ldmataya 

I dug out this thrift store score I've had sitting in the cellar for a few of years. They didn't really know what it was other than they were able to read the headbadge, so my investment to date is less than a bottle of decent bourbon. I was hoping that the blue paint, some of which literally fell off when I disassembled it, would come off pretty easy and I might have a useful lizard yellow patina underneath. The chrome is in great shape, the chainguard is almost perfectly straight, cranks and handlebars will clean up and it has the original brake levers. Yeah, someone also painted the rims white so I will just salvage the hubs. We have the companion donna/ladies Legnano city bike in very good shape, so it has a partner in waiting.








These are the before pictures, and in the next post I'll show the paint stripping outcome.

iab

What people are thinking, I haven't a clue.

Good luck with the cleaning. Maybe heat on the stubborn bits?

ldmataya 

The after blue paint stripping results. I see why they sprayed it with something, many places where all the original paint was gone and/or surface rusted. I'm a big fan of patina but I didn't get very much original paint back. So now I'm trying to decide if I do a partial refinish, just lay some clear coat over everything and fake some distressed transfers? Has anyone else tried a partial refinish as in just put some paint back in the bare spots and go with that. I'm not a fan of the cost of a new lizard yellow paint job given this is going to be a rider. When I fix up a single speed city bike, I can always find someone to ride it.

iab

Skip the clear, car wax will do just fine, unless you ride it in the wet.

ldmataya 

Ha, great idea. Right now it has a coat of Pennzoil on it. After writing that post I realized I like it more than I thought I would. And the fenders have more paint left than the frame does.

Spaghetti Legs 

Yeah, tough call, but I think for a cruise around town purpose looks alright. Cool bike!

For the peanut gallery - a couple of lines on the stripping technique?

juvela

-----

bottom bracket shell appears Agrati pattern "SPORT" Nr. 005.8057

fork crown is NERVEX pattern Nr. 5


have not before seen a NERVEX crown on a Bozzi product
certainly does not mean none were ever employed

wonder if fork original

contour of blades more resembles a french product than an italian one

you could check steerer to see if it is metric

do fork ends appear a good match for dropouts?

chainset is mixed

drive side arm appears it may be a Way-Assauto

non-drive side arm appears more of a generic replacement

chainguard appears a Mazzucchelli product



original handgrips would have been REG (Rampinelli); here is a set on a Legnano -



-----

oneclick 

Careful with that little plate in the stem, it may have a painted/enamelled design under that blue.

ldmataya 

On the chrome I just used a heat gun to soften the paint- then it comes right off with steel wool. But I didn't think that would work on the painted surfaces and my spot check confirmed it - heat was quickly melting both layers. So I used a non-toxic chemical stripper, tried to just apply to the blue. It took 2-3 attempts and I couldn't wait very long before it would start melting the original paint - about 30-45 minutes before I started removing. After scraping with a body filler spatula, I used fine steel wool and lots of water to get the remaining blue off.

AdventureManCO 

Good call - you can see it poking through in spots.

ldmataya 

Indeed the fork is not original, I failed to point that out. The original fork is bent over 2 inches on one blade so not planning to try and fix. This was one I had sitting around.
Thanks for the other info - finding the bar grips might be a challenge.

ldmataya 

Thanks, yes I have not attempted to uncover that yet. Note these function as both the emblem plate and a plug to cover the stem expander bolt hole. It was already separated into two pieces but if I can restore the emblem it will function fine with a plug made from plumbing leftovers.

juvela

-----

another item to treat with gloves of kid is the machine's seat binder

readers report them to be a challenge to locate...



-----

RustyJames 

They definitely can be. Our friend Portlandjim was making repros a few years back. I was missing the female end on mine and fabbed one from an old bolt.

dedhed

https://www.vicegripgarage.com/produ...tina-preserver