CyclistMeet the maker: Driss Boucif of Boucif Custom BikesDriss Boucif is a man who lives and breathes bikes. When hes not riding them hes scouring scrap heaps for his next frame to upcycle. And when hes not busy tinkering away in his workshop-cum-skatepark, you can probably find him pulling wheelies through the streets of Leuven, Belgium, with his band of merry youths.Ah yes, Wheelie Wednesday! Its great weve been doing it for about three or four years. Everybody meets up at the workshop, then we eat something and go riding around the city on our back wheels. If any of the youngsters dont have a bike to ride, they can take one from me. Related Posts Meet the maker: Bryce Gracey of No.22 Bicycle Company Meet the maker: Tore Juncher Jrgensen of Starfish Bicycles Meet the maker: Fabio Putzolu of Ichnu Cycles Usually the first stop is the skate shop to say hi to the guys there, then well head to get some drinks for everyone. Its a real nice thing. A lot of great young kids come along from all different backgrounds its cool to see.Boucif occasionally puts his front wheel on the ground too. In fact, when we catch up over the phone, hes currently part way through a transcontinental bikepacking trip from his native Belgium to Bilbao, Spain.Driss Boucif built this bike for the 2023 Bespoked show, and hosting a stall as part Srams Inclusivity Scholarship gave him access to some top-end components. Patrik Lundin / CyclistIts heavy, but were enjoying it, he laughs. We just reached France, which was our goal for the day. But yeah, it was bad rain and we were all a bit sick too. Still, we made it in the end.Boucifs bike of choice for the trip is naturally one of his own creations. He has been building frames since his teenage years after initially studying to fix mopeds. Now he runs a workshop out of Leuvens first indoor skatepark a vision he helped his friends bring to life using his practical skills. Here Boucif makes all manner of bicycles, but its his recycled step-through frames for which he is best known.I found a technique to rework a classic womens frame, Boucif explains. It involves cutting out the top tube, flipping it and welding it back in.Patrik Lundin / CyclistI started working this way rather than building frames from scratch because I really didnt have another option. Framebuilding isnt accessible for a young chap with no money, and this way it doesnt have to be that expensive. Most of the frames I get either from scrap yards or as donations from my clients. Some of them are a good 40 years old, but being plain-gauge steel they age pretty well. I actually appreciate the simplicity of working this way now. Its functional too, because the whole frame basically works like a giant leaf spring.Hump-backed bikeThe bike pictured is perhaps the most polished version of Boucifs signature upcycled step-through frames. Its one he built specially for Bespoked 2023, where he hosted a stall as part of Srams Inclusivity Scholarship. Its an initiative designed to promote diversity at the event, offering participants the opportunity to display their work and a chance to build their show bikes out with top-end componentry.Patrik Lundin / CyclistWe wanted to do something really special as it was a special opportunity, says Boucif. We had a meeting about parts, and at first I just asked for simple stuff like maybe some friction shifters and a seven-speed, but they were like, No, no, no, were going to kit you out properly. They offered me the rainbow-drip chain too, so obviously I took that.We got all these parts and I was envisioning making a bike for racing through the city. I was thinking nice big slick tyres and stuff like that. We ended up going with 35mm at the front and 40mm at the back. I like to do it this way because generally the back tyre takes more weight, and I think it makes things look a little sharper overall. I also wanted to go with nice narrow bars for zipping through tight city streets and alleys.Patrik Lundin / CyclistThen I got looking for a worthy frame. I ended up using a Ludo theyre the old Belgian frames I really like.Usually I leave the finishing pretty rough, but I wanted to do the parts justice so I took the time to get everything right. I even had one of my skater friends engrave the forks for me, stuff like that. The build itself didnt actually take too long, although I did put a lot of time into the finishing. Oh, apart from disc brake flat mounts they were a pain in the ass.Patrik Lundin / CyclistAt first glance, you might assume the frame is powder-coated, but its actually graffiti paint a nod to Boucifs second love: Im a big fan of graffiti. I dont write myself, but Im a graffiti dealer. Its actually really good paint. I mean, its not like powder coat but it does the job well. It goes on easy and when it scratches its very easy to touch up. Its almost easier to touch it up than to clean it.Fancy a frame for yourself? The good news is Boucif likes to keep his rates affordable. It varies from frame to frame, but generally prices are capped at around 1,000. Obviously it will change over time because of inflation, but most frames I sell now are between 550 and 800, with 1,000 as the upper limit. This article originally appeared in issue 152 of Cyclist magazine. Click here to subscribe Related Posts Meet the maker: Bryce Gracey of No.22 Bicycle Company Meet the maker: Tore Juncher Jrgensen of Starfish Bicycles Meet the maker: Fabio Putzolu of Ichnu Cycles The post Meet the maker: Driss Boucif of Boucif Custom Bikes appeared first on Cyclist.