Originally Posted by pastorbobnlnh
OO, which in your mind is more fun; patina or a vintage bike that looks better then when it was assembled at the LBS? Once you decide your answer to this question you'll know the path you need to take. If it's a split decision, paint the one in the worse condition.
One response mentions "the history of the patina." Unless you have owned the bike since day one and have been it's only rider, or the previous owner kept a journal of every crash, scrape, wrench knock, screw driver gouge, etc., you can't really know the history of your bike's paint condition. Good luck.
I've really enjoyed the responses to this thread and am happy to see I'm not the only one who is concerned about this question.
I don't have any extra rare frames, but I have a couple of very nice "oldies" such as a 1978 Schwinn Volare and a 1979 Holdsworth. Both are 531, so they hold a special place in my heart. On a scale from 1-10 the original paint is about an 8 on both, so I chose to go with some touch up to protect the scratches. However, I just bought a 76 Super Course II that is more of 6 to 7 with alot of scratches and in need of new decal stripes, (which I just found on ebay.) It's not a particulary rare bike, but it is striking in it's bright green and white patina, plus it's a Carlton. This one could use extensive touch up, or even some respray to really sharpen the contrast between the green and white paint. (I also found some NOS gold Raleigh decals.) So I've been wondering if I should re-paint before re-decaling, or just touch it up then re-decal. Oh well, I guess I'll figure it out over time. No need to rush.