...post two.

More recently (the Bianchi was a December build), I came across this Kuwahara-built Soma Prestige at a yard sale. Poorly set up and holes drilled all over it - even the BB still has a 1/2" drain hole extremely crudely cut into it.



It was way overpriced with bent Sunshine handlebars, Suntour drivetrain with the V-Gt missing (swapped with a Wal-Mart level Shimano POS, of course). Typical Freddy the Freeloader Spec., but it had a proper Super Maxy crank (not the one swedged directly to the 52t ring) that made the stupid purchase worthwhile. I still regret giving anyone the satisfaction of getting what I paid for it, but I've already made it back, so who am I to complain?

I stripped the thing right then and there at the yard sale for transport, so I never got a photograph of the pile beforehand. Whatever the case, these "modifications" might have been made long before there was an Internet, so ...Early Dreolithic?



I brought out the sandcloth and went to town. This hi-ten looked to be 4mm thick, so decent enough gas pipe to survive the heat of the MIG. If this were a Bond movie, this might be called "Live Another Day...As a Boat Anchor." That's a Raleigh shop decal that's faded beyond the point of recognition, by the way.

Why on earth would anyone drill it here? I mean, it made some sort of logic on the Otero that was desecrated for Di-2, but I am pretty sure nobody ever hung electronic shifting on this long-lugged tank.



Welded up. Grinding this down didn't go that well initially as my band file decided to give up the ghost. Mike Terraferma stepped in and lent me his Milwaukee band file - the old 6101 type based on the angle grinders I use and love, and now I reeeeeealy want one.





After being properly smoothed out:



Downtube:



Seattube:



Did I mention that - at some point - someone cared enough about this bike to hacksaw a stuck seatpost out of it? Well, they did, and they slotted a fair amount of tube doing so (barely visible in the initial photo - I didn't catch it until halfway through the ordeal).

So it was wrecked here too, but in the words of Inspector Clouseau..."not anymore." This was a bear to get to, even with the bandfile.



This one isn't done yet. I've hit it with primer in the meantime, but I think it's going to leave here as a frameset. Don't have enough spares, it really requires 27" wheels because of its long reach, and I'm not that keen on building it.

Regardless, I owe you all photos of the finished product soon. As with 99.9% of the frames I come across, the rear triangle isn't anywhere near straight, so there's still some cold setting (probably on the fork too) still to come.

-Kurt