Rabb1r

ok, i'm new to the C&V world and apparently have sinned by powdercoating the '84 Univega frame I'm building up for my son. In my defense, it had all sorts of spray paint overspray on it from being on the patio of the kid I bought it from.

It's very interesting to read the comments and opinions, but I have a question...I picked up a Bianchi frame off of craigslist which had already been spray-painted by the previous owner to cover up chips and scratches, is it wrong to repaint this?

Thanks for you opinions!

Ecrevisse

I would repaint it Bianchi celeste green.

Bianchigirll 

Hi Rabb1r despite the advise I/we gave Ecrevisse I think in your case it is OK to repaint however...

I do not know what you were told about that frame or what you paid for it but it appears to be a '87 Sport SX frame made with a mix of Tange DB Chromoly main tubes and Mangalloy stays w/ a Chromoly fork. There is nothing wrong with this frame, I have one built and one hanging around looking for parts, they ride great. I am just letting you know what is to help you decide on repainting it. It is a japanese built frame and not Italian.

It is in sad shape and if you have the space and ability to repaint it I so go for it, but a professional job will cost about $250+ and of course you can always powdercoat it too.

Six jours

I still think the attitude around here is a bit of a laugh. Some of these folks talk about any 10+ Y/O frame as though it's irreplaceable. In the real world, nobody cares if you powdercoat an old Univega or refinish a rattlecanned Bianchi.

noglider 

Where are we, the fake world?

jimmuller 

Yes, they do. Or they will.

"Maybe not today or tomorrow, but soon, and for the rest of your life" - Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca

Six jours

Often enough to be noteworthy, anyway.

Bianchigirll 

Do you know where I can get a '90 Bianchi MAX frame off the shelf? while a 10 yo frame may not be irreplacable alot are certainly few and far between.

I/We don't know what kind of Univega Rabb1r powdercoated but perhaps the transgression was in having a poor powdercoating done rather than paint. His '87 Sport SX certainly needs a repaint simple because previous owners abused the bike (well more like used it hard and seemed to be careless about what they locked it to) and the finish is shot. In his case it is simply a matter os wheter it is worth spending $250-300+ to repaint a frame on a bike that sold for $475.

IN the OPs case with a top of the line bike in fantastic shape and repaint simply does not make sense.

Personally my world is pretty real I just don't want to see it full of fake bikes.

Six jours

A lot of 10 Y/O frames are "few and far between". But most aren't. None of the ones being discussed here are rare or valuable.


It's not top of the line. It's not rare. Museum are not clamoring for them, and neither are serious collectors. And repainting makes perfect sense, if the owner wants it repainted.

It'd still be real after the repaint. Just nicer.

Rabb1r

Cool thanks everyone for the opinions.

The Univega was an '84 Sportour, I had it powdercoated in Orange County for < $100, I think it looks pretty good and I know my 14 yo son is going to love it.

@Bianchigirll - Thanks for the info. After reading many of your comments, I had a pretty good feeling that you'd have an ID for me btw...I got the Bianchi for $50 off of craigslist.

As for my 89 supra sport...for now, I think I'm going to hold off doing anything other than keeping it clean. I'm not a collector, but I can respect keeping things as original as possible. I ride a lot and this is my daily "driver" so anything I've changed so far has been for comfort and/or durability where components seemed questionable.

Thanks again, hope everyone has a great week and happy riding!

DCycle

The OP's bike is maybe not TOP of the line, but with very nice original paint. I think you're view of "rare" may be distorted. You alluded to the real world - in the real world this is a special bike, even if not a museum piece. New paint will be lesser quality, and will hurt resell value considerably (if that matters). There is simply nothing to be gained from repainting that bike. I really don't understand how you think that bike will be "nicer" after a repaint.

The red Bianchi sport posted is a different story - as the paint is not in decent condition, and a repaint won't do much to hurt value.

Six jours

It's a nice old bike with original paint. That's a far cry from "special". And it's not up to us whether the OP personally gains anything from a repaint. It's his bike. If he wants it to look like new (or better than new: factory Bianchi paint was not particularly impressive, especially when compared to the finishes applied by today's knowledgeable bicycle restoration specialists) then he can do that. The bicycle world will not suffer because of it.

ilikebikes

I'd leave it be as it looks just like a sweet vitage bike should look, and thats USED! ;0) To quote a much used phrase,"Its only original once!"

smoothness 

Too many people think that they should repaint their bikes. That thing is super close to being "oh, it was just in the attic" quailty. Go mix up some model-car paint/nail polish, and cover the spots where it has turned bare. I agree with the others, do not repaint. Not only will you be blowing a lot of money only to ding it two weeks later, you'll also ruin the "original paint" quality if you should ever need to rid yourself of of the frame.

eastcoaststeve

I am a strong believer in "it's only original once" ,and of the last 30 or 40 builds, I have only repainted one bike, (it honestly had more corrosion than paint and had actually spent some time under water" and even that one pained me to strip...funny thing is it was an 80's Bianchi.



