Bike meets Sharpie
by braden bohme
Nov 5, 2008
After being inspired by a Lamborghini with a sharpie paint job I decided to take apart my BLK MRKT Riot and start to work. When I first started I didn't realize what I was getting myself into and wasn't sure what people would think of it.
After posting my first picture to Pinkbike and getting a bunch of positive feed back I kept at it and this is the final product.
After posting my first picture to Pinkbike and getting a bunch of positive feed back I kept at it and this is the final product.
Although there seem to have been attempts by bike manufacture's to apply art to their products, they never seem to go all out, and when you hear of a unique or custom bike you think of maybe a mono color painted frame with matching colored components. Even before I saw the sharpie'd Lambo I was thinking about different ways of making my bike truly unique and artistic. At first I was set on an 80's theme that I was going to airbrush onto the bike, although this may have seemed like a good idea I have never worked with an air brush gun and also do not own one. So when I got the influenced idea of sharpie graffiti I started right away. At first I started with a bullet and casing since it seemed to go well with the BLK MRKT theme and from there on I pretty much just "went with the flow" and incorporated some textures and idea's from friends at school and on the Pinkbike forums.
At first I was using a normal Sharpie and it seemed to work great, and then for some reason I switch to what I thought was an old sharpie because of its red logo. It wasn't till 3 days after I started that I realized it was an industrial strength Sharpie and once I realized this and looked at my frame I could see almost all of the area's I used the normal Sharpie wearing off. If it wasn't for this industrial strength Sharpie I doubt this project would have turned out as well as it did. So since all I have been using is a sharpie you can tell this was an extremely cost effective project and surprisingly The Sharpie lasted the entire bike.
Although it may seem something like this might only take a few hours on a piece of paper, and I also thought this when I started. It actually turned out to be very tricky and difficult to get a steady and consistent line on the curved surface. So, what started out as a relatively quick project turned out to take me close to 50 hours in total, but it was definitely worth every hour.
I hope this not only inspires riders to create unique art work on their bikes, but also the manufactures to start using their frames and products as a canvas. Art isn't just meant for canvas's and paper, it should be everywhere and I think a bike frame is one of many perfect places for it.
After my first request for a graffiti project to be done on another rider's bike I decided that I should take the opportunity to start my own mini business. After some thought I came up with some base prices for frame graffiti and here it is. With most projects taking around 40-50 hours I thought these prices were very fair. Prices may vary depending on demand, and waiting list.
Hardtails - $200.00
BMX's - $160.00
Full suspensions - $200.00-300.00 (depending on frame complexity)
clear coating - $15.00 - $25.00 (depending on frame complexity)
All prices include personalization such as specific graphics, textures, names, etc.
I will do more than just Bike frame however, pretty much anything you want customized, maybe wheels or handle bars? It's up to you and the possibilities are endless.
I will also be starting a web site (www.bikegraffiti.com)
You can contact me here on Pinkbike at radrider.pinkbike.com/
At first I was using a normal Sharpie and it seemed to work great, and then for some reason I switch to what I thought was an old sharpie because of its red logo. It wasn't till 3 days after I started that I realized it was an industrial strength Sharpie and once I realized this and looked at my frame I could see almost all of the area's I used the normal Sharpie wearing off. If it wasn't for this industrial strength Sharpie I doubt this project would have turned out as well as it did. So since all I have been using is a sharpie you can tell this was an extremely cost effective project and surprisingly The Sharpie lasted the entire bike.
Although it may seem something like this might only take a few hours on a piece of paper, and I also thought this when I started. It actually turned out to be very tricky and difficult to get a steady and consistent line on the curved surface. So, what started out as a relatively quick project turned out to take me close to 50 hours in total, but it was definitely worth every hour.
I hope this not only inspires riders to create unique art work on their bikes, but also the manufactures to start using their frames and products as a canvas. Art isn't just meant for canvas's and paper, it should be everywhere and I think a bike frame is one of many perfect places for it.
After my first request for a graffiti project to be done on another rider's bike I decided that I should take the opportunity to start my own mini business. After some thought I came up with some base prices for frame graffiti and here it is. With most projects taking around 40-50 hours I thought these prices were very fair. Prices may vary depending on demand, and waiting list.
