CUSTOM BIKES, IT’S IN OUR DNA

The true craftsmanship behind our custom designs

Our CEO Jochim Aerts started out as a frame painter in 1994, only three years before he was about to found Ridley and start making frames. Custom bikes, it’s just in our DNA. And we haven’t lost our roots. We are still deeply convinced that everyone should have the chance to ride the bike of his or her dreams. That’s why our custom designs are one of the cornerstones of our company.

Changing colors and designs has always been a part of our offer. We believe it’s so fundamental that we leave nothing to chance: all our custom designs are being painted at our headquarters in Beringen (Belgium). But what is happening behind the scenes with your custom bike? 

Sanding frames

Everything starts from a rough carbon frame. In order to guarantee the quality of the paint job all frames are sanded first.

Having an eye for detail is crucial: the smallest cavity, barely visible for the human eye, can cause paint errors. A first quality control introduces the next step.

Plotting design details

All logos and design details of the bike are perfectly aligned and plotted digitally by our design department.

These sheets are being cut precisely, so all details can be applied to the frame in the next step.


Wrapping and peeling off

A step that breathes ‘precision’. Before every frame gets a layer of paint it needs to be wrapped with masking paper accurately to a mm. Deviating from this initiates spray mistakes on the paint job. 

Millimeters also count when applying the plot files of the logos and design details to the frame. After the first spray and drying process everything gets peeled off. This is when the final design starts to become visible.

Proof of this precision requirement is that it almost takes a full year before a new employee completes the training process. Because every design is different and every frame has different tube shapes. Delivering here just isn’t possible without having passion. Consequently, most of our paint department ladies have hobbies that require the same set of skills. 

Spraying frames

A frame passes multiple times through the spray corner. The first time to apply the ground layer and afterwards another couple of times, depending on the number and type of colors. Candy Red Metallic needs a different treatment than Dove Grey, for instance.

Spraying frames also demands lots of experience. Our painter knows exactly how thick the paint layer needs to be sprayed, based on sight and taking the structure of the previously sanded frame into account. That routine results in the same quality for every frame. Over and over again. 

Every paint job is followed by another dry process, which again depends on the type of color and the environmental temperature.

Baking frames

A frame is baked two times in a specific oven. The first baking process aims to speed up the drying time. 

During the second process the paint is hardened on the frame, which transforms the frame and paint into one dense structure. Varnishing the frame in the next step guarantees the paint quality.

Varnishing frames

The finishing touch of every paint job happens in the varnishing corner. Matt or glossy, chosen by you in our online customizer, ultimately determines the look & feel of your bike. 





We highly value that everyone should be able to ride the bike of his dreams. That’s why we still paint all our custom bikes at our headquarters in Belgium.

Jochim Aerts, CEO Belgian Cycling Factory
Your dream bike. You have probably been thinking about it for hours, or even days. Our online customizer is the ultimate tool to create the bike that perfectly reflects your personality and style. But what does Ridley’s custom offer all includes? What is the difference between a ‘Customizer’ and a ‘Pure Line’? Discover it below!

Customizer

We apply a standard three color stock design to every bike of our range. For the Noah Fast Disc here below, that design is named ‘NFC01Am’. This design code is also visible in our online customizer. If you keep that design, but change the 3 colors, the result is a ‘Customizer’. For the Customizer below the stock colors are adapted to the colors ‘0 – Silver’, ‘588 – Lime Green’ and ‘510 – Rich Orange Metallic’.

Pure Line

If you don’t really like the standard stock design, or you just prefer pure designs, you can choose for our Pure Line offer. You erase the stock design and pick one of the six options below. Keep in mind that the Noah Fast Special is an exclusive design for our top model.
Classic
A sober design. Classy, without shenanigans and therefore so beloved.
Team
Smaller, local teams have always been using this design. Additional touches on the inner side of the front and rear fork. 
Purest
The purest of them all. The entire frame in one base color, apart from a nice little touch on the top tube. 
Fade
You’re looking at the newest Pure Line option! ‘Fade’ is the first Pure Line that is painted in 3 colors. The smooth transition of two colors gives your bike a really modern look.
Heritage
The features and advantages of a modern bike, but the look and feel of the 80’s. Retro, and including Belgian tricolor details. 
XL
An extra-large Ridley logo on the down tube and the entire front fork in the same color as the logo. Introduced in 2019. 
Noah Fast Special
Our top model deserves its own Pure Line, doesn’t it? Multiple touches on the tubes and forks of the frame, with the handlebar being painted in the same base color. Truly distinctive.