Kitchen Sink Drama

Kitchens double as fantastic workshops-fresh running water, kettle food, TV/radio and similar creature comforts. Returning from the midlands with new laptop, I decided there was no better way to start the week than reassembling my beloved Mk2 Ilpompino.

Having carefully reintroduced headset cups, seat collar and bottom bracket shell, everything came together pretty effortlessly, although by midday focus was waning on account of telephone calls and encroaching hunger. By this point, only the front brake needed dialling in but I’d earmarked other, pressing deadlines for the afternoon. 

Tuesday was deeply frustrating, spent awaiting a courier and responses to urgent emails-neither of which arrived until late that afternoon, though thankfully I managed to keep a 4.45 appointment. By 1800 the disc was sorted and home brewed frame preserve sloshing inside the Ilpompino’s inner sanctum.

New seasons’ clothing and lighting needed putting through its paces and I don’t require enticing where kit testing’s concerned. I was also pleased to discover decathlon had sent me a G-Eye2 escape under warrantee. This seems a marked improvement over its likeable predecessor. Fittings/accessories are GO-PRO pattern, so thus far, everything, including the weatherproof casing plugs straight on.

A quick, cursory play later, I mounted it on the Ilpompino’s handlebar extension bracket, engaged lights and headed out. Just as Tuesday was concluding on fairly positive notes, while grinding along a greasy, dung strewn gradient, we sliced through a cowpat heavily impregnated with hedge clippings…

The Vittoria voyager hyper unleashed a loud petulant hiss, blowing raspberries with every revolution. Despite being narrow, large trucks often take this route to small industrial units, so a suitable clearing was imperative if I wasn’t to become another piece of roadkill.  

Finding a safe, sheltered spot, I rummaged through the wedge pack. No CO2 inflator!!!!...A wave of panic subsided upon finding the Specialized midi pump, spare tubes and my favourite BTwin tyre levers.

The eerie silence was broken by a woman’s voice. “Excuse me, have you got a puncture?” Despite the Sigma Evo Pro lamp’s considerable power, I couldn’t pinpoint her location but presumed it must’ve come from the cottage opposite.

“Yes, but its fine-thank you” I replied, an early 80’s Godley and Cream track “Under your thumb” suddenly filled the backdrop as my imagination went into overdrive. I wouldn't mind but there's still a few weeks until Halloween.

Even in standard mode, the Sigma Evo Pro’s has sufficient bite for spirited backroad scratching and I was particularly grateful for its prowess as I removed the front

wheel, extracted the wounded butyl and began scrutinising the Vittoria’s casing for embedded sharps.

Ten minutes later, wheel reinstated with a useable 60psi, I resumed my twenty mile loop. Petitioning the god of punctures with prayer seemed to help. Kenda thorn-resistant tubes are my first line of defence, rolling resistance is more apparent given their relative heft.

However, their valve stems are too short for deep section rims, so I may opt for something impregnated with green goo if this scenario becomes more prevalent into winter.  Time to replenish the otherwise superb faux leather Mpart bar wrap. Hmm, what will it be?...

 

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.  

 

 

 

Motherboards & Other Internal Flux

  

Having returned from the Midlands, down to a third of a tank but fuelled with ideas and purpose, I stet about stripping the Ilpompino ready for its makeover. 60 minutes later, the frame was bare and removing its makeshift chainstay protector revealed some superficial wounding that had given rise to unsightly corrosion.

Stones, grit and salt monster had struck during the snowy weeks of 2012/13, scuffing caused by the chain colliding with its bottom bracket shell during a spill in the first quarter of 2008, bare metal skid mark etched into the seat tube by a slightly loose mid-section chrome plastic mudguard... Every mark tells a story.

Ten years in, time for a change. Seizing the moment, I popped said frame in the Micra and delivered it to Maldon Shot Blasting & Powder Coating, where we discussed the finer details of the new livery. They have exacting standards and demand for their services is high, hence we’ve arranged to proceed with the photo-love-story transformation next week.

The Holdsworth has been busy, putting a huge grin on my face while earning its keep with super clean, friction busting wax chain preps, Univega has ditched the otherwise brilliant Tortec rack, for a racier Altura post mount day bag, wet lubes and seriously soggy lanes.

There’s been a steady trickle of lighting arriving at my door for evaluation. Given the performance of their baby blinder arc 1.7 certainly delivered far greater clout than 170 lumens suggest their 600 (640 lumens) has me very excited. The song remains broadly identical, albeit amplified somewhat and the quality of light in its highest setting appears to eclipse some budget blasters boasting 1,000 plus.

Silicone straps look unchanged, save for magnetic claps and whether they’ll cope better with oversized bars/extensions and post diameters remains to be seen.Retro fans needn’t feel left out, there’s a smaller loop for 25-30mm, which even caters for Cinelli and other marques who were producing theirs in 26.2 before standardisation simplified matters. Apparently, Knog has not only boosted firepower but revised the optics and internals in this season’s Blinder Arc family.

