Bikes come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colours, but unless yours is a custom-made one-of-a-kind design, there are likely hundreds of bike identical to yours. When it comes to fit buying off-the-peg is fine for the vast majority of us, but if you want to stand out from the crowd you’ll have to add some personal touches of your own. That’s where customised components and accessories come in.
In this feature we’re treating customisation as something that will mainly change the look of your bike, as opposed to upgrades that will improve its performance. But of course some custom components and accessories will improve performance too and a custom bike tailored to your riding style definitely should.
Right, let’s dive into some cool ways to personalise your look.
There are loads of different ways to customise your bike and the way you choose to do it will come down to personal preferences. Below are some suggestions, ranging from relatively inexpensive options to more extravagant, money-no-object customisations. While they may not be to everyone’s taste, there are many possibilities and combinations.
Paint, sharpies and stickers
Customising the look of your bike with a unique paint job is one of the most impactful ways to make it your own. This could involve opting for a full respray or choosing a custom build from brands like Ribble, Ridley, Trek and more.
If you’re spending money on a complete bike, there are many ways of ensuring the personal touch. You can always go to a bike shop, of course, and have them take a frameset and build it up to your exact requirements. Some online retailers do something similar. For example, Ribble has a BikeBuilder facility on their website, allowing you to select your frame and then choose everything from groupset to wheels and finishing kit.
Trek’s Project One system and Ridley’s online configurator also let you customise your bike, and there are loads more too such as Pinarello’s MyWay system.
If you don’t want to buy a new frame you can always take your existing bike to a painting specialist like Fat Creations and have them create a unique finish for you. If you’re feeling adventurous, you could even try something more DIY and let loose with a Sharpie and a clear coat – like how National Hill Climb champ Harry MacFarlane created a unique look on his Cervélo R3.
There are also loads of places where you can buy stickers for your frame, helmet, and more, or opt for vinyl wraps and custom logos. If you prefer something simple, name stickers can add a personal touch and be picked up for a few quid.
Small details, big impact
There are plenty of small details you can customise that will still make a big impact to add a splash of colour to your bike.
One of the easiest ways to customise your bike is by changing the handlebar tape. It’s a small upgrade that can make a big difference in both looks and comfort.
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You don’t need to stick with standard black tape when there’s an endless variety of colours, patterns and finishes available. You can match it to your bike’s frame, go for a classic look or choose something eye-catching like camo, neon or metallic finishes.
Why stop there? You could also swap out the standard bar plugs for some custom designs or ones with an anodised finish.
Sticking with the cockpit, Kapz boasts that it can provide you with anything you can imagine on a headset cap. You can either go for a stock cap from the range – there are a zillion different ones to choose from – or have an image, design or logo of your own slung on there. You’ll pay £24.95 for a full colour headset cap.
Kapz also offers custom handlebar end plugs, headset spacers and laser etched bolts. You can get custom drinks bottles too (£14.95), with no minimum order.
Adding skins to your bike computer or choosing a coloured out-front bike computer mount can further personalise the cockpit. And don’t forget the coloured bolts – you can add them just about everywhere.
Performance and functional customisation
There are thousands of different saddles to choose from, but if you struggle to find a saddle that works for you and would prefer something made-to-measure, custom-made options are available.
3D-printed bike saddles are gaining popularity, with custom options from Czech tech company Posedla’s Joyseat and Fizik’s personalised 3D-printing service, One-to-One. These will cost you £390 and around £459 respectively.
You may also want to consider upgrading your brake callipers to something like the Hope RX4+ callipers which come in a choice of six different colours and offer a lightweight, bling and serviceable way to get more power from your brake.
You can also match these callipers with thru axles and brake rotor lockrings from brands like Hope and Wolf Tooth, offering a variety of colour options to complete the look.
Wheels and drivetrain bling
To add a striking look to your bike, consider swapping in a gold or coloured chain. For extra customisation, add some coloured tubeless valves – bonus points if these match your callipers, thru axles and brake rotor lockrings.
> Are expensive carbon wheels worth it?
Don’t forget about your wheels—many brands allow you to spec your rims, hubs, and spokes in custom colours. To complete the look, consider pairing them with tan wall tyres.
The ultimate customisation: made-to-measure
The best way to customise your bike it to have it made to measure, but for many, this remains a money-no-object dream.
A custom frame lets you choose every detail, from the geometry to the material, ensuring your bike is tailored to you and your riding style.
Accessories
For those who want to extend the customisation beyond the bike itself, custom-painted shoes or sunglasses (or even limited edition versions) can complete the look.
If normal Oakley shades aren’t exclusive enough you can have a custom pair made up for you from a range of different models.
You could choose the Radar EV frame, for example, then select the frame colour, the lens shape, type and colour, and the colour of the Oakley O icon and the ear socks (the rubbery temple grippers). You can even have a little etching added in the corner of the lens. Prices vary according to the spec you choose, but the glasses shown here are £230 (including £15 for the lens etching).
Ekoi also allows you to customise several models. You get to choose the colour of the frame, the arms, the lens, the nosepiece and the temples. There’s lens engraving and name printing on the arms too.
If it’s custom shoes you’re after, there are many people out there who will customise shoes with artwork of your choice, the price depending on the design you’d like.
