Rob recently visited to test ride a couple of our demo. Resolution bikes, to narrow down the size and get a feel for steel. He wrote the following piece afterwards and it helps to explain things quite nicely, in a way in which I wouldn’t have written myself, so I thought I would share it here.

“Like many, I have been avidly following the developments since Dom Mason moved on to develop his own bike brand. I was lucky enough to meet up with Dom, who spared a morning to take me through the details of his designs. There are 2 things that strike you when you meet Dom, first is his passion for what he does, and the second is the attention to detail. Every detail of the Resolution and Definition frames have been painstakingly pored over, every decision sweated over.

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Dom talked me through the tube selection, fork prototyping and design, and development of the MultiPort. As a self confessed geek with a grounding in science and engineering, it was fascinating talking to him about the development and little details. I really enjoyed getting to hold raw tubes, looking at the differences in finish and wall thicknesses, whilst Dom explained the decisions that he had made. The D section Columbus Spirit down-tube, that is rotated to mount in a non-standard orientation, the way he had played with chain-stay orientation resulting in better clearance. It was a really tactile experience holding these raw elements that form the DNA of a frame.

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More recently I visited Dom again to take the Resolution for a test ride. Even better, being short of leg and long of body, I'm undecided on sizing so got to try the 54cm, and then the 51cm (Production model will be 52cm). Dom was keen for me to experience the stiffness in the bottom bracket area that he had experienced whilst developing the frame, so I made sure I included a couple of climbs in my short test loop. My previous experiences of steel have been on MTBs, so I didn't know what to expect when I set off, but was pleasantly surprised by the instant response to pedal input.

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The back end feels really tight and stiff, more akin to an aluminium frame, yet this is localised to the rear wheel, the front end is more accommodating whilst still having a direct response. Looking down at the hub in the fork, the way that the fork legs splay out is noticeable, it's a lovely curve, and a really nice design feature that I can't help but wonder if that helps the front feel so comfortable – acting a little like a leaf spring perhaps with some compliance? Up a hill and out of the saddle, and yes that BB area is stiff, the oversized BB meeting the large down-tube for maximum weld area, no doubt helped by the quite substantial chain-stays where they meet the BB. Whilst the seat-tube takes a 27.2mm post, it too is oversized – so no wonder this key area feels so stiff and direct.

Having said that it is stiff and direct, this only applies to pedal feedback and power transfer, the ride itself is very forgiving. A combination of the compliance in seat-stay/chain-stay arrangement, and the steel filtering out the road buzz. A clatter through some of Brighton's potholes didn't upset the bike, or the rider. I'm sure that the wider tyres, and excellent Hunt wheelset also had their part to play in this.

So a hop off the 54cm and onto the 51cm. I've never tried two sizes back to back like this before, and didn't think there would be much difference in the ride characteristics. Well I was wrong. OK, it could all be completely subjective and in my head, but it felt like there was a little more snap to the frame. A couple of quick changes of direction to avoid a particularly large pothole felt more direct and responsive.

So to sum up for a real world ordinary rider, the Resolution is a bike that you can put the throttle down and give it what you've got, and it will reward you with a grin on your face.  You can also kick back and take it for a longer ride, following your nose and losing yourself in the moment – it will happily accommodate both.