Makeover Magic: The Ilpompino's New Clothes

Sometimes deadlines are like a slow but consistently burning fuse. Having caught up following last weeks’ IT crisis, I headed off to Maldon Shot Blasting & Powder Coating to witness and document my frames’ transformation stage by stage. 

After the usual pleasantries, conversation turned to other enticing projects booked with them including lugged n’ brazed 531 frames from the early 1990s and various classic car shells/chassis awaiting blast and/or structural repair.

Chris examined the Ilpompino’s factory livery and decided it was best left soaking in their methyl chloride tank prior to blasting. Sometimes, depending on the existing paint, it’s possible to skip straight to the blast cabinet.

Once the active ingredient in over-the-counter stripping products; methyl chloride is a nasty carcinogenic, so now the preserve of controlled contexts. This is diluted with water to prevent evaporation but agitating the depths unleashes an unmistakable, pungent odour.  After fifteen minutes marinating in the stagnant looking chemical soup, Chris dons rubber gauntlets and delves deep.

My frame emerges seconds’ later, almost completely bare save for some localised residual silty paint. Passed through the glass bead cabinet and several minutes’ intensive tickling reveals a bare, dimpled surface; it also confirms my initial suspicions of surface pitting where the salt monster had nibbled the right chainstay.

This doesn’t dictate Metafil, or similar specialist fillers but Chris gently sands it flat before masking and plugging threaded sections. Critics of powder coating cite that achieving two or more colour effects requires applying 2pac or similar wet spray paints atop. This is relatively labour intensive, costly too...

Given this backdrop, a two-tone powder coat finish sounds a bit risky but Chris and Graham seem completely comfortable with the commission.

Regardless of family, all paints have unique characteristics according to their colours/pigments. My French blue/grey effect leads Graham to introduce a thinner, corrosion inhibiting zinc phosphate primer, which won’t risk imperfections in the top coats.  

Midway through this formative stage my Sony Alpha SLR camera body gets the sulks. Despite frantic efforts to re-dial settings, it refuses to deliver three frames per second required. Hastily diverting to my trusty NEX5 ensures there’s minimal loss of footage.

Confident of even coverage, “Izzie” is passed through the curing oven for fifteen minutes and our attentions turn to locating French blue (5024) and a complimentary  grey.  A hearty cheer erupts, signalling both polyester powders are in stock and in plentiful quantity.

Graham starts by loading the 5024, confirms a good flow rate by depressing the gun a few times and returns to the curing oven. Moments later, the frame is earthed and ready to receive the colour coat. Graham covers the main triangle under a blanket of pale blue before checking the powder is heaped uniformly throughout. Two affirmative nods and it returns to their their curing oven for ten minutes at 200 degrees.

Conversation meanders to the frame’s history, how I came to acquire it and its significance to me. Having returned to the oven, we discover gallons of molten frame preserve racing from the vent holes and bottom bracket shell...pooling  on the concrete floor.

Mercifully, this hasn’t contaminated the colour coat and can be deftly dismissed but serves to illustrate the importance of warning your frame builder or spray shop, should you suspect a frame has something oily sloshing around inside.

The boys take it all in their good humoured stride, blowing the frame through with compressed air. Demon purged and our next dilemma is whether to start the grey as a solid, or gradually fade it in atop the blue.

Solid effects involve masking, which in this context, risks permanent “tan lines”; so we take the latter route. Unlike wet sprays, powders can be blown into new shapes, or reused. Meticulous in their approach, Graham revises this three times before progressing round the rear triangle.

Moments pass, tension mounts as his eyes painstakingly scan every last particle. To my relief he nods again before spiriting it into the oven once more.  Finally, my beloved frame is given an acrylic clear coat, which adds further protection, while accentuating its rich, glossy lustre.

Right, time to introduce some fresh home brewed frame preserve and helicopter tape to abrasion prone points; then I’ll build it up before October’s through.

Heartfelt thanks go to the team at Maldon Shot blasting and Powder Coating for undertaking this transformation www. http://ctc-powder-coating.co.uk/.

Trevor (Father and MSBC MD) has asked me to point out that cost for this kind of specialist effect varies wildly depending upon several factors. This includes colour choice(s), post blast remedial works and whether decals/other detailing are required.  

 

 

 

Muzzies, Mods & Movies...

I was meandering through Flickr the other evening when I happened upon a very fetching blue steel Marin Pine Mountain complete with moustache bars. Voluptuous; though not to extremes, its On-One Mungo stirred a yearning to revise the Univega’s cockpit. Generally endeared to the existing WTB/Salsa configuration that offers commendable rigidity and control in most contexts, said swooping revision might reduce fatigue on longer runs.

Cursory inspection suggests they may also demand a loftier, stubbier stem (35 or 40mm) and longer cables, since controls sit further forward. Hence, contact point popped in one’s virtual basket, I went foraging for a 35 degree 60cm version of their 3D stem but to no avail. Still, something’s bound to materialise when I’m least expecting it-watched inboxes and all that…    

While working on a winter-prep piece for a new, soon to launch publication, the Teenage 

Dream’s rear Miche dual pivot calliper developed an unexplained, intermittent binding habit. Short, liberal blasts of maintenance spray to the springs and inner housings failed to exorcise this demon, hence cable replacement and Sugru detailing, which has silenced irksome bottle chatter/tenure, especially across inclement surfaces. Incompetent, negligent people are one of my greatest bugbears, not least when they’re operating one ton plus of steel.

