I didn't ride as many miles as I wanted this year, for a variety of reasons, but I finished a project. It started last fall when a local shop held an "update an old bike" clinic. I missed the clinic but asked if they had any old bikes for sale. That led me to this 1981 Fuji S12-S LTD. It was missing a few parts and had a crappy rattle-can respray, but was basically solid and complete. First, I got it road ready to make sure it was going to be worth the effort to completely redo.
1981 Fuji S12-S LTD, ready to ride.
After the test ride, the work began. All the hardware came off, then I had to work on the "decals". They were a combination of craft store letters and auto shop striping decals. A heat gun helped soften the glue. Next I stripped the frame down to bare metal and sanded it smooth. Since it was cheap paint, it came off easily with sandpaper. One warm spring day, I got the primer and color applied. I didn't order the decals until after I painted but that was okay, so the paint had plenty of time to cure. I liked the color, but I wasn't sure about the shine. After I put the decals on and applied the clear coat, it really popped. I am extremely happy with how it looks. It was an agonizing wait for the clear to harden so I could reassemble everything. In the end, it was worth it. I try to rotate through all my bikes but I may have shown some favoritism toward this one.
1981 Fuji S12-S LTD
331 Chromoly frame