Steve

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glorystomper

the question i have is.. how do you know that it's been repainted? if the bike was brought to a good repainter and accurate decals were used etc etc.. there's no way anyone would know, is there?

Ecrevisse

Maybe it looks too good to be true. OR, the owner/seller is honest and tells you it is.

dramiscram

Hi,
I was also wondering if I should paint my old Bianchi but I discovered on other threads that it's probably a japanese bike, the decals, serial number and the fact that it's shimano 600 all over. I'm not sure if it's the original paint because in all my searching on the web i've never seen another Bianchi in that color so if anyone can tell me i'd be glad to know. But if it IS the original color i'll just polish and wax it and keep it that way. If not I will probably paint it celeste green because I think it's the best color for a Bianchi. Also if anyone can tell me which model it is and confirm the year, I think its 1984 mainly from the shimano 600 version (pre-ultegra).

thanks

Ecrevisse

I just received a 1983 Bianchi Catalog. It is written in American English, therefore I assume it covers Bianchi models offered in the U-S. This bike as offered in the U-S is their Super Leggera model, their top of the line model. It is a Columbus SP and SL frame available in Celeste and Black according to the catalog. It is equipped with Campagnolo 50th anniversary components where the catalog states that it is usually equipped with Campagnolo Super Record and 3ttt pantograph stem and Campagnolo pantograph seat post. And the saddle is a Cinelli Unicantor #2.

Since I got this from Switzerland, I'm not 100% sure what this bike's model name was over there. But it does match what the catalog says about the Super Leggera frame.

Six jours

Tricky, as a Swiss model. My reproduction catalog shows the '83 models with decals with the little "flag" on each side, rather than the newer two-tone slash before the "B". And it doesn't show anything with the 50th Anniversary group. I don't remember seeing a Bianchi with that group until the "Anniversario" model of '85 - but I haven't seen everything.

Regardless, I don't mean to denigrate your bike. It's a treasure. I just mean to point out that there are enough pristine, top-of-the-line Bianchis of that era around that you personally don't need to worry about destroying a historically significant bicycle by paying for a high quality repaint. If you want it to look like new (or better than new) then you shouldn't let Bike Forums tell you you're an evil person for doing it.

Ecrevisse

I have seen one other 1983 Banchi SuperLeggera with 50th anniversary group. It looks much better than mine. Your last sentence made me laugh. I don't see collectors here. I see cheap-skates.

Six jours

Heh-heh. Yeah.

A couple of years ago I saw an '81 Super Leggera refinished by either Cyclart or JB (I think it was JB but just can't recall for sure.) It absolutely knocked my socks off. One of the most gorgeous, perfect bikes I've ever seen. And that's what I keep in mind when people are screaming about how horrible it would be to repaint yours.

Short version: if your bike had belonged to de Wolf or Gimondi then I'd add my voice to the folks demanding you keep it original. But as it is, it's just a nice Bianchi with mild cosmetic issues, and if a top quality respray makes you happy, there's no reason not to do it - other than the $1000 bill you'd have to part with to make it happen!

Ecrevisse

If I tried to sell it now as is, I would not get what I paid about 15 years ago for it and I thought I got a good deal considering the 50th anniversary parts. So, if I repainted it, I definitely would not get my money back. I would be doing it for me. All my bikes are nice high end types that are difficult to let go. I've sold a few for really cheap prices before I knew what they were really worth. The people who bought them flipped them, parting them out. When I tried to sell others for their actual value, they did not sell. Don't know why. I'm guessing potential buyers were those who wanted to flip them, parting them also and at my asking price there was no profit in it for them. Just guessing.

tremolo1965

Your Bianchi is very pretty and the original paint has a real warmth to it, which comes with time and use. Obviously there's no crime in painting a bicycle, but I would remind you of the advice you gave me with pertaining to my bike - take care of it and no need to re-finish. Either way though it will always be a great bike and a joy to ride. Enjoy!

triumph.1

It is maddening to have something nice and sell it to someone who disassembles and sells for parts. I never understood this concept and generally attribute it to greed.