Hi Bob,
I REALLY like what you have written here!
I'm sure that I am like so many others who have been silent on this topic. And that is, so often I have struggled with the issues of keeping a prized possession protected and adorable. You obviously took a lot of time in writing your email and, for me, it really hit home. I find you wisdom especially beneficial knowing that it has come from someone so intimately involved with collectibles.
Paul
At 3:32 PM -0400 6-7-07, BobHoveyGa@aol.com wrote:
>Brian Baylis writes:
>
>>The LAST thing a professional bike painter wants is touch ups. I've
>>done more than my share over the years, preserving decals and such.
>>The time it takes is ridiculous and the money is less than the regular
>>low wage I earn.
>
>>In nearly every case the touch-up will
>>cost more than the bike is worth. If you're serious about preserving
>>bikes this way, I suggest you try it yourself and see how much work
>>and trouble it is.
>
>
>As one who sent a Richard Moon frame to Brian for touch up of a couple of
>minor rust spots, I must confess that in retrospect I agree. I added to the
>workload of a busy painter/builder who had better things to do and I strongly
>suspect he did not make much money on the deal.
>
>This brings up an interesting point. I've heard many varied opinions
>expressed with even more varied degrees of conviction concerning the
>treatment of
>the finish on our vintage bikes. The more conservative approach
>seems to be to
>do as little as possible to any remaining original finish (short of letting
>the frame decay into a pile of rust), while the more heretical
>approach appears
>to be repainting the bike as soon as the new wears off and it has accumulated
>an objectionable number of blemishes.
>
>I strongly suspect that the great majority of us who remain in the middle may
>have chosen to be silent on this matter. Perhaps we are the ones who have
>neither the deep pockets for a complete repaint or an even more expensive
>painstaking touchup, nor the cruelty to strip and rattlecan a frame
>that still has
>most of its original paint and decals. Instead, I'm sure many of us do what
>conscientious bike owners have done for the last century or more, we grab a
>tiny bottle of paint and a small brush and we attempt to do the repair
>ourselves, as cheaply and as inconspicuously as possible.
>
>I don't know about you, but I must confess to feeling a warm sentimental pull
>at the sight of a less than perfect touchup by a loving owner who took as
>much care as his limited skills and simple tools allowed. It is
>what one might
>call an "honest" or 'functional" repair... it protects the frame, it does not
>hurt what is left of the original finish, and it leaves no doubt what is
>original and what has been repaired (not unlike the fresco repairs
>where color is
>laid in with fine crosshatching so that future curators will have no
>doubt what
>is the repair). Perhaps this could be described as the bike owner's
>equivalent of a mother's "BandAid and a hug."
>
>Therefore, let me suggest that if you respect the original finish of these
>bikes, and if you enjoy riding them (rather then sending them off for a few
>months to be repainted, then on its arrival find yourself riding with fear and
>inhibition lest you mar the perfect paint), then take a chance and do what you
>did when you were twelve... fix it yourself, don't worry about perfection, hop
>back on and go for a ride.
>
>
>Bob Hovey
>Columbus, GA USA
>
>
>http://bhovey.com/Masi/Conrest.htm
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>**************************************
> See what's free at http://www.aol.com.
>
>
>_______________________________________________
-- Paul J. Wilson Cell (408) 395-2020, Temecula, California>>(951) 587-3632, San Jose, California 95124, USA>>(408) 377-1710
email: paul@wilsondesigns.net
http://www.wilsondesigns.net