The cinelli should not be restored. Why?
- decals are pretty close to perfect - paint has blems, but no systemic problems, i.e. rust is not coming through the paint everywhere. - the frame is no imminent danger
I have a carlton in similar condition, but it had the systemic rust problem. I opted to mask off the decals on the front end and I sanded and repainted much of it. This is a stopgap for a few years until restoration becomes a necessity. On this bike, there is pinhole rust coming through the paint on every inch of the bike.
I did restore a raleigh international that had systemic rust and chrome badly delaminating from the fork.
I did restore a raleigh international that had most decals at 50-80% and peppered rust on the chrome (head lugs polished down to the nickel, or below.)
These are the bikes I have fully restored, so far.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA, USA