At approximately 11am on Tuesday (15^th July), I was negotiating a series of tight bends on the return leg of an hours’ blast when a cobalt blue Audi (BF12 XCV) swept past with inches to spare before wantonly swerving into our path. Water off the proverbial duck’s back in many respects but still decidedly unsettling. I am also fairly certain he was trying to provoke a response and that there was “just cause” for this behaviour- been laid off/ passed over for promotion/lost a bet/partner said “no”.

Two riders travelling in the opposite direction confirmed he appeared to point the vehicle squarely at them. Being wary of falling into the pop psychology trap, anecdotally it appears an increasing minority of drivers just seem to have psychotic tendencies and can largely behave as they please since road traffic legislation is extremely lenient and the authorities reticent to act. (“He was asking for it your honour, dressed in those tricolour (blue/white/black) bib shorts”)

Studies undertaken by the motor/cycling press some twenty odd years previously suggest there is something in the psyche of some drivers that regards “enthusiast” riders a challenge to be duelled with- put in their place perhaps?

You Tube hosts countless encounters and I can fully appreciate why. Well timed-explosive yells are an excellent release of tension, though red rag and bull spring to mind when some wronged riders advise said behaviour is being filmed and shortly uploaded to said medium. I miss not having a decent helmet camera-not for policing others behaviours but capturing rides in their full glory.

My last purchase was decidedly disappointing, not in terms of image but rather, build quality and manufacturer indifference. Essentially, I should’ve spent more, rather than invest in a discontinued line. Go Pro’s Hero is very much a benchmark and with good reason, though Garmin Virb Elite looks capable of delivering comparable performance for a few dollars less. Impulse buying is something I strive to avoid, although am apparently unable to resist silicone blinkies.

Bought these three from a Chinese supplier for £1.25 each, only to discover faulty switches-powering down necessitates battery removal. Thankfully, this new range of commuter lights from a well-known distributor based in derby has just arrived. Now to find an illustrator for my children’s stories and some models for another project…  

    

Cockpit Viagra

Having decided on the oversized route and acquired those 31.8 Midge; serendipity took charge and presented a compatible 17degree matt black On-One stem. Admittedly, its 90 rather than 80mm but this discrepancy was easily addressed by shuffling the saddle forward, improving comfort on longer runs without denting acceleration or seated climbing prowess. Accessing said steeds’ unbranded ti post bolts proved nigh on impossible using standard pocket tools. Salvation arrived in the guise of this Z shaped giveaway unit, so beloved of flat pack furniture, which has since become a wedge pack staple on account of its prowess in awkward spaces.

Reclaiming that Spa Cycles leather handlebar wrap was another concern given the adhesive backing hadn’t aged particularly gracefully. However, even tension and a lick of electrical tape proved similarly successful. Net effect, £35 and one hour’s reprieve from business planning well spent. Wrap and lighting systems repatriated, rain of biblical proportions couldn’t dampen my enthusiasm for a fifteen mile blast. Swinging a leg over the Ilpompino’s semi sloping top tube, it took but a matter of minutes to fully appreciate the benefits of a stiffer cockpit.

While far from blancmange like, the front end now tracks beautifully, especially performing those last minute swerves around gaping potholes, opening car doors, rabid dogs, errant pedestrians and similar hazards. This rigidity enables rider effort to be poured into maintaining momentum-perfect for cantering gazelle fashion along those deceptively steep climbs when turning taller gears, powering away from the lights or demon descending. Fatigue inducing low-level vibration’s a moot point, tempered perfectly by those sensibly raked composite ITM blades.    

Thanks to their shallow drop and prodigious width, Midge lend themselves handsomely to geared ‘cross builds and mountain bike conversions too, the smaller diameter allowing effortless transplant of pre-existing thumb shifters/sti controls. Tempted? Well, Tektro produces a comprehensive, wallet friendly range of shapely aero levers catering for cantilever, linear pull and cable operated discs. Oh and unless intended recipients sport an old school quill unit; you’ll also need a loftier 25/30 degree stem.

Winter prompts more frequent post ride fettling, if only to flush away that corrosive cocktail of accumulated salt/grit with cold water. Timely then, that Green Oil’s third generation eco-sponge should land on my test bench. I’ve always been a big fan of the Brixton based brand’s range of blisteringly effective, yet genuinely planet friendly lubricant/cleaning goodies. Previous incarnations also hailed from the Philippines but their original texture proved abrasive, wounding thinner lacquers and leaving unsightly swirls in thinner/flamboyant enamels. Taking heed, Green oil has encased the matted Luffa “sponge” within a recycled cotton pillow  

Not only does this version promise to cleanse filthy steeds, they reckon it’s great for waxing/buffing duties too. Well, since proof of said product lies in the polishing, I’ll put ours through its paces on a wealth of different surfaces and provide more informed feedback several weeks hence. 

Continuing the new arrivals theme, I’ve just taken delivery of this Nexus geared flat bar Foffa Urban. More commonly associated with the fixed gear scene; it’s an interesting kettle of fish with a host of contradictions. Sneaking past 13kilos and commanding the lion’s share of £500, it’s based around an entry level Cro-moly frameset, which should resist accidental denting better than thin wall exotica. Welds are a little workmanlike in places perhaps but uniform and extremely unlikely to fail. Closer inspection reveals a properly reamed seat tube and clean bottle screws, which is heartening.

That said; internal cable guides might look minimalist, yet serve as a conduit to corrosion and there are several peculiarities reminiscent of small scale British marques twenty five years back-seatstays sporting carrier mounts but ends bereft of eyelets anyone? Then again, a 7 speed Nexus hub gives sufficient scope for commutes exceeding city limits, while keeping maintenance minimal, plain Jane components ensure it stops, goes and handles in good proportion without luring the light fingered…Let’s see what the next 500miles have in store…