LexRides

LarryG · Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 8:58 am Post subject: Does anyone in Lexington braze?

I have an old bike that I want to get powdercoated, but one of the top-tube cable guides is broken. Is there any one in town that can braze a piece on a bike?

politicalhero · Posted: Mon Apr 07, 2008 5:28 pm Post subject:

Does anyone know if Alex Meade can braze?

bryant · hipster Joined: 25 Oct 2007 Posts: 111

Alex Meade would know. I'll send you a private message with his email.

brokebike · cutter Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2434 Location: local

LarryG · Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2008 1:48 pm Post subject:

LarryG · Posted: Thu Apr 24, 2008 10:20 am Post subject:

An update: I took the frame to Alex, and he performed a beautiful repair for $20. The repair will be undetectable (not that I really cared) after painting.

I dropped the f/f off at Metal Cleaners for a powdercoat job. They quoted $100 and two weeks. W'll see how that part goes.

brokebike · cutter Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2434 Location: local

I just took this fella in to Metal Cleaners this afternoon. This has been a project of mine that was shelved about 3 years ago, but was long overdue for some love. With any luck, I'll have it up and running again before Bike Lexington.

mcrib · townie Joined: 24 Oct 2007 Posts: 232 Location: 40502

It is funny that everyone that takes a bike there seems to pay a different price
_________________
Albert Einstein trembled when he found out time was water. Seeping through the rafters to put out this burning world.

brokebike · cutter Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2434 Location: local

LarryG · Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2008 7:40 pm Post subject:

Got my frame & fork back today from Metal Cleaners. It's an old lugged Stumpjumper made in a small Japanese factory. The powdercoat job they did was really nice. They sandblasted it first & even hit the inside of the bb shell. There was a lot of chrome on the frame, but they roughed it all up before coating. The powdercoat is even and thick, not too glossy but it looks like it will hold up well.

The only thing they skimped on was the masking. They stuffed tape into the tubes, but it was just wadded in. There was powder inside the headtube, seattube, and on the last few bb threads. When I picked the frame up, I told the guy that I would have to hone out all the tubes to get my headset and seatpost in. He pshawed me & said "just jam them in, the fit isn't that precise". I didn't bother to correct him.

They masked off the brake studs on the fork, but not the frame. They masked the steerer tube, but not the part on the fork where the bottom of the crown race fits. I guess that's OK, because I can see how that kind of masking would consume a lot of time.

So be aware that you will have to put some time into prepping the frame before re-assembly. I spent some time on it today with a Dremel tool & flap sanding wheel, and I'll hit the brake studs with a wire wheel tomorrow. I'll probably take the frame into a shop to get the bb threads chased.

All in all, I'm still satisfied, because the frame looks really good & $100 isn't that much for a sandblast & powder coat.

brokebike · cutter Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2434 Location: local

That's funny, I also picked up my Cycle Truck frame from Metal Cleaners yesterday afternoon. The guy asked me if I knew you because he said that there was another frame to be picked up that day, and he said that in talking with you, he found out that there was "some website out there with a bunch of bikers on it" recommending their powder coat services.

I think the price is reasonable for what they offer, and you can't beat the durability of powdercoat for a bike frame, even if your color choices are somewhat limited. They do what they need to as far as trying to mask off the most obvious parts of the tubing, but the interaction you had with that guy when he said "just jam them in..." illustrates that they aren't familiar enough with the anatomy and mechanics of bikes to do it perfectly. Which, you can't really fault them for that... besides, I'd rather spend an hour or so with a Dremel and a brass wire brush getting all that shit cleaned out like it should be, rather than trusting someone else to do it with masking tape.

I'll try to post some pics in the next few days of my re-build once I find the time to work on it.

elzie5000 · cutter Joined: 25 Oct 2007 Posts: 1177

Would it be possible to mask the important parts of a frame yourself before taking it to them? I mean, would they accept it that way?

alex · Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2008 10:31 am Post subject:

no, they'd take it off

brokebike · cutter Joined: 21 Oct 2007 Posts: 2434 Location: local

LarryG · Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2008 11:17 am Post subject:

I finished cleaning up the frame today. I was able to use gel-type paint stripper to take the powder off the brake studs & crown race seat. I carefully applied a little at a time, let it bubble for 5 minutes & then scraped. It worked, but not quickly. It also worked for the bb threads.

Two useful Dremel attachments were the flip-wheel sander (for honing the insides of the head and set tubes), and small rotary wire brush.

It's now electric blue. For a 23-year old bike, it looks prety cool.