58Bianchi

Hey folks - I have a new-to-me 90s-ish Bianchi Cross Project USA Reparto-Corse "Made in Italy" frame. It has been "through the ringer" with hundreds of dings, scrapes, rust, and scratches/rubouts all over it. And, someone, sometime, tried to touch it up and then added some clear over it that has since yellowed and come off in places. The frame is structurally sound and I have cleaned off the rust & most of the crappy clearcoat but the paint is just shot. I see three ways forward:

1. Restore it. This would involve sandblasting and then matching the pearlescent Celeste and decals.
2. Preserve it: Finish cleaning off the rust and touchups and put a clear coat over it, preserving its history.
3. Sell it: It is is not worth my time

Option 1 would be amazing but I would not ride a museum piece. I want something to ride in the mud and gravel that would not be a big deal if it got dinged. Option 2 makes some sense but what kind of aftermarket clear coat would stand up to mud & stones? Option 3 can be appealing when I think about the hassle - maybe just go buy an '80s lugged bike with lots of clearance...

Anyway, what do you think?

dedhed

powder coat is the cheapest way to refinish

Maelochs

Look fine to me. I wouldn't restore it, but those C&V folks might. I would touch it up, build it up, and use it for a town/light touring/ fun-thrash bike. What is the rear dropout width? I see some foolks buikt it up with Deore, which makes me suspect 135.

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...ect-cross.html

https://www.******.com/r/xbiking/com...nts/?rdt=57528

CX Bicycle Gallery: Jim Bailey's Bianchi Cross Project

rosefarts

I haven’t seen a powder coater who does Celeste, but I can’t say I’ve looked.

Spray Bike probably has something pretty close to that. It’s rattle can but it’s supposedly better than basic spray paint.

That’s your compromise option, strip and paint it yourself. You can do a pretty decent job but the paint will be softer than powder coat and there will be some imperfections. So it shouldn’t stress you out to ding it.

Before you do anything, make sure that the frame can accommodate a wide enough tire for you. Lots of older CX bikes max out somewhere around 32mm. That’s just not an enjoyable gravel size unless you’re just hitting short well groomed roads to connect paved roads.

Steel Charlie

I use an old cx bike to to my trailer to the market. Works just fine.

big john

I would just build it up with whatever parts I could find and use it as a beater/gravel bike.

Does it have a fork?

Black wallnut 

Option #4 build it as a CX bike! SS, 1x, or 2X.

mstateglfr 

Then go with option 4, which you didnt mention- sandblast it and powdercoat. Slap a fork on with whatever rake gives you the trail figure you like, and ride the bike.
I had 3 bike frames blasted and powdercoated in 2020 and 2021- 2 of mine and 1 for one of my kids. It was $130 per frame and fork, powder included. It took some calling around because prices were between $130 and 300, but I just dropped the frame and fork off, told them what needed to be covered so coating wouldnt be applied, and let them blast the coat.

The finish is durable and effort is minimal. Thats about the best way I can think of since you dont want it to be a big deal if it gets scratched thru use. As for mud and gravel- everyone's gravel is different, but I cant say I have dented a frame just from riding gravel. Rocks bounce off my steel frames all the time and a few have left tiny marks in the clearcoat, but definitely no dents.

58Bianchi

Already some great ideas - thanks for sharing!

Some follow up:

• I forgot to mention that I think it would be a shame to paint this in anything other than BIANCHI Pearl Celeste. I tried to find a powdercoat close to Celeste on another bike - no dice here in New Hampshire, USA
• The dropouts are the right width for modern rear hubs (same as my roadbikes).
• There is a massive aftermarket chrome fork that came with it. I am thinking about using it as the anchor for my sailboat next summer. Yeah, its heavy.
• I talked with a custom painter - I would be looking at $2-2.5K to return the bike to as new paint in the exact original paint (and it would be so nice I would only look at it and not ride it). Primer, custom matched IMRON, clearcoats, oh my!

I am leaning towards something like this: https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...options-2.html. Preserve & protect; Option 2.

Thanks again!

easyupbug 

Powder coating is $150 here and very durable but you can forget conventional decals. You can spend that much on paint/decals trying to get a restoration done and if you are not an experienced painter your in for trouble.

58Bianchi

Is there such a thing as a clear powder coat that goes over other paint?

SurferRosa

It doesn't look bad at all, especially if you "want something to ride in the mud and gravel that would not be a big deal if it got dinged."

Put first things first: find an appropriate fork, and go from there.

fishboat

RE #1) If you repaint it, it's no longer a museum piece, so I'd ride it. Actually your 'museum piece' is about all I ride as most of my time is spent on two repainted Lemond Poprads.

RE #2) use a 2K clearcoat (and use an organic vapor mask)


RE #3)..nah..it's a nice frame. If you think it'll fit, build it up and ride it.

