Weird Robin Mather frame. Any ideas?

[Tom _M]

Saw this crop up on Marketplace near me. I know he builds some slightly more ‘odd’ stuff at times, but struggling to work out what this is. Advert light on detail apart from is for 29” wheels. What puzzled me most is what the hell is the thing sticking up behind the head tube?



As an aside, they’re only after £30 for it, which seems remarkably cheap for a Mather frame if you want one of whatever the hell this thing is.

[calvinhobbes]

Fascinating. Looks like a large 29er frame with sliding dropouts, so designed for singlespeeding. Don't know if it's the angle, but the dropout spacing looks really big, so maybe a fat bike(?)

The only thing that occurs to me about the post is that it could be a bumper for a Jones-style triple clamp fork, to prevent frame damage if the bars/forks swing round. However, I may be grasping at straws as that seems a rather agricultural solution for someone of Robin's skills.

Does remind me that I need to do something with my Robin Mather. I've a 26" MTB that he built for me nearly 20 years ago languishing unloved in the shed.

[lufbramatt]

Steering damper mount? Apparently a thing on fatbikes. Looks like usually they clamp on the the upper headset race but here it's attached to an adapted lug brazed to the top tube?

[dudleybloke]

An incentive spike, a radical method of ensuring full concentration on a run.

[bobbo89]

For £30 I'd be buying it just as an oddity and to try and figure out what it is.

I imagine it'll have some very specific and niche use that only Mather and the guy he made it for know about.

[lufbramatt]

Very similar looking thingy on a tandem:

https://www.mtbr.com/threads/custom-hopey-damper-e...

[bobbo89]

Well found, that's that mystery solved then...

[Tom _M]

Thanks oh wise ones… Roadie myself so not familiar with such things, but nice to satisfy my curiosity. But yes, very niche!