Of the many frame builder who can capably be called masters of the craft, it is distinctly possible that no one has been at the bench longer than Mark Nobilette. His credentials are impeccable. He was trained by Albert Eisentraut in the first frame building class that Eisentraut taught, which was held in Chicago, before he moved to California, way back in 1973. Nobilette went to work for Eisentraut and since then has gone on to produce thousands of frames in the Eisentraut tradition, with thinned lug points that are often reshaped, as well as with windows cut in to his taste. But unlike so many of his contemporaries, Nobilette hasn't confined himself to just making lugged steel creations. He's made mountain bikes for Gary Fisher, recumbents, track bikes ridden by Olympians and just about everything in between. We talk craft, how he approaches it and what gets him up in the morning.

#54: Frame Builder Mark Nobilette

Of the many builders I've met over the years, I don't think I've met any with a more unusual background. Bryan Hollingsworth is a New Englander who cut his teeth working for Seven Cycles. He may be the only builder I've ever met who has fabricated frames from carbon fiber, titanium and steel. I'm reasonably convinced I've not met another builder who has laid up an entire carbon fiber frame as well as brazed steel in lugs or done fillet brazing. It turns out, he comes from a family of cyclists and makers. That he should become a frame builder is no great surprise. Hollingsworth has been out on his own 10 years, which is a significant mark for a frame builder; few make it past five years.

#55: Frame Builder Bryan Hollingsworth

The Pull is a podcast devoted to one-on-one interviews with artisans in pursuit of the highest expression of their craft.

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