About Velopedia
Bicycle knowledge for the life of the bike.
Velopedia is an independent bicycle reference for discovering a model, understanding how it works, and documenting the physical bicycle you own—from first search to next owner.
What is Velopedia?
Discover. Understand. Own.
Velopedia connects a technical encyclopedia, practical guides, more than 50,000 historical bicycle records, original archive research, seven workshop calculators, and private records for bicycles people own.
These are parts of one useful workflow: identify and research a bicycle, understand its technology and service needs, then keep a clear record of how a specific physical bike is configured, maintained, and passed on.
What you will find here
One connected path through the life of a bike
Discover
Search the Bicycle Archive, compare models, browse reviewed brand references, and follow long-term changes through Velopedia’s original archive Trends.
Understand
Use technical explanations, practical guides, bicycle-specific inspection guidance, ride analysis, and transparent calculators built around real workshop questions.
Own
Create a private record for a physical bicycle, track its setup, upgrades, inspections and service history, then prepare a Bike History Report or transfer the record to its next owner.
Physical-bike records
The Archive describes the model. My Garage documents the bicycle in front of you.
A Garage member can begin with an exact Archive model or add a bike that is not yet in the Archive. The bike’s photo and specification details are optional, and its identity, setup, history, and private notes remain private unless the owner deliberately creates a buyer-facing report.
What one record can hold
- 01Identity, owner photo, setup, and optional specifications
- 02Documented upgrades, inspections, and service history
- 03A revocable Bike History Report for a buyer
- 04Mark sold or archived, transfer ownership, or permanently delete
Clear provenance: Velopedia Archive information and owner-entered history are shown as different sources. A Bike History Report organizes the record; it is not an independent inspection, ownership check, or guarantee of condition.
Why Velopedia exists
Useful bicycle information should not disappear when a product page does.
The answer someone needs may be buried in an old service manual, divided among compatibility charts, or gone because a manufacturer replaced a discontinued product page. Riders and mechanics repeatedly have to reconstruct the same information.
Velopedia gives that work a lasting home: preserve useful technical and historical detail, connect it, explain it clearly, and make it usable while researching, servicing, buying, owning, or selling a bicycle.
Who is behind Velopedia?
Hi, I’m Jeffrey South.
I’ve worked in the bicycle industry since 1995, with experience in bicycle service, retail, technical support, parts identification, and shop ownership.
Most of that work has been hands-on, across several generations of mountain, road, gravel, suspension, drivetrain, braking, wheel, and e-bike systems. Velopedia is where I bring that practical background together with manufacturer documentation and technical sources to build a useful, dependable reference.
Editorial approach
How the work is handled
- 01
Use manufacturer documentation, compatibility charts, patents, technical manuals, and established technical sources whenever available.
- 02
Keep the engineering detail that matters, then explain it in clear language.
- 03
Separate documented facts from practical observations.
- 04
Present advantages alongside limitations and engineering trade-offs.
- 05
Avoid unsupported claims and promotional language.
- 06
Distinguish historical specifications from current manufacturer information.
- 07
Explain the inputs, assumptions, coverage, and limits behind calculations and original archive research.
- 08
Clearly label owner-entered Garage history, and review published material when better sources become available.
Independence
The subject comes first.
Velopedia is not built around affiliate rankings, sponsored recommendations, or promotional coverage. Brands and products appear when they matter to the technology, history, component, bicycle, or system being documented.
The goal is simple: build a dependable bicycle reference for riders, mechanics, buyers, researchers, and industry professionals.
Corrections & updates
Found something that needs another look?
Bicycle technology changes, and historical records are not always complete. Corrections are checked against the best available technical and historical sources.
Send a correction