In common with several other higher end models, this 900 lumen Sigma Power LED EVO Pro claims to combine spot and flood in a single lamp, allowing you to see 100metres (approximately 325ft) ahead.

Both have the options of bar or helmet mounting, look well made, simple to fit and user friendly. The blinder arc more obviously aimed at clutter-phobic commuters who fancy incorporating some fast paced saunters into their journey home, whereas the Sigma is a big, tuneable trail gun promising run times of between 3 and 11 hours depending on which end of the four setting spectrum conditions favour.

Talking of technology, my surprisingly long-lived HP laptop that served me tirelessly these past three years, succumbed to sudden and fatal motherboard failure last Monday evening. As Murphy’s Law would have it, said catastrophic haemorrhage struck before I had chance to back up files and second drafts on memory sticks and external hard drives

Several minutes’ heart stopping, irrational panic associated with lost data, documents and photographs subsided once I found most were either emailed to myself, or sitting in a pile of hard copy proof-reads, so I was able to catch up with 75% that evening and be ahead of schedule two days hence.

Having searched the web for inspiration, I concluded stripping and cooking the unit in my oven at 180 degrees to temporarily resuscitate and salvage was a fools’ mission. So begins the research for a replacement while I enjoy a newfound appreciation for a middle aged but very serviceable desktop.

 

 

 

Changes

Eurobike and similar trade events signal summer’s slow, simpering swansong. The gradually encroaching curtain of velvety darkness brings with it more interesting colours. Being something of a night owl, the season’s new lighting in particular has me very excited.  

We’re waiting on samples but I was invited over to Moore Large’s Derby headquarters for their “Geared” event. Plenty to see, although I was particularly taken with their Moda range; this included several cross, Audax, road and TT builds.  This Reynolds 953 frameset with clear coated stainless stays, replaceable hanger and carbon fork was all too tempting…

Spec is highly tuneable to suit customer budget and expectation. Adventure bikes remain very popular too on account of their rugged versatility and this 1x11spd Hooklow cross/gravel/do-all also held my attention. 

Single rings with widely spaced cassettes eliminate the chore of keeping front derailleurs happy through the grotty months. It also allows manufacturers to deviate from traditional frame design and where appropriate, use thinner tubing since there’s no danger of it being distorted by band-on clamps.

Like the majority of frames, these are made to a very high standard in the Far East, which includes finishing. Traditionally brands would outsource construction to Taiwan and keep paint and detailing on these shores.

Chatting with their brand manager revealed this is no longer necessary, although I was surprised to discover the worldwide demand for aluminium alloys has resulted in a shortage of factories in the Far East capable of working with Cro-moly steels.     

Then of course, Knog and Pro-Viz. The Australian marque famous for its iconic silicone encased blinkies has upgraded the internals in its Blinder Arc range and introduced some new, decidedly extrovert town lighting. Silicone straps have also been beefed up and redesigned for improved durability.

Pro-Viz has introduced a 360+ line with racier cuts and improved breathability and made a reversible day glow/ grey version of the 360 jacket. We’re yet to play with this one but the concept looks great for general winter riding.  

Speaking of revamps, I’ve been toying with reinventing the Ilpompino’s livery.

Some suggested buying the latest version of the long-running frameset (which has ditched the mono-stay in favour of a more conventional rear triangle). However, more disciplined fleet control would dictate selling my MK2 on.

The MK4 is arguably an improvement, especially if you’re looking at fitting a four point rack for laden commuting or weekend touring. Having upgraded the original steel fork for racier carbon blades, the latest generations more aggressive geometry is a moot point.

Besides, despite its minor limitations, I love the MK2’s distinctive rear triangle and we’ve amassed too many happy miles together.

The existing wet-spray finish remains in very rude health, ten years salty winters hence. However, the binaural voice of temptation had been cooing seductively for too long. Chris and Trevor at Maldon Shot blasting & Powder Coating have agreed to a new and very distinctive effect.Watch this space...

Elsewhere, the Kinesis Tripster Ace has been treated to several healthy helpings of dirt these past few weeks and it handles light to moderate trail duties better than I had any right to expect. 

I found those buxom bars just too broad for tarmac terrorism, or open road cruising. However, their unparalleled leverage really helps bring things back under control when the 35mm dual purpose tyres eventually ingest too much gloop and become slicks…

The eagle eyed among you will note my use of single sided SPDR homage pedals-idiosyncratic perhaps and a decision my testicles nearly regretted on a few occasions but we’ve escaped unscathed and dulcet tones fully intact.

Recent legislation means Co2 cartridges shouldn’t be sent through the post, hence the previous weeks’ trip to the midlands coincided with a quick stop-off at a well-known French sports retailer for some replenishments.

I’m someone who punctures infrequently but then succumbs to several in quick succession. Their convenience on a cold, wet night cannot be under-estimated. Nonetheless, a decent pump should always be riding shotgun on the bottle bosses, or nestling against the seat/top tube just in case.