Search results

Sorry.....the wax.....this one.

willmill has nailed it! Simple, regular maintenance = faultless performance. I used to race across several disciplines. Some people thought i spent too much time tinkering, cleaning, fussing over my bikes.....but i never had a 'mechanical'. Used to volunteer at the LBS (mutually beneficial) -...

Thanks again for the comments. No (to answer the question) - no clearcoat/lacquer. I applied the same philosophy to the frame and forks. That is, i would rather 'maintain' if required - re-wax the forks or deal with any oxidisation, rather than clearcoat/lacquer and have to re-do it at some...

Very many thanks for the comment. Yes, you do need a certain amount (and a certain type) of patience. But it's very do-able. Slow and steady wins the race (so to speak).

Thanks ever so much for the comments. You should go for it! With the Super V..... You are right though - you have to want to do it and 'be present' to undertake a project like that. There are times of course, when you have to complete a stage entirely before stopping in order to achieve the...

Thanks ever so much for the comments. The short answer is.....'I don't know'. Another possible could be.....'a lot of hours'. But I never intended to 'turn it around' in a specific time frame. I enjoy the process - of acquiring the parts and working on the bike. In this instance in particular, I...

The only thing i am pondering, indeed was pondering from the beginning was whether or not to remove the unused cable guide on the down tube. Running 1 x 8 i wanted to see how it felt, although i would be reluctant to add a front mech anyway, thankfully the gearing is ok (for hill country) and i...

Last couple of pictures. I can't explain why, but this is my favourite view of the bike. It makes me remember 'drillium' - without any drilling..... R800 to Cafe Racer - i was pleased with the results. All in - she weighs 18.4lb. I could have saved weight with different wheels, but i wanted...

More pictures!

I found that the scotch-brite & WD40 produced quite a nice finish - more of a 'matt/raw' effect. Three passes with the Autosol was optimum. Any more than that did not produce any discernible improvement. I decided to polish some components and leave others raw - i can't explain the...

Then i decided that a 'stealth' look would be a fitting testament. I removed all logo's from all components, with the exception of the bottom bracket and the saddle.....as i felt that removing those logo's would damage the components. I didn't take pictures of everything, but the handlebars got...

Decided that the cable guides could be improved (before & after). Many hours (days) later, all paint was removed. I started by using scotch-brite and WD-40, then used Autosol to start polishing. There were times i questioned whether it would be worth it, but each stage made me more convinced...

Came across a 'free to collect' ad' for a very tired R800. Messaged the person selling and tried to explain..... They insisted it was being binned the very next day (if no-one wanted it). Jumped on the train (40 mile round trip) in the hope of preventing a tragedy. She was very tired, but i was...