Hardtails - $200.00
BMX's - $160.00
Full suspensions - $200.00-300.00 (depending on frame complexity)
clear coating - $15.00 - $25.00 (depending on frame complexity)
All prices include personalization such as specific graphics, textures, names, etc.
I will do more than just Bike frame however, pretty much anything you want customized, maybe wheels or handle bars? It's up to you and the possibilities are endless.
I will also be starting a web site (www.bikegraffiti.com)
You can contact me here on Pinkbike at radrider.pinkbike.com/
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267 Comments
- + 50
tacobell123
(Nov 2, 2008 at 16:43)
so sick
that was an old pic.. this is what it looks like now,, http://www.blackmarketbikes.com/uploaded_images/Image123-725270.jpg
wow thats amazing... im suprised hes charging so low prices for the frames to be done...thats like 5 bucks an hour at the most... wow though, way to go on the creativity. good job
wow, u should try and get a designing job at blk mrkt. they've really taken up on your idea, on the first page of their website.
You need to charge more for sure, works out to $6 an hour or less.... That's very detailed intricate work.
He spent 50 hrs on his hardtale. He wants $200 for a HT frame
$200 Devided by 50 hrs is $4 an hour. I wouldn't so shit for $4/hr
$200 Devided by 50 hrs is $4 an hour. I wouldn't so shit for $4/hr
thats totaly sick, you may have just gave a new craze a bit of a start off, id pay to have that done to my bike, its totaly unigue seeing as no design is the same. props to you!
yeah. isuppose he should charge like a tenner an hour for that piece of work.
i just thought it was expensive cos i forgot bout the 50 hours and that the 200 was in dollars.
i just thought it was expensive cos i forgot bout the 50 hours and that the 200 was in dollars.
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how durable is it? I mean, I know loads of permanant markers that over time, say, a week or two, added with some water or something, it'll fade or rub away. Does clear lacquer over the top of it make it run, or would it be a perfect covering for it?
I do love the look of it though.
I do love the look of it though.
Clear may also 'lift' or 'smudge' or 'drip' sharpie depending on the clear used as well as the prep and basecoat used.
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You totally make me want to try my hand at something like this, maybe not graffiti but a SLEEVE TATTO ART frame from a sharpie... and BTW, I LOVE that Lambo, I have seen it a 100 times... for those don't know what he is talking about CHECK IT
http://ericshalley.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/sharpie_lambo_4301.jpg
http://ericshalley.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/sharpie_lambo_4301.jpg
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DUDE, you made it on the BlkMrkt home page .... NICE http://www.blackmarketbikes.com/
i did a simple tiger stripe on my old hard tail years ago, always got noticed by other riders. sick gork with the sharpy tho, that frames gonna be getting a lot of TLC now thats on there
here's my old custom ride :http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/158491/
here's my old custom ride :http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/158491/
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you gotta do up those bars and wheels and crank to matchhh. maybe even a marz fork with out stickers too? match them parts!
wwwwooooowwww!
just one question...what happens if you go wong? can you rub it back off? lol
and surely it would eventualy rub off...hhhmm
Sam
just one question...what happens if you go wong? can you rub it back off? lol
and surely it would eventualy rub off...hhhmm
Sam
I have 100% alcohol which after a lot of rubbing removes the black but will not remove yellow residue under it
goodcall. I work at a sign shop and use lacquer thinner to remove alot of things like paint .. felt pen marks but it eats right through any plastics or clear coats .
haha so much better than my attempt!
i got a permanent red marker and just went to town, looks now where near as good but as you said, very cost effective!!
i got a permanent red marker and just went to town, looks now where near as good but as you said, very cost effective!!
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WOW YOU THAT PAINT JOB IS SO SICK I WISH I COULD DO THAT LET ME TELL YOU THIS YOU ARE DEFENTLY GOING TO GET MY HARDTAIL BIKE AND MAYBE MY FULLLY TO PAINT
awesome frame, truly inspiring! - get some of these bars on there pronto: checker bars
yo that bikes so sick. but it looks even more kickass now that it has the BLKMRKT forks on it and black bars. woulda been nice if the stem was white. but the blue stems still awesome
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ok so why would i pay you like 200 bucks to draw on my bike with a sharpie when i could go buy a sharpie for a dollar and do it my self
maybe for the fact that this guy has obviously quite the steady hand.. and the time to do it.. some people have more money then time and cant afford losing hours out of their day to do this.
why do people pay other people to mow their yeards? or to paint their house? or hell why do people by painted pictures? maybe for the fact that they arent as artistic or possibly that they dont have the time? i mean just maybe thats all
Truth of the matter is that his prices are more than reasonable. In fact probably too cheap if it is taking him 40 hours to paint a bike and charging $200.
