1984 Murray Serotta rebuild
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1984 Murray Serotta rebuild
Fixing up this 1984 Murray Serotta for a friend. It is fairly complete with the exception of proper Campagnolo Super Record pedals and headset. The saddle would have been a Cinelli, I think. Original rear Mavic GP4 rim has been replaced with a Super Champion Arc en Ciel at some point. A bit of rust and ridden hard and put away wet. Had to drill out the old brittle brake pads just to free them from the alloy pad holders. This will be a preservation build rather than a restoration. Photos tell the story of the bike as found and the rejuvenation process.
Anyone know how many of these Serotta made in 1984?
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/G1N93cCg7g
-Lord Donnington
Anyone know how many of these Serotta made in 1984?
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/G1N93cCg7g
-Lord Donnington
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Nice bike. I didn't realize that there was all those pantographed Murray logos on that bike. The only pictures I had seen previously had been from a bit of a distance. Yea, you are right. This was a race bike that was a tool for a racer. This makes the restoration more challenging. You probably know this already, that Serotta used Imron paint. That went on thick. I don't know what your plans are for touching up the paint but I would like to see progress pictures as this project moves along.
Do you know any history of this bike? I would not think Serotta made Murray badged bikes for general sale. But I don't really know. If that is the case this bike was for a pro. The next question would be who.
Do you know any history of this bike? I would not think Serotta made Murray badged bikes for general sale. But I don't really know. If that is the case this bike was for a pro. The next question would be who.
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Fixing up this 1984 Murray Serotta for a friend. It is fairly complete with the exception of proper Campagnolo Super Record pedals and headset. The saddle would have been a Cinelli, I think. Original rear Mavic GP4 rim has been replaced with a Super Champion Arc en Ciel at some point. A bit of rust and ridden hard and put away wet. Had to drill out the old brittle brake pads just to free them from the alloy pad holders. This will be a preservation build rather than a restoration. Photos tell the story of the bike as found and the rejuvenation process.
Anyone know how many of these Serotta made in 1984?
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/G1N93cCg7g
-Lord Donnington
Anyone know how many of these Serotta made in 1984?
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/G1N93cCg7g
-Lord Donnington
That rust needs to be stopped yesterday, without doing that you might as well start looking for a substitute frame.
It may not be as bad as I see it but with a frame of this significance there's no wiggle room when it appears this bad IMO.
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Serotta records are not great from what I understand. Between various moves of the shop and shutdowns they seem to have not kept very good track of production. Ben is back in business but I have read he does not seem to respond to inquiries about old frames? not sure if any of the other frame builders from his former shop have more info? There is a heavy Serotta section on one of the other forums, I have referenced before but can't remember which one now?
#6
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That frame looks like a training bike that someone sweated all over and put away wet. Bikes used indoors (on rollers) often present that way, too. The first thing I would do is remove all the paint and rust (either chemically with stripper and oxalic acid bath, or by media blasting) and see what's left. The downtube right ahead of the BB looks particularly suspect -- the top tube guides could be replaced, but if the top tube is as bad underneath as it looks with paint on it, well . . .
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Going to Franklin Frames for a full restore
Thank you all for the good advice. The frame and fork are going off to Jack to inspect and determine a path forward. If the frame is solid then it will get a new finish with decals. It should look great after a full repaint. Returned to its proper self and ready to start a new life of being ridden and properly cared for. I will post pics once it returns from Jack’s shop.
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someone kindly educate me: The Murray decals.. is that as in the old Murray bicycle company? Or is that something else? I've never seen or heard of these (I'm familiar with Serotta). I like it a lot.
EDIT: n/m. I just saw the logo on the head tube and answered my own question. sorry.
EDIT: n/m. I just saw the logo on the head tube and answered my own question. sorry.
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That is the coolest bike. Your plan is a good one but I’d arrest the rust, preserve, and ride.
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Super awesome! I love race bikes built by surrogates. I have a 1984 Marinoni and a 1985 Land Shark, both built as Raleighs (Levi's-Raleigh Race Team). I am also a historian at heart. I would do whatever you could to prevent a full repaint.
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This is a great find and you've done a wonderful job documenting its condition. Thank you for sharing. I have a similar Serotta-built Murray. The person I bought it from had it restored by Serotta after they confirmed it to be a team bike (photos below). There's not a lot of information out there about these, but I *think* the full pantograph model may have been produced as a sort of promotional bike. There was one for sale in Oklahoma, I believe, not too long ago (first pic below). I think the seller wanted $3K, but don't remember. I was in touch with him and he said a friend at the Southland Corp received the bike as a gift. The first year of Murray sponsorship of 7-Eleven the team road Rossin bikes (last pic).
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The red color leads me to believe your friend's bike is a 7-Eleven team bike. In '85 the rear stays were chromed but the team bikes no longer had pantographed parts, that I recall. The Murray team bikes were white and the neutral support ones were blue, in my fading memory. Find Tom Schuler in Wisconsin. He may either know the approximate number of '84's built or he will know who knows, like Jim Ochowicz, his boss at the time. Or the team mechanic, who ran the service course, Richard Gilstrap. Or Sean Petty, who worked at Southland Corp in Dallas at that time. Surely one of those guys will recall, if Ben Serotta doesn't have records from 40 years ago.
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Thank you all for the good advice. The frame and fork are going off to Jack to inspect and determine a path forward. If the frame is solid then it will get a new finish with decals. It should look great after a full repaint. Returned to its proper self and ready to start a new life of being ridden and properly cared for. I will post pics once it returns from Jack’s shop.
He does great work.
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The 1984 Murray Serotta restoration is completed!
click the Flickr link and scroll to the bottom to see the after photos
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/s2FX8851B0
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/s2FX8851B0
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Looks awesome. So glad it was able to be saved. Are the any 'during' shots showing the rust repairs?
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Just wonderful! For a bike that could have easily ended up at the dump, this is such a great result. Sorry if I missed it, but can you share who did the repaint?
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Phenomenal job! It looks great
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Not sure what planet that could have happened on.
A complete restoration and full repaint was the only way to save this from total ruin which it was well on the way too.
So glad this got done, fantastic job, result and bike!
A complete restoration and full repaint was the only way to save this from total ruin which it was well on the way too.
So glad this got done, fantastic job, result and bike!
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click the Flickr link and scroll to the bottom to see the after photos
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/s2FX8851B0
https://www.flickr.com/gp/19017342@N08/s2FX8851B0
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