Clear powdercoat.

I would recommend powdercoating it to show the "raw" steel and still get decent adhesion.
A friend did that years ago to a Ritchey mountain bike frame to show off the brass.
Just blasted & PCed clear. Very subtle urban chic anti-theft kind of look to it.
Minimal functional hi-end but "It doesn't even have a paintjob, I wouldn't steal that one" look to it.

So, what you do to the tubes before PCing is up to you. So far you have the polished lugs, how about an aroundthe tube graining done with really course ScotchBrite pads?
Then maybe a tinted clear in blue or red. (otherwise known as CANDY colors)

The other choice is paint, and paint without primer is like, welll, ...paint..without primer.
I suppose if the frame is clean and free from all rust, then just burrying it it 4 or more coats of clear might last you several seasons.

YMMV..

He of few words hits submit reply sooner!

I saved this abandoned bike from scrap. It had been been on R&R (rusting & rotting) for more than a year on a construction site. It was covered with a nasty layer of cement and hard dried concrete spots. Tyres were completely gone. The original colour was nearly visible.

It now is a nice bike with 26 inch wheels (new tyres) and a 3 x 6 speed. The only part I bought is the "chain disk" and the yellow "champion" sticker set.

I did the paint job myself (frame, handle bar, fenders, rack). I applied a high quality polyurethane liquid paint (black + blue). using an air-brush.

All parts happened to be in perfect condition after refurbishing and polishing.

My 13 year old son rides this bike.

Here is a recent project. I started with a chrome fork and a painted frame wth a chrome chainstay. They frame was actually fully chromed under the paint.The chrome on both was so bad that it had to be removed by a chrome shop. The frame was then media blasted, body worked to fix pitting from rust and painted. This is 100% painted including the lettering and head badge. after painting in white, celeste and black I used blue pearl over it all. The blue pearl turns the black a cool navy color. The celeste is washed out in the pics but so it looks off a little.

What is the dealy-bob (technical term) covering the front change rings?

It looks after market, rather than from the component manufacturer.

thanks

Anyone have any experience with Joe's Bicycle Painting in Watsonville?

https://www.joesbicyclepainting.com/

Without checking the link first...

I have heard good things about them, especially single color stuff.
Probably quick turnaround too.

Quicker than ol' whatzizname that's just South of Joe's. ...

Haha, just shopping around...

No worries!

My reply was sincere.

I checked their Gallery and it looks like their specialty is fades.
And fancy single colors.


...the kind of thing I did in middle school.

But Joe's'll have your frame back to you before the first of the year.

A boss* of mine once said...

"Good, fast, cheap. Pick 2!"



Here's to ya Boss*!


*Boss = Keith Bontrager (back when he still hand made 26" mtn bike rims from MA40 blanks)

Those are the kind of stories I love. I actually went to high school with his daughter. Believe it or not, she didn't ride a Bontrager.

for those of you interested in powder coating...here is what my Centurion frame looked like before and after it was blasted. It is at the powder coater now and I should have pics of it next week.

I am especially interested in your results on the LeMans. I have two Ironman models, both of which look pretty good, but I'm thinking of getting them "back" to the future. Both are fades. Any suggestions?

just got the Centurion back tonight...nothing fancy...I had it done in white because my wife's favorite bike which is gone was a white frame...pictures posted tomorrow. I had to leave it at work so she would not see it.

ok, here is the Centurion Le Mans after the powder coater. Sorry about the photos, but I only have a web cam to work with at the moment. I really like the way the finish looks.

Looks good! Do you plan to decal it?

I thought about it...maybe the decals and then a clear coat...but I really kind of like the way it looks clean. I just dropped it off at the lbs along with a mish-mash of components to see what my guy thought about assembling the bike. He said, well...your wheels are crap, your components are all low-end to entry level...but let me show you what I can do.... We go down into the basement of the shop and there sits a Centurion with severely damaged frame, but with much better wheels and components... He's going to call me in a bit with an estimate on building up my frame with those components.

I've used pinstriping as a masking tape with good results....shoot the areas of the bike the you want striped with the color you want....apply the striping tape as if that was going to be the final step......shoot the bike with the final color........remove the striping tape (revealing the first color) and voila! You can then clearcoat with no qualms about the tape shrinking or moving........

Here's an example...

I did the 5 color fade first, applied tape pieces, sprayed black, removed tape & clearcoated.

https://mbent.net/cycles/paint_gallery/target5.html

true art!!!!!

Ok, here are some pictures of the Centurion after having it assembled at the lbs.

I clearcoated a steel frame once. It lasted for at least 2 years (before I sold it). I Have heard that you will get spiderweb rust on the surface, but that never happen to me. I live in Humid Florida and just used a spray paint clear coat. It as an old columbus steel frame (a spanish Razesa). I gave the steel a "brushed" look before the paint to hold the paint though. It looked like a nice sink faucet when it was done!

I have a frame that I'm looking to get repainted. It has a tiny dent in the top tube and a good-sized section of chainsuck on the chainstay. I'd like to somehow fill these in. I was thinking of just going with a powdercoat since it's cheaper. But, would I still be able to fill the dents with say Bondo? or would I need to fill it with something metallic like brass or silver?

No, Bondo is used with paint. Powdercoating is just that, a coat of very, very fine plastic dust that is applied using electrical current and a special gun. Then the item is baked in an oven at anywhere from 275-400 degrees to melt the dust to the item.
Bondo would get weird at those temps.

Brass would definately work. Check with the powdercoater about silver.
Silver would be good as it could probably be used with propane torch, instead of brass which is best worked with oxy/acetylene.

TIMING is everything!

If you do all the right things at just the right time, it all works out beautifully.
Even in humid Florida.

Just don't try to get that during a Minnesota Winter.

I really like the part about the "sink faucet"!
I did my first Italian bike like that, only I used clear red (ie; candy red) over the brushed frame.
Looked like anodized aluminum.