ddeand 

I've been rebuilding a 1974 Raleigh International and things have been going pretty well. I decided to rattle-can it and seal it with 2-part clear coat. Things were going pretty well until I removed the masking tape from the Nervex lugs. I figured I'd have some touch-up to do - both removing and adding paint where it was needed. My surprise came when I started doing some of the fine work and realized that even though the International is an upper end bike, it is still a mass production bike that can suffer from different levels of attention to detail. I know the Nervex stuff is intricate, but the level of finishing of the brazed areas was at best - rough. I don't think there's one part of the joint that is smooth and nicely finished. In the end, I was relegated to getting it finished as nicely as possible (which is still pretty decent from a few feet away). I'm not disappointed - I'm pretty sure the bike will look good and ride very nicely. I was just a little surprised. Here's the head tube prior to doing the final finishing work.

Narhay

Some Raleighs were built after a few lunch beers at the local watering hole.

You could try a paint pen to do some lug lining and see if that helps clean it up a bit.

Mad Honk 

+1 on the lug lining. That should clean it up nicely. Smiles, MH

merziac

Despite the greatly varying QC issues, Raleigh's production was nothing short of amazing,100,000's of frames flying out the doors and we still have many, many of them to drool, ogle, fawn and obsess over, most being solid, beautiful well made examples very far down the line.

juvela

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paintin' suggestion -

masking something as intricate as the NERVEX Professional pattern with masking tape is pretty tedious

for smallish wiggly bits like this it is easier to use one of the liquid mask products which are made to apply with a small brush

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Raleigh QC -

during the boom can recall visiting the showroom o' me local agent. there were Reynolds tubing models on display where you could put your fingernail betwixt the lug and the tube...

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ddeand 

I did that, too. I taped the head tube lugs and used liquid mask on the fork lugs - both worked about the same. This was the first time I had masked or taped lugs, so a great deal of quality of the results must be attributed to incompetence on my part. Actually, I might be tempted to just do the detail paint freehand next time. The frame and fork are, for the most part, stunning on several levels. I’ve learned a lot doing this project!

RiddleOfSteel

Have repainted a '70s Schwinn Paramount. Can confirm Nervex Professional lug taping tedium.

gugie 

I’m surprised that the OP is surprised that the finish work on an International isn’t most excellent.

Old Raleighs can look great from 10’. If someone were to give me a set of Nervex lugs today and asked me to build a frame with them, I’d probably quote double and hope the buyer got the hint.

You did a great job, btw!

merziac

Very true and many examples as such, still I've seen some that you could almost see daylight through and yet they are still going decades later.

ddeand 

When it comes to doing repaints, I’m still pretty much a novice. I’m reworking a mystery frame with some high quality lugs but not the complexity of the Nervex lugs, and it’s obvious that they are more amenable to finishing. But those twisty lugs are so pretty! In the end, this bike should look pretty decent from a few feet, and that’s all I want. Thanks!

Last ride 76 

The paint looks good! Lug lining was often used to hide the excess brazing material you "found".
+1 on the liquid mask.
Can you comment on the 2k clearcoat? Was it applied before the headtube picture? Does fine wet sanding improve it. Does it actually make rattle can harder to chip?

Cheers, Eric

ddeand 

Thanks for the comments. As far as the clear coat, I’ll have to see how sturdy it is. I was anxious to get it on the bikes I was building up, so I sprayed outside when it was a little breezy. In some spots, it went on so nicely that I didn’t need to do and sanding. Other areas needed a little smoothing (1000 grit, rubbing compound, polishing compound, wax). The clear coat went on while the lugs were still taped up. I have no doubt that there will eventually be chips and scratches (especially on the bike I’m doing fir my grandson), but that would happen with any bike, I guess. I might spend mire time on the Raleigh’s finish, but I’m trying not to be too compulsive about it. I hope the clear coat stands up - we’ll see. I’ve attached a pic of the clear coat I used (one can for two frames), and another pic of the mystery bike I’m doing for my grandson (before sanding and polishing). Both bikes were rattle-canned with DupliColor I got at the local auto parts store.