Anyone can buy a pen or paint, but do they have the talent to pull off a nice piece?
Anyone can buy a pen or paint, but do they have the talent to pull off a nice piece?
exactly!!! what is that like 5 dollars an hour hes charging? I think its super reasonably priced and looks super good. if my bike wasnt pink I would definitely send it over to him
Well I could justifying spending £200 on a totally custom paint job personalized to my interests....
He could make bucks doing this...
He could make bucks doing this...
A custom pinstriped car would be something more like $60 to $120 an hour. his prices are more than reasonable. I'm sure that if he pursues this he is going to book him self up and realize that he can charge more. Btw that is some great work radrider
but i will give you the fact that it is f*cking sweet and i would probably pay you cuz im lazy lol good luck with your business it will kick right off 
YES! i've been waiting for someone who is so artistically talented to do sometihng unique like this, expect some buisness from me in the near future.
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your work make think that it was easy to do... but it is not! i give a lot of value to ur jobs mate! sometimes we think that guy can do a thing so i can do it... but isn't like that. we need inspiration and dedication to do that lol and obviously some talent =D
Your only going to pay yourself $4/h to do all that work? You'd make twice that flipping burgers...
Your talented, don't sell yourself short.
Your talented, don't sell yourself short.
nicely done fella....i do not normally respond in here but you deserve these props.....good job and good luck with all your future projects.
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im gunna do that on my big hit lol
ive been stuff like that on paper for ages so it would be good to see how it turns out. i will post some pics wen im done, cheers for the inspiration!
ive been stuff like that on paper for ages so it would be good to see how it turns out. i will post some pics wen im done, cheers for the inspiration!
I'm afraid I have to agree with konaman29, I have a set of 02 DJ1s and they are plush as... (just been serviced =D) and strong as too!
very nice work. the design around the head tube, flowing for the first few inches down the tubes is super sweet. would've liked to have seen you carry that flowy style throughout. gets kinda choppy further down but none the less great detail. bravo!
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awesome idea turned out really nice...btw have you tried using paint pens they might be even more durable.
i sent you a note. i will add here that $4/hour is insanely cheap for this kind of work - insanely cheap.
good luck with your business!
good luck with your business!
Nice work. I will say that if it is taking you 40-50 hours to complete a project, you are not doing yourself any justice by charging $4-$5 for work.
Do you do repaint's if the bike isn't white?
Do you do repaint's if the bike isn't white?
Ya I wasnt going to ride it till it was cleared but its been so nice out, it has rubbed of a bit on some places but the good thing is i can just touch it up after the ride and looks like new again
so sick....and the sickest part is,that you did it to the end!!!i mean,doing all this pattern and not stop att like the chainstays,or headtube XD
AWESOME
AWESOME
that is so sweet but you should charge a lot more for 40/50h it should be like $400/$500 man get paid for what your time and skill is worth
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f*cking A, i did the same on my kink bmx...with a staples own brand sharpie...didnt work very well LOL
but thats king ding a ling =]]]
but thats king ding a ling =]]]
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Hey, i was just wondering what is the duration of this project? like how long will that "paintjob" last? And 200 is a bit cheap man! id bay 400 at least maybe 500 its like getting a whole new bike. Well i have a 2007 p2? at least i think its 07. Anyways its white with black skulls on it, i think this would look sick on my bike (only problem is the bike is heavy) so maybe on my new bike ill ttyl
Done with a sharpie! Looks professionally painted! How many sharpies did you go through? To bad my Azonic frame is black :^(!
Very Nice work!
Very Nice work!
Very impressive.
I suggest creating a stencil that can wrap around the tubes and you can then spray 80% of the frame in minutes, then just use the sharpie or paint brush to link the designs from tube to tube or at stencil junctions. Stencil would take time to set up, but once you're done, you could churn them out at will. If you use paint, you can put any colour on any coloured frame.
In Australia, Sharpie = Texta. I didn't know what a Sharpie was until I moved to USA.