Alternately, Lake allows you to customise its CX403 ($624.99 US) and CX/MX333 ($574.99 US) shoes. You can choose the colour of the various panels and logos along with the heel and toe protectors and Boa dials.
What customisations have you made to your bike? Let us know in the comments section below.
23 thoughts on “How to customise your road or gravel bike to make it uniquely yours”
What about drawing on white
What about drawing on white shoes with sharpies?
Yorkshire wallet wrote:
Co-incidently something i’m about to experiment with, starting with this purple one on the desk. I may get the kids involved too… 😀
Shoes peaked with the Giro
Shoes peaked with the Giro empire.
All the messing with markers and etchasketch on your kickers and golf socks has all gone a bit ‘talk a bout ridin and not really ride’
Gotta wonder how long it
Gotta wonder how long it takes some cyclists to “get ready” for a ride. I suspect that pulling on a pair of shorts and pinching the tyres doesn’t really cover it for the guys who customise their own shoes.
Morat wrote:
A good ride probably includes 20 minutes of pre-ride aero-beard adjustment, not including a serious think about sock length and whether to wear a cap, cap under hat and peak up or peak down.
Blimey – lighten up guys,
Blimey – lighten up guys, scribbling is just fun – this pair of shoes are mostly white, which I find dull, I have some time waiting in between test and compilation runs and there’s a big tin(s) of Sharpies downstairs.. what’s not to like ? I imagine they really won’t take any longer to put on afterwards and might be interesting to see what the kids do if they get a chance !
fukawitribe wrote:
I had a go at this one bored evening.. it took ages and although I sorta like the result, I really can’t be bothered to do the other shoe… so just the one sharpied shoe for me then.
I customize my shoes with
I customize my shoes with scuffs from my falls and my socks with blood. Does that count?
I customize my shoes with
[quote=The_Vermonter]
I customize my shoes with scuffs from my falls and my socks with blood. Does that count?
Yes Vermonter, you are a real rider!! I understand so just go for it.
Where I live, friends also glance down to see how many teeth marks in your cycling shoes from chasing wolf packs snapping at your heels. It is essential to have the correct tyre pressure with good grip to prevent wheelspin under such conditions, or you are done for. Not to worry, my WTB’s always enable me to sprint safely away and out of trouble. Bears are another problem as they tend to ambush riders to steal their jerseys. What I do is to drop a jar of honey or scatter some energy gels which they cant resist, while I make a break for it. It’s all good training for sprint finishes.
#peaksdown
#peaksdown
This article looks like it
This article looks like it was knocked together in 2 mins. What about all the other ways you can customise a bike????…. Come on please think about, anodised bolts (yes I have), anodised headset spacers (yes), beer bottle opener headset spacer (yes and currently on my bike), getting your frame resprayed to your own personalised scheme (yes), anodised seat posts and handlebars (not tried yet), rebuild your wheels using one of the multitude of anodised coloured rims available from Hplus Son (yes), unique style laser cut carbon chainrings (very tempted for a 1×11), dual colour bar tape (yes), brake cable liners available in block and metallic colours (yes), coloured/anodised chains (yes but prefere only the ones with the inner plates coloured/anodised), coloured brake hoods (not my cup of tea), etc, etc
So many ways you can that were missed by this article
macrophotofly wrote:
the best way to customise your bike is to have it made to measure.
Do any of them allow you to
Do any of them allow you to pick the same colour for the frame and logo, so that you don’t have to ride around with a big f* off logo plastered down the side?
mdavidford wrote:
I tried that on the Bianchi site and they said ‘selection not allowed’. I think you can pick matt and gloss in the same colour though.
What happened to elegance?
What happened to elegance?
simonmb wrote:
disc brakes killed it.
andyp wrote:
Personally I love the look of ’em, at least the more recent flat mount hydraulics and sleek STIs. To my engineering and aethestic senses they actually look like a integral part of the machine, increasingly flowing and smart, the cleaner look of the fork crown and seat stays in particular. Rim brakes always looked like something that got nailed on afterwards, having been forgotten in the design process. Sometimes that ‘thing’ was itself actually a lovely looking piece of machinary – that then got nailed on..
Of course it’s all very personal and I fully understand I shall be ceremoniously hung, drawn and quartered in short order 🙂
A combination of scratches
A combination of scratches and splattered grime means my bike is totally unique.
How about some cable
How about some cable management flowers?
Extra points for matching the
Extra points for matching the bag! Small things
When I was cycling to every
When I was cycling to every Crystal Palace match for a season back in 2016/17, my LBS gave my bike Palace coloured outers.
My custom titanium frame from
My custom titanium frame from Waltly was 1150€ including shipping and customs. I can’t see how this is supposed to be a money-no-object dream. Complete with a used Ultegra mechanical disc grouset and handbuilt carbon wheels the whole 8,9 kg bike didn’t cost more than 2500€ and is a lovely one of a kind bike that does not require aftermarket bar plugs to stand out. I totally recommend Waltly custom titanium frames!
Sadly, one thing to remember
Sadly, one thing to remember is that the more your bike stands out, the more it can attract unwanted attention. Perhaps we need some high-bling U-locks as well, there’s a market opportunity!