If it were me..I'd do the cleanup, do very good prep-spray prep, and clearcoat it. The 2K clearcoat above will standup to your intended use and offer durable protection(as long as you have the frame open..use some FrameSaver on it too). Even with the character-building dings and scrapes..it's still a nice frame and it'll have some visual use-patina. If it turns out to be a really nice ride..you can always strip it down, bondo the dings out, and paint it.

If I were inclined to strip and paint the frame..then I'd use automotive-grade rattle cans. The cost will be about the same as a powder coat job and it'll look much nicer (personal opinion). Look around for an auto- parts supplier that does a fair business in mixing/selling auto paints. They'll have a small machine that loads rattle cans with any of hundreds/thousands of auto paint colors. The paint itself is the same quality at auto-refinishers use(it's the same paint). The paint is a pleasure to use. Very fast dry..you can tape(for stripes or second color) on newly sprayed finish after about 45 minutes. Recoat after about 20 minutes..makes for a fast painting and tack-free dry process. Clearcoat the next day and done. You need proper PPE (vapor mask), but they're available for a modest cost. Painting outside is fine at 70-80 degrees and 50-60ish% humidty.

Examples..see post #10 in the following thread.

https://www.bikeforums.net/framebuil...lear-coat.html

58Bianchi

It is gonna take some time and some prowling in the used market places to find a 1" threaded fork with cantilever posts. I can always use the Chrome boat anchor until I find something more appropriate (or sell it with the chrome boat anchor).

fishboat

Possibly, but not at all a general rule, not even close. Before last year I'd never touched "bike painting", let alone doing it with auto-grade paints. I painted two bikes and they came out fantastic. I get compliments every time I ride them. They are certainly about 1000% better than when i started. You have to do a little research on how to use the paints, but this is pretty easy(or send me a pm..or search for a few threads here on BF about painting..particularly those of Doug Fattic ). See my post above.

noimagination

It's "through the wringer". See attached image. Sorry, not sure how to get an image in my post.

fishboat

I didn't look for Celeste paint in the paint chip books my paint supplier had (about every make/model of car made currently and going back decades), but I'd bet there's a color out there that's very close to Celeste***. You could do an amazingly-close paint job yourself for less than $200 and not feel bad about riding it everyday. Professional painters get top-level mirror gloss finishes by putting effort and time in (specifically wet sanding after primer, color coat, clear coat..., polishing..). I chose not to go the wet sanding route for a couple reasons, but the finishes I ended up with are very, very nice.

***If you compare Celeste finishes from Bianchi over a range of years, you'll note different shades in the color they use.

fishboat

Experts are those that have had the chance to make every mistake possible.

mstateglfr 

Celeste is like Molteni Orange- there are a dozen shades of it. To each their own on refinishing, but that frame would just look good in anything new and clean.

cyclezen

Yup, clean as best possible touchup with mixed model paint to get close to celeste, get a CF fork with 1" steerer. I've been using Kinesis forks, they work great, and the ones I have have the traditional graceful bend in fork blakes - not straight... ANd they ride great ! IN the mean time, keep your eyes open for a traditional steel chrome fork, just in case you ever have a hankering to go full boat Vintage...
Build and ride the snot out of it. My guess it'll become a regular ride...
Ride On
Yuri

58Bianchi

Here is my current cyclocross bike after a typical ride. It does not make sense to do a $2k paint job on a bike routinely exposed to this.

Built from the parts box as a good cyclocross bike should. It once was a 27 inch wheeled Univega SupraSport. The derailleur hanger has been bent one too many times and may break off the frame leaving me in the woods on some unpatrolled abandoned rail ROW.

wolfchild

I would make it my project bike...Painting doesn't need to be expensive if you use spray cans and do it yourself... Sand the frame down with some sandpaper, prime it and paint it with flat black or some other stealthy dark color. After painting convert it to singlespeed.

veganbikes

If the bike is in good shape and no rust though the frame and no major damage or anything I would use frame saver and use some nail polish and build it up with some fun parts and just ride it. I wouldn't bother repainting unless it is really in bad shape or I want a different color. Just use it as a beater, those can be fun bikes and fun projects.

SurferRosa

The newbie op of this thread mistakenly replaced his Bianchi fork due to a "recall":

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...ity-check.html

He had canti bosses brazed onto the replacement. You might try reaching out via PM to see if he still has the original fork. It's probably fine unless it's lost or in a landfill.

rosefarts

Came back to add.

Spray.bike has a few close approximations to Celeste. Ariel s pretty close but they’ve got a few others too. I’ve heard great things about that company.

For a fork, the spendy option is Wound Up. They’d be happy to get you a 1” steel steerer on carbon legs and canti posts. Probably cost $600 though.

I’ve seen steel threaded forks in the $5 fork pile at a CO-OP before. They exist.

The almost complete lack of anything even remotely rideable in 1” is why I pretty much won’t take on a retro mod project unless it’s got a fork that i already like.