I suggest creating a stencil that can wrap around the tubes and you can then spray 80% of the frame in minutes, then just use the sharpie or paint brush to link the designs from tube to tube or at stencil junctions. Stencil would take time to set up, but once you're done, you could churn them out at will. If you use paint, you can put any colour on any coloured frame.
In Australia, Sharpie = Texta. I didn't know what a Sharpie was until I moved to USA.
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You should charge at least $20 dollars an hour, which should bring the price to roughly a grand for HTs and about 12 hundred for FSs. BMXs would be about 40 bucks less than the HT price, depending on how many hours you put into the frame. These prices are based off of the 50 hour estimate that your bike took, and I think that you probably added in the couple of hours it took to draw up the design on paper into that 50 hour mark. If people complain about the prices, tell them that you'll clear coat the frame for free. You have to eat man. You don't want to become a starving artist.
ha ya I may raise prices after 10-20 frames... also no per drawing on paper...started with a bullet and went from there
I will be accepting frames by next week. I have had a huge amount (30+) of requests so I will have to figure out who will be the 1st.
my jaw litterally felt like it hit the floor wen i saw this. about a company wanting to give u a job they would make soo much proffit and would probly almost never mention u. stay as a privateer and start bringin in the dough. ill send u my new frame wen i buy my new bike if i have a enough moneh left over. But yea paint markers would work wonders. u could do any colour u posibly wanted to
Haha amasing, I had seen your bike for sale earlier, i think you're just so artistic man, grats, i guess this goes to show that great people are never recodnized, but you were grats man.
nice work- combining passions-the artistic process- creating a hybrid- thinking outside the box- aren't these reasons why we became riders in the first place.
i should lol but im just not in a thinking mood and i figured someone elsee would do it for me.....ta da
obviolsy hes running brakeless and no 1 puts pedal back brakes one blk mrk
anyways prety sick bike never seen artists use sharpie on there bike before
verry orignal
anyways prety sick bike never seen artists use sharpie on there bike before
verry orignal
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sweet frame dude..20/10 on looks 
i'm now thinking of doing the same to one of my bikes o.o...you really hit something here could be the biggest craze...
Cost of Sharpie: $2
Cost of person's time: $200-$400
Having a uniquely awesome frame: PRICELESS!!
i'm now thinking of doing the same to one of my bikes o.o...you really hit something here could be the biggest craze...Cost of Sharpie: $2
Cost of person's time: $200-$400
Having a uniquely awesome frame: PRICELESS!!
Ok so, I paint bikes for a living, and if I was to paint something that took 50 hours, I would charge well over 1,000 dollars. You must be a saint or a child to be charging 200 dollars.
I choose saint! but ya I know prices are low but these will not stay that was forever. 1st ten will be 200 next 10 will be 300 and probably thereafter will be 400. I would keep the price at 200 but the demand is so huge the waiting list will be going on for the next 10 years
very nice dude
you could go a long way if you play your cards right
be smart about this, get your website up, work for yourself, and make some cash, seems like the interest is there already on this site alone
you could go a long way if you play your cards right
be smart about this, get your website up, work for yourself, and make some cash, seems like the interest is there already on this site alone
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nice job it looks awesome but the question is if you went riding in the rain would it wear off rlly quickly and if so is there a speical finish you could put on overtop to protect it
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Dude spray paint the lowers and crown black and sharpie the sanctions cuz I would kill my self for that not being my bike if you did that.
TRULY inspirational to anyone that strives to be there own boss, and will utilize their creativity to achieve their goal.
You have a very bright future ahead of you. *Keep up the GREAT work!!
You have a very bright future ahead of you. *Keep up the GREAT work!!
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thats so sick how creative you are...i wish i could be as creative and be able to think of that type of sick shit to graffiti...
CHARGE MORE! Custom jobs cost more and look better for a reason! Dont sell yourself short...one artist to another! Starting price should be at least 15 an hour, and that is cheap even!
cheers!
cheers!
thats sweet man i hope it works out.. you have probably inspired so many people to start doing this to there bikes , amazing work..your handle bars would go sick with the bike if they were done the same way.. GOOD WORK!!!
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that is super sweet. i don't think you should stick with the sharpie though...a def airbrush upgrade would be pro. its not the sharpie that governs the quality here - it's your talent.
that is soooo rad!! i'd pay way more than 200 bucks for something like that. so unique and different. you can definitly go somewhere with this idea!
