Van Halen tribute bike sets the tone for WyndyMilla's reinvention

A Mexico City Eddie Van Halen fan has commissioned a WyndyMilla Massive Attack to be decorated in tribute of the American musician, complete with a paint job reminiscent of the singer's own ‘Frankenstrat’ custom guitar.

WyndyMilla, the UK custom bike brand which merged with Spoon Cycles last year, created the custom bike, before photographing it centre stage. It says that this design shows that, under new ownership, it can mix a "serious approach to engineering and good ideas with some of that traditional WyndyMilla playfulness."

That said - having last reviewed a Massive Attack bike back in 2019 - awarding it a 10/10, we can't say we ever doubted the brand's engineering approach or ideas.

The top cap graphic, with its 'Tone' control mimics the solo adjustment dial on Van Halen's legendary custom guitar. The lead guitarist and songwriter removed both tone controls, wiring the pickups into a simple circuit, then used the 'Tone' knob on the volume control port - leaving him with just one adjustment available.

A huge, illuminated guitar carrying the iconic pattern has was raised at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, in Hollywood, following Van Halen's death.

WyndyMilla's team discovered that the guitar's red paint was inspired by the colour of a Schwinn bike, so the deep red hue was based upon this.

Commenting on the build, new WM owner Andy said, “The bike is really bold. It’s tricky to nail that without overdoing it and that takes time skill. I love Van Halen (who doesn’t) so it was a dream brief and lovely to be able to pay our respects in a meaningful way. The whole team have been involved and we’ve been really excited about sharing it with people.”

The bike itself is WyndyMilla's Massive Attack, which uses Toray T1000 fibres, and performed well in our last review.

The bike wears Enve wheels, with whom WynyMilla/Spoon Customs have a direct relationship, and a Campagnolo Record/Super Record EPS groupset.

WyndyMilla merged with Spoon Customs in January 2020. Its owners say they are making "big changes", removing the coffee shop and "complex merch ranges" in place of a claimed "laser focus on.. bikes and bike customers."

In a press release, the owners said "under new leadership, [WyndyMilla is] focusing growth on their Massive Attack Disc bike, through which they are delivering a more meaningful experience of buying, co-creating and owning a custom bike designed for the physiology and riding style of their individual customers." This sentiment surprised us at Cycling Weekly, as we were always rather impressed with WynyMilla's customer service and fitting reputation.

The company says that it is soon to launch a crowdfunding campaign, with updates promised via the Spoon Customs website.