zach_berger

Hi all - I have come to the bike forums because I am stuck on what to do with my Bridgestone. I recently purchased the frame and fork and made a project out of building it into a revived road bike with modern parts. I want to do it right though and go through the time and effort to make the bike look pretty.

So, I have disassembled it all to get it ready for a respray. The bike as a whole is in great condition and could be rode as is, but there are some obvious spots that need help. Here's the tough part. I don't know what to do to respray it. I know powder coating is great and tough, but then I'd lose the original decals (which I love) and the lugs wouldn't look nearly as good as powder coating is thick. A paint finish would look better but not be as tough, and again, I'd lose the original decals.

I have found RB2 decals online, but they aren't in the original cursive like my '89 is in. I guess option three is touch up paint to cover the bad spots but obviously that won't be as nice as a full respray. But at least then I can keep the decals. So there's that issue. Also, anyone have thoughts on changing the color? I originally wanted to respray it to a Porsche color, Arena Red. But, it is my first couple weeks seeing the bike in person as I bought it sight unseen and the color (sort of a turquoise color) has really grown on me. Any advice on either issue would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Note: I'd post a photo but since I am new it is saying I can't do so until I have 10 posts. :-(

Bianchigirll 

Welcome to the forums. There has been much philosophizing on the subject

zach_berger

Thanks for the reply! Didn't know I was going down a wormhole here oh well hopefully something will be figured it

Pompiere

Before you make a decision on painting, I would build the bike up to make sure it fits and you like the ride. After that, it's up to you how you want to proceed. But having done a couple, painting is a lot of work to do right.

Marylander

I just asked the powdercoat guys to make the coat thin. I think it turned out well.

RobbieTunes

+1
This
Redundant.

If it fits and rides well, and you decide to keep it, then you decide on decorating.
Currently, you have a choice. Choose while you can.

Powdercoating is protection-oriented, appearance secondary.
+ Cheaper
+ More durable
+ Can look very good
+ Decals can be applied over.
+/- Is an industrial process, not a craft.
+/- Can take clearcoat over decals, but tends to look much thicker.
- Loses some definition on lugs and lines
- Can go horribly wrong (runs/thick)
- Hard to remove.

Painting is appearance-oriented, protection secondary.
+ Looks better
+ Closer to OEM
+ Decals can be applied over
+ More amenable to clear coat over decals
+ Is a craft
- Less durable
- A lot more expensive done right
- Requires skill
- Is a craft.

My general approach is, "Am I or the eventual owner going to ride it hard and not worry?" Then powdercoat. $ 1x.
These always go to the person who "just wants a bike to ride."

My general approach is "Is this a keeper for artistic and craft value, or will I sell it as such? Then paint. $ 5x.
These go to pickier people who are more about the bike itself.

I saved enough $ by powdercoating to soup it up a bit. $75. I asked the powdercoater what was thin.
His truck wheels were this color, they looked great, and the color was close to 6800 Ultegra.
The fork is now a Look. Looks better.





I did not save a dime on this, in a real sense. It's painted.
Few powdercoaters would do this, but it's still not much more detailed than the powdercoat.
Now belongs to Spaghetti Legs .
As a caveat, he is not "all about the bike." He rides 'em like they're powdercoated.

zach_berger

Very pretty bikes! I like both coats and colors! I think I have decided to, as both of you suggested, build it up first. I also took it to an LBS and they suggested the same thing, actually even one step further! They said don't paint it at all, and I am with them. It would save money, the bike right now is in great shape, and I'm starting to feel like the little dings and marks is just my bike proudly wearing its 31 years of being on the road. And, of course, I get to keep the sweet '89 cursive RB2 and Synergy decals which still look factory fresh. Hopefully I'll get building in a week or two as final parts and tools roll in. For a little taste, I like old things matched with new parts to bring them up to modern 'performance' standards. Think an old '70s Porsche 911 with some modern motorsport tech under the skin. I love the mix of old and new. And I'm bringing the same ethos to the B-stone. It'll still wear its classic steel frame, but it'll be matched with all modern Campagnolo components. A mostly full Potenza groupset, Athena carbon crankset, Chorus brakes, and Zonda C17 wheels. Some will hate it. I will love it. For the type of riding I'll be doing, I'm thinking it'll be mostly my exercise/training bike. But, I could easily see it become a stylish, good-weather commuter some point down the line. As long as I can bring it inside to stare at it

Whit51 

Good decision! Paint problems that look horrible on a bare frame may not look as bad when the bike is built up. You may want to consider touching up the bad spots as a compromise.

TugaDude

As usual, RobbieTunes gives some great insight and even shows examples of what is possible. The idea that powder coating "necessarily" obscures detail in frames is overblown in my opinion. Just make sure the applicator knows what your expectations are.

The other thing is to put aside any parts that you are "upgrading" or "updating". You may want to restore it to "as bought" condition someday.

As time goes on I am appreciating patina more and more. Shouldn't older bikes look older? Shouldn't they look as though they've been used? I used to obsess over every scratch, but now I'm a little more chill about it. I'm not saying there aren't instances where a complete repaint aren't necessary, I'm talking about bikes whose paint is 90% perfect and decals are intact. Just touch up anything that could lead to structural issues down the road and leave the rest.

Not being able to get the decals you really want may end up being the deciding factor here.

The Golden Boy 

Congratulations!

Part of the problem is having a "vision" for what you want- and it generally doesn't include previous wear and tear. Or any wear and tear. The fact that the bike shop was trying to talk you out of it is another really good sign- The only thing you really need to be concerned about is bare metal. I'm of the school of 'a bad paint match is worse than just clearing over' so just get clear nail polish over the chip.

I hope you've spent time in the 'retro roadie' thread: https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...i-s-ergos.html. Tons of great ideas.

Congratulations again and good luck.

bOsscO

Solid choice. If you wanted to clean/polish the frame before building it up you maybe even happier with the existing paint finish. Checkout the last two clean/polish videos by Spindatt on Youtube.