Originally Posted by
Hydrated
I have a different point of view on this one... and I think that you folks may be missing the real reason for Cyclart's reluctance to do the job.
Those guys do some top shelf work, and they are justifiably proud of what they do. And in order to maintain their reputation, they can not turn out work that looks substandard... even if the customer requests it.
What if you request that they do the job your way? You get what you want... but you take the bike to the local club gathering. When you gaze on the bike through your sentimental lens, it looks wonderful to you. But to another critical eye, all they see is the scarred paint that wasn't stripped... the marred finish that wasn't covered with fresh paint. And Cyclart's name is quickly tarnished... all because they agreed to do the job your way.
I have a lifelong friend who does auto painting... high end stuff. He could make tons of cash by shoving quick and dirty paint jobs out the door. He can make more money per hour on quick jobs than he can on a $20,000 custom paint job that takes weeks of work to get juuuust right. But he refuses the quick jobs in order to preserve his reputation as a craftsman... he'd rather that you take your car to Maaco if you want a $300 paint job.
Maybe Cyclart has the same view on artisan work.
While you may have a point I personally, if that's the case, think it's a load of crap.
The OP wasn't expecting his mid-level Bianchi to be turned into his Molteni. He described the bike, it's condition,
and his desires and why to the folks at Cyclart. When Cyclart received the frame there should have been no suprises. The OP had specific requirements, fully explained
in advance, that Cyclart decided at a later time that they were unwilling to meet. Personally I would think the sentimental value would
more motivate a true craftsman....it's not like this is a job that's going to be turned for a high dollar bike sale and profit. If they are "
artisans" as you seem to think why in the world would they recommend a powder coat that the OP could get in dozens of places local to him anyway.
Long story short, they had all the info they needed to accept or turn down the job long before the frame was sent if they were going to be that hoidy toidy about it. And in the end, the customer was willing to pay the price....he wasn't even expecting a mid-level price to work on a mid-level bike.
Their customer service sucked.