Question: Where's my bike?
Answer: We're finishing your frameset right now!
Status Report For Your Bike's Progress
Your timing is excellent for checking the tracker today. We're at the final step in the framebuilding process right now! Get ready to ride!!!
Quick Summary: Your frameset's estimated ship date should show that it is mere days away from being shippable! If you asked for paint, it's a few weeks.
Finishing your frame entails all the visual elements. This process also includes alignment and component interface precision elements. It's all the details that will make your bike ride like no other.
Details About The Work We're Doing Right Now
Your frameset is just hours away from completion!
When your framebuilder takes your frame off the welding rack, still warm from the last welding steps, we're in the final stretch. This step includes an alignment check, facing of the head tube and bottom bracket, chasing of the bottom bracket threads, and installation of a filament-wound composite seat tube insert. These are the crucial details that make it easy to build your Seven from a frameset into a complete bike.
During the welding process, all of the tubes on your frame get subjected to intense heat. Due to the natural characteristics of metal, some tube distortion is to be expected. Final machining takes care of all that.
A minimal amount of cold setting (post-weld manipulation) achieves spot-on alignment so that your bike will ride straight. We also have to face the ends of the head tube. "Facing" means that we plane the open ends of the tubes so that they are perfectly flat and parallel to each other. This ensures that the headset will function properly and fit precisely. The better the fit, the longer your parts will last, and the better the headset will perform.
Our exclusive filament-wound composite sleeve is precision-reamed to accommodate your seat post. At half the weight of an aluminum sleeve, the composite insert also helps reduce potential galling or seizing of your post. Featuring a no-creak design, our sleeve will keep you from being bothered by annoying noises when you're in the saddle.
We've now confirmed that the alignment of your bike is perfect. It is, at last, ready for finishing, graphics, and gear. They'll make it look more beautiful than you could ever imagine!
Your bike is not in its final hours at our factory. During that time, its surfaces will be fully cleaned, prepared, finely brushed, and graphiced.
Cleaning the frame is the first order of business. Next, we brush the entire frame with a nylon wheel to bring the raw titanium to its glossy, natural luster. Seven's titanium frames are not polished, so no material is removed. Because we use only the highest quality tubing to build our frames, the tubes have no surface scratches or imperfections that would make it necessary to polish, paint, bead blast, or otherwise alter the surface.
To enhance the frame's finish, we simply touch it up with Scotch Brite™, a 3M product. Grade A, or very fine, gives us the best results. Once your frame has been wheeled and buffed, it's ready for graphics, which are specially designed to adhere to titanium. As a final touch, we spray the entire frame, head tube to dropout, with a generous application of light wax.
Then, we install the remaining bits of hardware, including water bottle mounts and the head tube badge. The finishing touch is our lightweight, CNC-machined, custom-made seat top.
After one last inspection, your frameset and parts kit are carefully packed and ready to ship to your retailer.
Remaining Steps Of The Process Including Estimated Time Frames
We're so close now. Only a few steps remain before you'll be riding you new favorite bike!
The estimated ship date (ESD) we provide on your Bike Status Tracker homepage is our current best projection of when we'll ship your bike. We update the date if anything substantial changes with our build schedule. Typically, we'll alert your retailer if the ESD changes by more than a week.
Please understand that these times are estimates due to the nature of custom framebuilding, the model and features you chose, seasonality, and component availability.
Current Step:
| # | Step | Details | Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12a | We're finishing your frameset | Here we're confirming every detail, ensuring perfect alignment, applying the graphics, and running the last 100-plus inspection steps. | ~3 days |
| (12b) | Painted frameset? | If we're painting your frameset, this adds some time to the process. | ~3 weeks |
Remaining Steps:
| # | Step | Details | Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Your Seven is ready to Ship! | Once we've received final payment we immediately ship your Seven to your retailer for final assembly. | N/A |
| 14 | Your Seven is in transit. | Domestic shipping transit time is usually a week at most. *International shipment transit can take about 3 to 6 weeks. |
~ 1 week* |
| 15 | Your retailer assembles your new Seven! | Schedule a time to meet your new riding companion. | ~ 2 weeks |
| 16 | You ride forever! | Big smiles. Big adventures. Big memories. | ∞ Forever |
The Last Mile
Note: This information probably hasn't changed since your previous status report.
Once we've completed your frameset, it's passed all of our inspection steps, and we've received final payment from your retailer, we'll ship your frameset and parts kit to your retailer. At that point, in addition to the estimated ship date, the remaining time before you'll be riding your amazing custom one-of-a-kind Seven is usually between three to seven weeks and includes:
| Step | Details | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Shipping transit time, in the United States | This date varies by your location, shipping method, shipper accountability, and the retail hours of your retailer. | ~1 week |
| Shipping transit time, outside the U.S. | This timing varies similarly to US shipping but also requires time for customs, shipping consolidations, and transfer from Seven's distribution center to your local retailer. If you have questions about this, contact your retailer or distributor. | ~3 to 6 weeks |
| Final Bike assembly | This time frame depends on your retailer's existing bike build schedule and parts availability. Contact them to confirm when they can deliver your bike. | ~2 weeks |
Patience is required to professionally assemble a high-end custom bike: Building a one-of-a-kind bike from thirty-plus components is not a trivial task. Ensuring your bike is safe, durable, and properly fitted should not be rushed. Give your retailer and mechanic plenty of time to do it right. A few extra days during this step provides dividends of additional trouble-free hours of riding later.
Parts Kit Status
Note: This information probably hasn't changed since your previous status report.
A parts kit is everything needed to assemble a bike other than the frame and usually the fork. This is also sometimes called a component package or a gruppo.
