Starting to look like a bike

We still have to finish with the derailleurs but we are very close to having first bike finished.  We had to take a break this weekend because of time constraints.

First snag in the assembly process

I have taken out bottom brackets and headsets before but with the way they do things with the new bikes today everything has to be precise.  That's why I ended up ruining a brand new bottom bracket.  DANG IT!! 

There was basically too much paint and we had to take the frames into a shop so the real tools could come out and hone out the bottom bracket and steerer tube.

Baby steps...BAAaBy steps!

Frames are back from clear coating

Well we learned a lot this week about powder coating clear coat.  It did bake and slightly discolor the 1shot paint which was a possibility we knew.  However they are still green and did not turn brown and that's what we hoped for.  They also now have another layer that is tough as nails which is important for making the bikes last forever.  There are a few spots and imperfections but for the most part they look good and we are sooooo ready to start assembly.

Other options would have been to either pay for an exspensive custom glitter metallic powder coating or possibly to carefully clear coat from a spray can at home.

This is the first pictures from Katrina's phone.

Paint the Lugs

We were both nervous about painting the lugs.  Knowing you're getting close to the end and you don't want to screw something up puts the preasure on.  Plus neither of us have steady hands.

Of course like always.  I tend to jump into things with out reading directions or doing any research.   Painting of the lugs was a little bit of trouble because we did it wrong.  I decided that mixing the paint and metal flakes would be the best way to do things.  I realize now that's wrong.  The paint looked dull and it was very clumpy.  Luckily Sam, model painting expert, from the neighborhood came down and gave us a better idea for doing it.  I wish I had talked to him beforehand.  You can definitely tell the difference between his method (painting heavily and sprinkling metal flakes) and ours.  Smoother and looks better.  The pictures don't do it justice...it looks pimp!!

Frames are back from powder coating

After many changes we decided to go with an off white.   Unfortunately the shop was out of off white so we went with the basic white.  We are very pleased with the outcome.  Aside from a few blemishs the frames look great.  Next we are going to paint the lugs, clear coat the frame, and then put the stickers on.  So very excited about moving closer to being able to install parts.

Still Cleaning up the Frames

This part of the frame build is more daunting than we thought.  You can always find another blemish.  Plus you have the fact that we are not the best brazers thus leaving huge globs of silver and brass to knock down. 

However over the past few weeks we are starting to develope some good techniques.  First off getting an entire file kit is a good idea.  That way you have everything from big files to little files and assorted coursenesses. 

The little files also come in handy for those little hard to reach spots that your fingers can't get to.  Wrapping the file in whatever grit sandpaper or emory cloth proves most useful in reaching those tight spots. 

Patience is important.  Find a spot and don't loose focus on it until you are done with it.  It's hard to do when you feel like you are making no progress on that spot.  As you can see below eventually it starts to change slowly but surely.

Also don't loose your cool and take some kind of power tool like a dermel or drill to the spot.  You can use a dermel but be careful not to go down into the metal too far.  You will create ruts that take forever to fix.

Sanner Cycles Video

Dan from Thrillist Magazine came by Tim's shop to shot a quick video. 

***Video of Tim's Shop***