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Cuevas Custom - "Rode hard and put away wet"

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Cuevas Custom - "Rode hard and put away wet"

Old 11-21-22, 12:35 PM
  #1  
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Cuevas Custom - "Rode hard and put away wet"

Those with sensitive feelings turn away now, this poor bike has been used and abused. I had a decent idea what I was getting into, based on the bad pictures in shade and my talk with the seller, was still impressed with how much abuse this bike had taken. As with many of the bikes I have bought I was "pot committed" by the time I got there, too much invested and price too low to walk away.

The Good:
Franscisco Cuevas custom frame - 531 fork blades, stays and butted frame tubes
Dura Ace EX - Derailleurs, headset, crank, pedals, brakes & levers, neck
Dia Compe Silver - downtube shift levers
VeloOrange - 700c rims w/105 hubs
Cinelli bar
price

The bad:
frame/paint condition
seatpost - zigzagged/marred
pedal missing clip/frozen
seat - trash or re-upholster
tires - hold air but cracking - need to be replaced
needs full overhaul
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Old 11-21-22, 12:45 PM
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Old 11-21-22, 12:55 PM
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Oh come on, that doesn't look too bad to me... I've seen and dealt with much worse. Very cool bike, nice score!
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Old 11-21-22, 01:07 PM
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Agreed , not that bad. I ride bikes that had a much worse history, its called patina!
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Old 11-21-22, 01:12 PM
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Yeah. Talk about putting away wet, I took the BB apart from a Frejus fromt 1968 that looked like this
68FrejusBBSpindleon Flickr
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Old 11-21-22, 01:13 PM
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^^^Agreed, obviously crusty to be sure.

I would scrub, massage and cleanup as best you can, mitigate anything life threatening and get it fully operational.

Ride, ruminate and evaluate how you really want to proceed.

Full DA, nice score, pretty cool.

DOH! If by frozen you mean the pedal won't spin then you'll have to swap out the crank for now but I would do everything you can to save it regardless.

Last edited by merziac; 11-21-22 at 01:16 PM.
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Old 11-21-22, 01:16 PM
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Originally Posted by noobinsf View Post
Oh come on, that doesn't look too bad to me... I've seen and dealt with much worse. Very cool bike, nice score!
+1

My baggy Legnanos would make sensitive people cry.
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Old 11-21-22, 01:17 PM
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-----

recall that following Francisco's retirement and move home to Barcelona there was a period where his son kept the workshop going for a time

he offered painting and repair but no new construction

Zeus Cyclery Corporation of New York City was a Cuevas agent for a period in the 1980's

there is an issue of BICYCLING! magazine with a profile on Francisco and his work

the frame's dropouts with provision for the Portacatena feature are a helpful dating aid here


-----
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Old 11-21-22, 01:21 PM
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I agree with everyone else, the bike is awesome. Clean it, knock the rust off of it, ride awhile and decide on touch up or full paint later on.
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Old 11-21-22, 01:31 PM
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At the risk of this becoming a version of the ....


... I think that your bike is actually in pretty decent condition.

My finds tend to look like this:



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Old 11-21-22, 01:36 PM
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Originally Posted by SJX426 View Post
Yeah. Talk about putting away wet, I took the BB apart from a Frejus fromt 1968 that looked like this
68FrejusBBSpindleon Flickr
I've seen at least one of my "finds" that looked similar and are smooth as silk after cleaning up!
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Old 11-21-22, 01:42 PM
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Originally Posted by non-fixie View Post

... I think that your bike is actually in pretty decent condition.

My finds tend to look like this:



Are we related or just equally “lucky”?
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Old 11-21-22, 01:48 PM
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Here are a few detail shots:


On both sides there are wear/rust spots at the downtube shifters - This was what made me think "rode hard and put away wet" - marks from heavy use


wipeout or storage?

Slight/Shallow dent - only on I have noticed so far
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Old 11-21-22, 01:51 PM
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Sorry, I still don't see anything remotely resembling a problem. Just a (very) nice frame.
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Old 11-21-22, 02:03 PM
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Cuevas Custom - Clean
https://www.bikeforums.net/g/album/27251391

Last edited by SoCaled; 11-21-22 at 02:07 PM.
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Old 11-21-22, 02:05 PM
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One little TT ding? ZizZag is better than stuck. Almost complete Cool Bike.
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Old 11-21-22, 02:08 PM
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Look underneath the fork crown

Agree with all the others, this is a great find, and if you feel you got a deal, you most likely got a smokin' one. Also, what easier color with which to perform near-invisible touch-ups, right?

Even keeping the original components, it won't take much to clean this up and have it looking really good, whether you see to the paint right away or not. But yeah, it sure did need a rescue!

DD
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Old 11-21-22, 02:16 PM
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that's a nice find. It's gonna clean up well. Have fun.
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Old 11-21-22, 02:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Drillium Dude View Post
Look underneath the fork crown

Agree with all the others, this is a great find, and if you feel you got a deal, you most likely got a smokin' one. Also, what easier color with which to perform near-invisible touch-ups, right?

Even keeping the original components, it won't take much to clean this up and have it looking really good, whether you see to the paint right away or not. But yeah, it sure did need a rescue!

DD
Yep, should have posted a picture it has the "cross brace"
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Old 11-21-22, 02:28 PM
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Fork Cross brace:

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Old 11-21-22, 03:57 PM
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Originally Posted by non-fixie View Post
At the risk of this becoming a version of the ....

Four Yorkshiremen

... I think that your bike is actually in pretty decent condition.

My finds tend to look like this:



-----

...these examples appear well "polder seasoned"...

...what about some images of examples which have come from the canals...

sign posted along polderese kanal -

"WARNING - Keel clearance down to one metre. Fiets removal scheduled for next month."

-----

Last edited by juvela; 11-21-22 at 05:58 PM. Reason: addition
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Old 11-21-22, 04:42 PM
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Please, you call that rust? Where I live everything that doesn't move fast enough grows rust, then fungus, then lichen. Enjoy your new ride!
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Old 11-21-22, 06:21 PM
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Originally Posted by juvela View Post
-----

recall that following Francisco's retirement and move home to Barcelona there was a period where his son kept the workshop going for a time


there is an issue of BICYCLING! magazine with a profile on Francisco and his work

the frame's dropouts with provision for the Portacatena feature are a helpful dating aid here


-----
Frames and Framebuilding (1984) CUEVAS Frames -- Custom and Super Corsa - I had dug that up before I went to grab the bike, great info
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Old 11-21-22, 06:42 PM
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Great find!
I saw that one and was tempted to ask for a facilitator but, with my recent Mooney purchase and two others unfinished, I have my hands full of projects. I'm happy to see it go to a good home.
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Old 11-22-22, 12:14 AM
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It's always in good shape when the seatpost and stem aren't stuck - the classic definition of "put away wet" in my book

That thing would have had a pound of extra rust on the bare bits by now in humid South Florida.

Don't kick your new purchase. It looks great and I bet it rides fantastic (which is 50% of the fun, right?)

-Kurt
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