Mlamp

I should start by giving praise to the owner of Cyclart Jim, who I spoke with this afternoon. I called to get some general pricing info and am glad I did. I spoke with Jim for probably 45-60 min who shared a ton of knowledge about painting, powder coating and chroming options. Also just chatted about my bike and general info. Real wealth of knowledge and was a great guy to talk with. From the looks of it, he does some very high quality work too.

Any opinions or experience with this shop? I will eventually be having some paint work done and I dont have any actual experience with their quality of work. I am very appreciative of the owner taking the time to really talk with me like he did though.

KonAaron Snake 

Cyclart has quite a mixed rep, and they're very pricey. I know at least three members here who have had disappointing experiences with them. The work I've seen was nothing that special, and I can do without their graphic on everything.

Franklin and southwest are less than half the price, and I think as good or better.

newenglandbike

I have had some minor repair and refinishing work done by Cyclart and I could not have been happier, the work was outstanding and the customer service was great. If you were just going to have a frame repainted entirely there may be other places that could do just as well for less money perhaps-- but where Cyclart stands out is in restorative finishing and repairs. They are quite skilled and knowledgeable in that area. I didn't think their prices were unreasonable for the quality they provide.

Flog00

Franklin in Ohio? I'm planning to use him on a Roberts. You like their work?

repechage

There is at least one blow by blow report on a repair and repaint of a Colnago in the history of this forum that would be enlightening.

I am surprised an extended phone call was possible.
Perhaps as the business is for sale, at least the price is getting closer to reality, it was at $250k , now much much less.

gomango

I would trot any high end project to Chris Kvale, Curt Goodrich or if he wasn't too busy, Dave Anderson.

Perhaps Alex at A Train.

People don't always think of these Twin Cities options, but I sure do.

Ex Pres 

I didn't have the frame painted, but I do own a frame that was painted by them back around '87 ('78 Raleigh Pro). The bike was ridden hard by the original owner, and the paint still looks pretty good considering the age and use (it does have some scrapes & chips)

triathloner

I can't speak for the others, but I've seen Chris Kvale's work and it's fantastic.

CV-6 

Jack has done two frames for me and both are outstanding work. He also did some repair work for me on another frame. Very reasonable (IMO) pricing.

Masi GC 02 by L Travers, on Flickr

PB162212 by L Travers, on Flickr

Flog00

Nice.
He is minutes from my daughters college too. So no shipping. I'll give him a shot.

Mlamp

Glad to hear everyone's opinions. I searched for Southwest and there are quite a few Southwest bike shops out there. where specifically is Southwest located?

Cheers,

Ex Pres 

Since we're offering up alternatives, KAS had mentioned Southwest. I've had one transaction with Dave there. I needed a badly bent fork straightened (on the Motta), and the local guys hadn't had any success, so off it went to SW. Was back promptly, at a very reasonable price, and rides just as straight as you could want.

KonAaron Snake 

I think he's excellent, and fast. A lot of other frame builders use him.

Untitled Document

calamarichris

Cyclart has been painting frames since back in the 80's. They're not cheap or fast, but they do beautiful work.
When I took in my '84 Masi Gran Criterium, the painter Greg said, "We've had this bike before!"
I didn't remember, but sure enough, he was right; when I was racing in the Netherlands back in 1989, I'd snapped a dropout on a cobbled road. I found their ad in a "Winning" Magazine back then and mailed the frame to them. I'd forgotten about it completely, but Greg remembered my bike (from nearly 20 years ago) without even checking records.
They have several layers of service (Cat-1 being the best), and I've always had decent luck with them. Stuff takes a while if you need it chromed, partly because chroming is costly here in California.

Drillium Dude 

See this thread, then decide if you want to roll the dice:

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vi...ld-thread.html

Based on personal experience, I'm not a fan of CA. They did two frames for me. One was a disaster from beginning to end, the other resulted in a decent but not outstanding refinish. From what I've seen/read from others here, there are guys that do much better work with much less drama for less money.

DD

Grand Bois

Go see Ed Litton. He does beautiful work and you can avoid the dangers and expense of shipping.

Ed litton

KonAaron Snake 

I had a Litton painted Sachs. He's a super nice guy, but his paint is thicker and less defined than Franklin and Southwest.

Vonruden

Joe Bell

repechage

In a face to face transaction, I think Ed would be fine, not remotely though.

gomango

That's where I would go if I went out of town.

BTW Our forum member Sloar's paint jobs are extra durable.

The one he did on my Croll lasts like Imron.

Tough stuff.

Drillium Dude 

Is he taking requests (I have one final bare frame looking for some clothing)?

DD

gomango

Never hurts to ask.

CMC SanDiego

I recently needed a fork steer tube cut down and threaded, and Joe Bell was the only local I could find with the tools to do the work. He is a very nice guy and when I was dropping off and picking up I got to look at some of the beautiful paint jobs he was doing on some great frames. I wouldn't hesitate to take a frame to him for an exquisite finish.

gomango

I have a buddy that has an early 80s Richard Sachs.

The frame was very rough and he sent it Joe Bell for the refinish work.

I must say that it is one of the nicer refinish projects I have ever witnessed.

Not cheap, but in this case was worth every nickel.

Henry III

Doesnt Joe Bell currently paint Sachs frames?