forearm, about 2/3 of the way from my elbow to wrist.
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round ? |
hawthorne (us, 1930s) |
sooner or later, thisll get done on my left shoulder, separate from the sleeve project, 3.5", to "mirror" the dei chainwheel from round 7.
 ancora (italy, 1940s) |
 clement (france, 1910s) |
 derwis (france, 1940s) |
 eagle (us, 1890s) |
 elan (france, 1930s) |
 fauber (us, 1890s) |
 fonlupt (france, 1930s) |
 hawthorne (us, 1890s) |
 humber (uk, 1930s) |
 indian (us, 1900s) |
 james (uk, 1950s) |
 magistroni (italy, 1960s) |
 peregrine (france, ?) |
 razeza (spain, ?) |
 rochet (france, 1930s) |
 solida "clover leaves" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "edelweiss" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "foxes" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "oak leaves" (france, 1910s) |
 t. a. rick (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (italy, 1930s) |
 unknown (germany, 1910s) |
 unknown (germany, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1900s) |
 unknown (france, ?) |
 unknown (france, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 campagnolo (italy, 1960s) |
 colson (us, 1950s) |
 columbia (us, 1940s) |
 columbia (us, 1890s) |
 fauber (us, 1890s) |
 huffman (us, 1950s) |
 stronglight tandem (france, 1950s) |
 sturmey-archer (uk, 1950s) |
 thor (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1960s) |
 unknown (us, 1930s) |
 unknown (us, 1950s) |
 dion-bouton (france, 1920s) |
 unknown (us, 1950s) |
 abingdon (uk, 1900s) |
 allez (uk, 1930s) |
 automoto (france, 1950s) |
 bianchi (italy, 1930s) |
 brampton (uk, 1930s) |
 centaur (uk, 1900s) |
 diamant (germany, 1930s) |
 f.b.p. (italy, ?) |
 gendron (us, 1910s) |
 gerbi (italy, 1930s) |
 gnutti (italy, 1950s) |
 hermesse (france, 1930s) |
 rene herse (france, 1940s) |
 magistroni (italy, 1960s) |
 magistroni (italy, 1960s) |
 mead (us, 1960s) |
 motobecane (france, 1960s) |
 nsu (germany, 1930s) |
 paramount (us, 1930s) |
 raleigh (uk, 1960s) |
 raleigh (uk, 1940s) |
 raleigh (uk, 1930s) |
 ravat (france, 1940s) |
 royal enfield (uk, 1930s) |
 schwinn autocycle (us, 1930s) |
 simplex (france, 1950s) |
 solida "crowns" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "eagles" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "greyhounds" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "j" (france, 1910s) |
 solida "lanterns" (france, 1910s) |
 stronglight 55 (france, 1950s) |
 western wheel works (us, 1890s) |
 williams c34 (uk, 1950s) |
 williams c1200 (uk, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (uk, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1960s?) |
 unknown (uk, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (italy, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1960s) |
 unknown (france, 1950s) |
 unknown (israel, 1960s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (?) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 appeal (us, 1890s) |
 brennabor (germany, 1910s) |
 expert (us, 1890s) |
 gazelle (holland, 1960s) |
 paramount? (us, 1890s) |
 prior (us, 1890s) |
 seminole (us, 1940s) |
 starley (uk, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1910s) |
 unknown (us, 1900s) |
 unknown (us, 1940s) |
 unknown (us, 1910s) |
 unknown (us, 1910s) |
 unknown (us, 1910s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (france, ?) |
 crescent (sweden, 1940s) |
 cyclo "rosa" (france, 1930s) |
 diamant (germany, 1930s) |
 dura-ace 10mm pitch (japan, 1980s) |
 durkopp (germany, 1930s) |
 elgin (us, 1940s) |
 elgin (us, 1940s) |
 gian robert (france, 1950s) |
 magistroni (italy, 1950s) |
 overman (us, 1890s) |
 ovum (?, 1950s) |
 peerless (us, 1890s) |
 racycle (us, 1890s) |
 rene thiollet (france, ?) |
 stronglight 49d (france, 1940s) |
 stronglight 57 (france, 1950s) |
 terrot (france, 1900s) |
 westfield (us, 1910s) |
 williams (uk, 1950s) |
 unknown (italy, 1930s) |
 unknown (us, 1950s) |
 unknown (us, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1950s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (france, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1930s) |
 bradbury (uk, 1910s) |
 colnago (italy, 1970s) |
 hercules (uk, 1940s) |
 mead (us, 1910s) |
 monark (us, 1950s) |
 orient (us, 1890s) |
 ranger (us, 1910s) |
 sieber (switzerland, 1950s) |
 vaterland (germany, 1950s) |
 unknown (france, 1910s) |
 unknown (?) |
 unknown (us, 1930s) |
 unknown (france, 1910s) |
 unknown (france, ?) |
 unknown (us, 1920s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |
 unknown (?) |
 shelby (us, 1950s) |
 unknown (us, 1890s) |