Dude, this is ridiculous! I mean who in this thread actually has the talent, determination, and creativity to start and finish a project like this? (If anyone actually does, all the power to ya) I doodle all the time, but nothing like this, this...is probably the most impressive piece of artwork i have ever beheld. Being able to integrate each design into the next with such flow is a talent all in its own. This being said, I so wish that you turn this business into something huge, cause everyone on earth searches for a career that they love to do, and by the looks of it, you've found yours. My advice to you, if you so decide to use it, is this; Don't let anyone tell you what to do, never sell yourself short (literally) and go with the flow, this bike is the bullet, watch this transform into something amazing!
(p.s. excuse my cornyness, i felt it necessary =D)
(p.s. excuse my cornyness, i felt it necessary =D)
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I stand by my comment earlier that you should charge more. A lot of people have said so, that should be a "sign" for you if you truly believe yourself to be saintly. Don't think of a saint as someone who lives poor. If you are a saint you are to be closer to God, and God is the source of prosperity. God wants you to prosper and that prosperity is unlimited, so do price your work within your ability, because God is there for you to "hook you up" son. I know what I'm talking about as I work in ministry. Cheers!
yeah man thats sick i am starting the same thing on my bike ill have pics up some time and u are right it take forever!!!!!
thats awsome i saw the pictures go by on the home screen and was like what company does that?..haha man you could defently make busness out of this thats skill right there.
so am i getting this right all it is, is a sharpie, and clearcoat over it?..i always thought that the sharpie would wear off easily even with the clear but maybe not props man. thats some cool, good luck with it all man.
so am i getting this right all it is, is a sharpie, and clearcoat over it?..i always thought that the sharpie would wear off easily even with the clear but maybe not props man. thats some cool, good luck with it all man.
its not just drawing dude its art work, yes anyone can draw on a frame......but can you do it like that and make a sick graffiti style? probley not, not to menchion the time it takes to do it all.
Well done. If you ever get ahead on your custom orders, I would like to talk with you about featuring your work in my gallery.
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Awesome work! Did you use a Sharpie Mean Streak maker? The Mean Streak write on wet and oily surfaces. And when you finished, did you put a coat of clear paint or leave as is?
that has got to be the sickest frame I have ever seen!!!!! are you going to make the bars like that too?
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you should charge way more than $200 a frame, my tattooist charges £60 an hour. very good job on the frame as well btw !
I am the PR manager for Sharpie. wow. Please contact me at susan.wassel@sanford.com. We want to feature your bike on our new blog, launching next week.
THEY SHOULD TAKE YOUR FRAME,PAY YOU MONEY,AND PUT IT INTO PRODUCTION,thats the sickest paint job i have EVER seen
HOLY HELL!!!! nice job bro freaken amazing ur gonna get a whole bunch of guys trying to copy this
unique customized frame f*cken priceless
unique customized frame f*cken priceless
nice job dude, I've done the same with my white wing-bars, it works really well dosent it. Might copy some of your shapes for my forks if you dont mind
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as a fellow sharpie enthusiast, eff me runnin', thats one sick design... have you happen to see the jobber done on a lambo thats floating around online? If its not you, similar design taste. SICK SICK SICK!!!!
The first words in the story are "After being inspired by a Lamborghini with a sharpie paint job ..."
Just look, you could spend this money for condoms or any other usefull things, and now you can just look at your frame and cry when you scratch It...
However, nice paint job ^^
However, nice paint job ^^
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I think that this looks really cool and takes alot of skill to do ,, if he is going to have a brake on it he needs a black cable in my opinion and the grey stem and bar (deity) looks very nice
yo so nice
but, the fork color just throws it off, and you should get white diety stem and bars , with a white fork with the same frame design . that shit would be sick!!!!!!!!!!
but, the fork color just throws it off, and you should get white diety stem and bars , with a white fork with the same frame design . that shit would be sick!!!!!!!!!!
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Check out "one shot paints". They are preferred by pinstrippers and pretty readily available through art supply stores. Experiment with mixing them up with their appropriate thinners and put em into a empty graff marker. From the pics the sharpie looks great but I'm sure this might step it up a notch. Once again I really Like your work.
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