If you or your retailer are ordering a parts kit from Seven, we have nearly all of your 30-plus components ready to go, and we're fairly confident that the estimated ship date (ESD) we show on your bike status tracker landing page — where you logged in — is pretty accurate.
This is a complex step because we curate each of the more than 30 components for your unique bike. We have many of the components in inventory, some parts we most likely special ordered for your bike, too. If we expect any delays due to ongoing industry wide supply chain problems or incorrect information from our suppliers, we will update your ESD tracker immediately and we will email your retailer an alert right away. You will hear from your retailer if there is a component that might impact the estimated delivery date. Fortunately, in nearly every case, we can recommend an alternative component that is available sooner.
Defining lead time and shipping date estimates
Note: This information hasn't changed since your previous status report.
The custom bike-building process is complex. So, when we provide an estimated date for any step along the journey for your unique bike, it is not a promise or guarantee, even though that date is statistically likely to be accurate.
We work with thousands of components from dozens of suppliers. It is impossible to have 100% certainty that every part from every supplier will arrive at the precise time provided to us. If this happens for one of your bike parts, we will let you know the situation and possibly recommend an alternative component. Whether we are sourcing the part or your retailer is, be patient and understand that the bike industry supply chain is completely broken.
Seven's handmade custom framebuilding process is equal parts craft, engineering, and art. The artistic portion of the process cannot be rushed or automated. Additionally, the very nature of the literally limitless number of options we offer means that precise timelines are impossible and reckless to make. We'd much rather not make foolhardy statements, but we understand you want to know when you can expect to be riding your custom-designed-unique-never-before-built-and-never-to-be-duplicated-one-of-a-kind-rolling-artwork. We remember how anxious we were when we had our first Seven on order! Always remember that our lead time and shipping date estimates are estimates.
If our estimated ship date is off, whether because of supplier challenges or a miscalculation about the time required to design or build your unique frameset, please remember that two years from now, when you're riding in places and ways you never thought possible — on the best bike you've ever owned — that a few weeks or even months of delay will be meaningless in the time horizon of your Forever Seven bike.
We ask you to be patient and understanding as we work two shifts and seven days a week to meet your expectations of quality, performance, and time frames.
You can find more information about our lead time here.
Looking for additional information?
If you have any questions, please contact your retailer first. It is important that they are in the loop. If they cannot answer your questions, email us.
For Your Records
If you'd like a permanent record of this information, we suggest you copy and paste this page's text into a document of your own and for your records. While we keep all of your information — dates, descriptions, changes in the estimated time frame — in our records for your bike, this public page changes over time based on real-time information.
In other words, the information presented here is accurate for your specific bike at this moment only.
If you come back to this page in a few months, the information and dates shown will be have changed and no longer be relevant to your bike. The information you're viewing when your bike is at this step in the process is the only time this page's information is accurate for you.
Design And Framebuilding Steps We've Already Completed
You've probably already reviewed these steps as your Seven went through each milestone. We keep the past steps recorded here for your easy reference.
What an incredible journey so far. It gets even better from here!
| # | Step | Details | Estimated Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | We received your order! | We've entered all the information into our database, design program, and spreadsheets. We emailed you to set up a phone interview. | 48 hours |
| 2 | We're designing your first draft proposal | We do this before your interview because it helps us plan and ask the right questions during our conversation. | ~1 week |
| 3 | Interview with you | We talk with you about your design ideas, how you'll use your Seven, and lots more. | ~20 minutes |
| 4 | We finalize your bike design | Your Seven designer takes the information from our interview to finalize your design. We send the PDF design pack to your retailer. | ~1 week |
| 5 | Your retailer reviews Seven's design proposal with you | Set a time to meet with your retailer to confirm the fit, options, and parts kit specifications, and then return the signed Confirmation Form for Seven to begin the building process. Your retailer session may include a bike fitting. If you're happy with the design, you and your retailer sign off for Seven to begin the build process.
If you'd like changes, your retailer provides them to your Seven designer. |
~1 to 2 weeks |
| 6 | We incorporate your updates | We make amendments and changes until you are happy with the design. We usually get it perfect on the first round, but if you've thought of additions or updates, we always incorporate them. | ~1 week |
| 7 | We're printing the blueprint packet for your framebuilder | Once you've signed off on your design, your framebuilder starts working right away. Your frameset is in our build queue while we assemble all the elements your builder needs including the tubeset and small part. We're also pulling together all of the bike components you've ordered. | ~2 days |
| 8 | We're pulling together your bike components | As soon as we receive your signed go ahead to build your bike, we collect the components you've chosen and order any parts we don't have in stock.
Most of the parts we specify are available within reasonable time frames — ready to ship when your frame is ready. However, there can be exceptions to this. If there is a component that may take longer than your frame build, we will let you know and work with you on the best solution. |
~3-6 weeks (when your frame is ready) |
| 9 | We're machining your Frame Kit | We've started cutting metal for your bike! Your Frame Kit is all of the parts that go into your frame including tubing, dropouts, and the small weldments we'll need. | ~3 days |
| 10a | We're building your frameset! | Seven is machining your frame kit into what you would recognize as a bicycle frame. Coping the tube angles, modifying the dropouts, and making it all fit perfectly into our frame jig in preparation for our weld team. Our parts kit team is still working on sourcing and organizing the final components you've ordered. | ~3 days |
| (10b) | Suspension frameset? | If we're building a suspension frameset for you, we make all the parts in house so this adds some time to the process. | ~3 weeks |
| 11 | We're welding your frame | This is where your Seven transitions from a set of individual parts to a single welded frame. | ~3 days |