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Argh! There ought to be a law!

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Argh! There ought to be a law!

Old 04-09-14, 06:12 PM
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Originally Posted by The Golden Boy
I've been on both sides of this.

The guy stripped the paint, moved the brake braze ons, added braze ons, nickel plated it- it was AWE INSPIRING.

However, there are some that it's just "it's time."
Me, too.

Reminds me of when mrmw did some serious engineering work on an older Centurion Pro Tour, getting a 10-sp rear into a 120mm space AND getting the OEM cantil's to work on 700c. If technology=applied science, his work was high tech.

I've seen some stopped me in my tracks long enough to shake my head.
I've seen others that stopped me in my tracks to bow down.

Not long ago, saw a 1983/84 Centurion Turbo.
Single speed fixed gear, Deep V rear, tri-spoke front.
Completely stripped to the chrome.
Steel track bars on some old stem, which was painted lime green.
A B17 that's seen better days.
White tires. No brakes.
Schwinn root beer grips on the track drops.

I waited outside the coffee shop, and when the owner walked out, she was a vision in leather, tricolor hair, and ink, plaid cap.
I immediately realized that whatever I thought was cool left the station years ago.

Forgot all about the bike and wondered about the tattoos I couldn't see.



As for the Urago, there is a serious faux pas being committed.
You don't go deep V with flat fork crowns.

Last edited by RobbieTunes; 04-09-14 at 06:16 PM.
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Old 04-09-14, 07:11 PM
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Gee, I dunno. If by "value," you mean "how much a collector would pay for a vintage item today," I think it's a simple fact that for most handbuilt/manufactured items original finish is worth more $$$. I reckon if we were on a forum dedicated to vintage washing machines or farming tools, original finish would still be worth a premium. "Maytag never offered that model in pink in 1928, it has to be a respray!" Comfortable with the idea or not, I think that's the reality.

But if you define "value" as "intrinsic worth," a repainted doorstop is no less valuable a door stopper as one with original finish. They both function perfectly as doorstops. And if a freshly repainted one brings a bigger smile to your face, all the better. Just don't expect to get as much money for it if you decide to resell it.

I do agree that folks owning utilitarian items that were originally painted wouldn't think twice about repainting/refinishing them during a long service life. They didn't think anybody would pay good money for their cast iron doorstop, so if it started looking shabby and they had the time and means, why not repaint it? Bicycle manufacturers have offered repair and refinish services probably forever.



Originally Posted by DavidW56
...I've never been completely comfortable with the idea that repainting a vintage object automatically, by definition, decreases its value. I am not speaking solely of C&V bicycles here, but any older item whose function was and is utilitarian first in importance, while style and design second or third....my wife has a cast iron doorstop in the shape of a Model T...The paint is chipped and dull. I thought we should remove it and repaint it black, but she objected, repeating the conventional wisdom that repainting it would diminish its value.

But I wonder whether the original owners of these utilitarian objects...might not have repainted the objects themselves when they were worn...Of course, the bicycle's peculiar nature...makes it far more likely to evoke such passionate response in its aficionados than other machines. Nobody would gets upset about repainting a vintage washing machine, say, or a wheelbarrow.
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Old 04-11-14, 11:15 AM
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PCH, good analysis!
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Old 04-14-14, 08:23 PM
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My primary beef with people repainting old bikes is that they rarely come out looking better than they went in. Factory finishes are nearly always better quality than what most people can or will do on their own. I don't know what this finish is, but it scarcely looks better than a DIY rattlecan job. A worn 40 year old finish would look better to me.

And here's my other thing with this particular bike. I love fixies. My most-ridden bike is a fixed gear conversion with bullhorns, so I get why somebody would be into that. Having said that, my conversion was a low end high-tensile Chinese-made mid-80s Univega. You know what I mean? If you are the type of guy that wants an all black steel fixed gear bike with understated black componentry, a riser stem and pursuit bars, there are PLENTY of manufacturers willing to sell you EXACTLY that, and probably technically better quality than this. I don't see the point in taking a sought after collectible and parading around your total irreverence.
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Old 04-14-14, 08:55 PM
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There's just no excuse for the end result - Regardless of what he started with!
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Old 04-15-14, 06:26 AM
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Originally Posted by DavidW56
But I wonder whether the original owners of these utilitarian objects, whether they were bicycles, automobiles, or doorstops shaped like automobiles, might not have repainted the objects themselves when they were worn. Would we care as much if the current paint job was not original but still 75 years old?
When they were first bought, they were not collectable. At some point in time, it crossed the line and became collectable. Once that line is crossed, original finish will trump a restoration.

What's interesting to me is how some items cross that line sooner and if you wait long enough, everything will cross the line.
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