Bramfield nuclear engineer turns bespoke bicycle maker

By day, Mark Sinnett can be found at Sizewell, where he works as a nuclear operations engineer.

However, his evenings and days off are spent at his workshop in Bramfield, near Halesworth, where he painstakingly crafts unique bicycles for fellow enthusiasts.

This began, laughed Mr Sinnett, as “a hobby that got out of hand”.

After years spent racing his own bikes around the Suffolk countryside on his own adapted models, Mr Sinnett began receiving requests from fellow cycling fanatics.

Mark Sinnett works meticulously to get each bicycle frame perfect. (Image: Lucy Taylor) Mark spends around 20 hours working on each frame. (Image: Lucy Taylor) Mark works on 10 bicycle frames each year, to give him time to ensure the quality of each one. (Image: Lucy Taylor)

“I had bought a couple of custom bicycles for myself in the past, and I was a little bit disappointed with the finished product, and the customer service side of things, too,” explained Mr Sinnett, whose own background is in mountain and road bikes.

“It’s a process that you have the potential to really enjoy – getting pictures and updates, and the comfort of being kept in the loop as to where your order is and what is happening with your bike.

“That’s something I’ve tried to take forward – you’re a bit of a dream maker in many ways, because people have got a lot invested in their bikes, not just financially but emotionally as well.”

Mark standing proudly beside these finished models. (Image: Lucy Taylor)

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Mark balances his bespoke bicycle business with his day job as a nuclear operations engineer. (Image: Lucy Taylor) This led to him beginning his own bike-making business two years ago, Sinnett-Bicyles. While his wife, Vicky Sinnett, keeps the business’ social media pages updated, Mr Sinnett works on making the bikes.

He spends around 20 hours on each bicycle, producing 10 frames per year.

“We have the insurance and the capability of making far more than that – but to make them exclusive and top quality, I give them the attention to detail they need,” explained Mr Sinnett.

However, in years to come, he hopes to make bicycles full-time.

A third colleague was on the scene in the form of Puddy the cat. However, Puddy found himself made redundant after the business moved to its current workshop.

“His attention span was rather limited anyway,” said Mr Sinnett.

For more information, visit: sinnett-bicycles.co.uk