Ryan Brennecke / The BulletinBen Farver, owner of Argonaut Cycles, stands next to one of the bikes he built. Farver recently relocoated Argonaut Cycles from Portland to Bend.

In a cramped, hastily remodeled warehouse in the Century Center, Ben Farver builds some of the most customized racing bikes in the country.

“In terms of this style of fabrication, we’re really the only ones in the country doing this,” Farver said.

Farver, the owner of Argonaut Cycles, manufactures and ships race-style road bicycles, designed for use on paved and gravel roads. But while most bike stores allow customers to pick from the existing inventory, Argonaut Cycles builds and designs custom bikes for each of its customers from the ground up.

“Most of the time my customers have had half a dozen bikes over their lifetime, and they’re looking for something new and special and unique,” Farver said.

Farver has operated Argonaut Cycles since 2007 but has only lived in Bend since October, when the sunlight and outdoor opportunities lured him from Portland.

“I wanted to get back to a smaller town for my family, and the closer access to being able to do things outside was really a big draw,” he said.

Farver said he worked in bicycle shops as a kid growing up in Colorado and began working on bikes with custom steel welding after college, but he was eventually drawn to carbon fiber for bikes because it allows for greater control over the design process.

“There’s not a whole lot that separates different steel bikes,” Farver said. “With carbon you have more control over the design and engineering.”

The process begins with an interview. Interested customers must fill out a questionnaire , documenting their height, weight and history with biking, as well as what they plan to use their Argonaut bikes for.

“It’s really about getting to know them as a cyclist, in order to have as much info as possible to build the appropriate bike,” he said.

After the customer signs off on the bike design, Farver builds the frame, based on the height and weight of the user, from seven carbon-fiber sections.

“Lighter riders, from a physics standpoint, don’t require as much power to move them,” Farver said. “So they benefit from not having quite as stiff of a bike.”

All told, Farver said, the build process takes about 10 to 12 weeks, including gathering details for the build, assembling the bike and adding paint.

Customers pay for Argonaut’s services. The company’s website says completed bikes start at $9,000, but Farver said most bikes end up costing between $12,000 and $14,000.

“The level of craftsmanship that goes into them as well as the level of technological sophistication inside the frame really sets them apart,” Farver said.

A lot of Farver’s customers aren’t in Oregon at all. Farver said he sells to people all over the country, from California to the East Coast, and nearly 30 percent of his sales were outside the country.

Because of this, customers typically find Farver through cycling forums and social media, where he maintains an active presence. While Farver wants to see more people from Bend in the shop, he wants to build up his client base “slowly and organically.”

“I think just moving to town and having expectations of being the new local bike builder is a bit presumptive,” he said. “I want to get established in the local community before I start selling people bikes.”

— Reporter: 541-617-7818, shamway@bendbulletin.com

Q: How would you describe the type of bikes that you make?

A: Ben Farver: They’re your summer race bike, your nicest bike. A lot of our customers have a commuter bike, and maybe a winter bike with fenders. This is the bike that they would ride from May through October, the season when they get the most miles in.

Q: On your website, you say that the Pacific Northwest is the best place for cycling. Why do you think that is?

A: Just the diversity of the landscape and the lack of people. Compared to the East Coast, it’s fairly easy to get out of populated areas, and it’s so pretty.