Hi Paul
I'm sorry I didn't look at everything, also I have real memory issues. This wasn't helped by me being mesmerised by an Ephgrave which was just stunning. Doug had a nice one there but I forget the marque already, it was white with burgundy.
Best regards
Julius Naim, London UK
On 18 Apr 2007, at 22:32, Dr. Paul Williams wrote:
> Hi Julius,
>
> Did you see my 49 Carpenter frameset there? Just curious - I must
> get in touch with Vaz. I am sure it is almost done by now!? I can't
> thank Doug Smith enough for looking after all the details for me.
> Doug, if you are online - I will be in touch tomorrow.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Paul Williams,
> Ottawa, ON, Canada
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Julius Naim"
> <julius.naim@gmail.com>
> To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, April 18, 2007 5:08 PM
> Subject: [CR]Vaz Finishes
>
>
>> I went to see Mario Vaz today after work with pictures of my Sun
>> to get a price. He's a really nice guy and was very welcoming,
>> it was also really great to see so many beautiful frames in his
>> workshop. He used to run the paint shop at Holdsworth and has
>> now set himself up with a fair sized workshop with a very healthy
>> turn around. Being
>> in London there are droves of courier and commuters keen to ride a
>> polished bike so there seems to be plenty of demand.
>>
>> I mentioned his prices for a single colour, standard or metallic
>> and decals earlier. For any job he shot-blasts them to strip them
>> down, the attention to detail on a stripped frame I saw seemed
>> very good indeed (smooth as anything). Paints with an anti-rust
>> primer, main coat, applies decals and then lacquers; all cooked
>> on in a big oven of course. You can request more than one coat at
>> any stage if that's
>> what you're after.
>>
>> The finished jobs I saw were good, I guess it depends what you're
>> restoring. I think the paint finish for something run of the
>> mill like my Sun would probably be better that it was when it was
>> made, I've never had anything with a mint paint job to compare to
>> but the finished frames I saw were better than any finishing I've
>> seen new in
>> the shop on the high street.
>>
>> The decals he has are from Nick at Lloyds but will happily use
>> other decals if you can source them.
>>
>> To give you an idea of costs for an average job (no blends or
>> fades etc). My Sun to be refinished in White, Light blue and
>> Flamboyant Red, colours separated with gold bands and lugs high-
>> lighted with a gold detail would come to £95. I'm pretty certain
>> it never had any
>> decals (apart from the gold bands) so I'm undecided on whether to put
>> a Sun badge on seat tube as it would look lovely and a set of
>> decals adds £15 to the cost of any job. I didn't ask about
>> chrome plating
>> as mine is in perfect condition. He said it would take up to
>> three weeks after I drop off the frame, I'm sure he could be
>> persuaded to turn them around in less time.
>>
>> Interestingly he has some good contacts for frame building/
>> repair. To replace a tube is £40, I couldn't believe this price
>> as I'd been
>> quoted up to £200 from a local shop. The £40 covers the
materials
>> and rebuilding (sticking it in a jig I think it's called it where the
>> alignment is checked etc. both before and after). To change drop-
>> outs for track ends or to replace damaged drop-outs is more expensive
>> at £70. This is great news for me as my Viking would have cost me
in
>> excess of £400 to repair and finish; I only paid £100 for it in
the
>> first place, at these prices it would be about £160 to repair and
>> refinish which would be well worth it.
>>
>> I'm not really sure about the US/UK quality comparison, I guess
>> you get what you pay for to some extent however I'm sure you can
>> get as good in any country and equally you can get poor in any
>> too. I don't
>> think anyone would be happy with their workmanship being graded
>> on their country alone. David Patrick sent me some pictures of a
>> finish
>> by Bob Jacksons which was superb and I can't see anything in this
>> to the quality finishes from the US.
>>
>> Right, I think I've said far too much on this thread. I'll shut
>> up now.
>>
>> Cheerio
>>
>> Julius Naim
>> London, UK