Waterford Precision Cycles was a small bicycle manufacturer based in

Waterford, Wisconsin Waterford is a village in Racine County, Wisconsin, Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,542 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has an area ...

. Waterford produced high-end, custom, hand-built, steel-frame bicycles, particularly

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criterium A criterium, or crit, is a bike race consisting of several laps around a closed circuit, the length of each lap or circuit ranging from about 400 m to 10,000 m. Overview Race length can be determined by a number of laps or total time, ...

, stage, track, and

cyclocross Cyclo-cross (cyclocross, CX, cyclo-X or cross) is a form of bicycle racing. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter (the international or "World Cup" season is October–February), and consist of many laps of a short (2.5–3.5&nb ...

racing bicycles, that ranged in price from about $2,500 to $8,500. Waterford built both TIG welded and lugged steel frames to order, and specialized in custom and unique bicycle frames. The company was operated by Richard Schwinn, formerly of

Schwinn Bicycle Company The Schwinn Bicycle Company is an American company that develops, manufactures and markets bicycles under the eponymous brand name. The company was founded by Ignaz Schwinn (1860–1948) in Chicago in 1895, and in the 20th century became the domi ...

, and business partner Marc Muller. Schwinn (great-grandson of Ignaz Schwinn, who founded Schwinn Co. in 1896) was vice president of production for Schwinn Co., and Muller worked for Schwinn as a designer of the company's hand-crafted

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racing bikes. Waterford Precision Cycles and Gunnar Cycles ceased operations in June 2023 due to the upcoming retirement of owner Richard Schwinn and several other employees.

Gunnar

The company also manufactured Gunnar Cycles, which were steel-alloy, TIG welded bicycle frames and forks including off-road, touring, racing and recreational bicycles, that started at roughly $1500 for a frame and fork combination. Unlike a custom Waterford frame, they did not offer custom sizing which helped keep the price lower.

Others

In addition, Waterford manufactured frames for Rivendell Bicycle Works,

Salsa Cycles Salsa Cycles is an American bicycle brand based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The company produces touring, mountain, road, and gravel bicycles, as well as bicycle components. The Salsa Cycles brand, along with its sister brands Surly Bikes and A ...

Milwaukee Bicycle Co. The Milwaukee Bicycle Co. is brand of bicycle and bicycle parts. It is the house brand of ''Ben's Cycle and Fitness'', a family-owned bicycle shop in the Lincoln Village neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Milwaukee Bicycle Co. frames are ma ...

and

Shinola Detroit Shinola is an American lifestyle brand based in Detroit, Michigan. It produces and sells watches, bicycles, leather goods, clocks, home goods, and jewelry. Founded in 2011, Shinola takes its name from a common saying that harkens back to the d ...

as well as several other small specialty bicycle companies.

References

External links

Waterford official site

Gunnar official site
Cycle manufacturers of the United States Companies based in Wisconsin Mountain bike manufacturers Bicycle framebuilders {{cycle-manufacturer-stub