Max recently took a Tokyo Fixed Dream Machine on a visit to it’s spiritual home, Tokyo, Japan.
Riding the streets of this incredible megatropolis of almost 9 million people that combines the ultra modern with the epicly historic, the Dream Machine was in it’s element. The ideal porteur bicycle for town use with a classic look and feel, the Columbus Zona tubing and immaculate hand fillet brazed construction deliver a supple and smooth ride that feels as good as the Dream Machine looks.
Over the years we have put together many varied to our customer’s specifications, and we think the clean aesthetic of Max’s build documented here speaks volumes: The Dream Machine revels in simplicity and well considered, good quality parts only enhance the look and performance of this modern classic.
We asked Max to tell us some more about his trip.
“It was a great feeling bringing the Dream Machine back to Tokyo, the city which inspired the bike. Previously I’d only ridden a track bike in Japan so riding this single speed through the narrow streets gave me a completely different feeling and allowed for a different riding style. I crushed through parks and dropped off curbs, finding new short cuts. Front and rear brakes? What a luxury this time! The steep short hills of Tokyo were death traps on my track bike, especially in the rain. Riding brakeless is a thing of the past now in Tokyo, the Police have really enforced brake use by penalty of death, or at least a fine… But I still saw a few NJS machines on the street, looking a bit sad with bolted on brakes, but with a practical flat rack giving a new lease of life. Proper porteur bikes have not really hit Tokyo yet, although from the response of friends over there who tried the Dream Machine I think the trend will hit soon.”
“On the day the we shot the featured photographs I visited my old neighborhood Nakanmeguro. This is a quiet, trendy area only 10 minutes from bustling Shibuya. I visited the famous Cow Books, who stock an incredible array of brilliantly displayed and rather pricey vintage books. A few shops up the road along the canal is Bamboo Shoots. This is the founding shop of Japanese “Mountain fashion”, another must visit. From there I climbed the steep hill which separates Meguro from Shibuya and descended into the famous Shibuya crossing. I dove straight into the crossing which brought back good memories, although I think I used to be able to get through a lot faster. I parked up in Shibuya, enjoyed the worlds most spicy ramen at Moukotanmen-Nakamoto. This is a must visit restaurant, it will leave you both fulfilled and in severe pain!
As I left the restaurant the clouds opened up. Not such an annoyance as the Dream Machine handles great in the rain. Also it was a good chance to test the waterproof credentials of my Chrome Knurled Pannier bag. I don’t want to harp on about the benefits of a pannier bag. I will just say. It looks very good for a pannier, and its 100% waterproof. Slips on and off the bike like a charm and is lightweight. Its a great bag. If you’re traveling around Tokyo by bike by the end of the end the day your bound to have a bag full of heavy magazines and books, they always build up. This bag was perfect. “
Max was testing a sample of the new Chrome Knurled Welded pannier bag. These are part of their new Welded series of bags dropping soon, and use a new lightweight single layer welded construction that fuses the TPU liner to the outer fabric. We’ll be stocking these here at Kinoko as soon as they become available.
You can read more details on Max’s build on our blog, and please do not hesitate to contact us instore or online about building your own Dream Machine.
