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Just checked my frame and it’s linked on the inner and outer of the driveside chainstay. I hope that’s intended. I do intend to run it 1x so hopefully it holds up. Not sure what my warranty length is will find out once I register it.
@fudge9202 You may yet be ok. Mine was fine for a few years on the NDS, which is the one that other people have had fail. Mine only snapped cos I mangled it up. Bloody brilliant adventure bike though, I love mine more than I've ever loved a bike!
Anyway. Painting day:
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Painting tent set up - fortunately that seatpost is a tight fit:
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Primer on - a couple of runs in it, will need to sand and add another coat. The paint may be advanced powder coat type no-run stuff but the primer is just normal primer apparently. It's not easy to spray from a good distance onto a bike tube, most of the paint misses!
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I wouldn't recommend trying a chainsuck plate. Went through this with Principia Mac B frames back in the 90s - the chainsuck plate is a bodge that never really worked. The force of a chain jamming up into the stay can't be inderestimated! We found that it with moved of damaged the plate - or worse just got jammed in the plate.
You may find with the new stay layout that it doesn't happen so much, but 1x or maybe 2x would be the best way to sort it. Get rid of the granny ring. Definitely worth the initial spend.
Yes, 1x is in the near future for this bike once I have found the cash. I'm strongly leaning towards stripping the Trek for it actually.
@molegrips This might be an option if you have cranks, all you need is a chainring of your choice
https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/shimano-slx-1x11-speed-upgrade-kit-with-11-46-652950
Ta fudge - I actually have a chain and cassette too, so I only need shifter, mech and chainring (stealth ad!)
So - paint's gone on, and I'm not sure tbh. Either it's not gelling well or it's actually reflecting the shot blasted finish underneath the paint. Try as I might I could not get it to gel into a glossy finish like car paint does, it's orange-peel-tastic. And it's not like I've never sprayed from a can before.
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Ok so I used oblique light to show it up - in reality it's pretty even. Not sure if I should leave it like that or try to fix.
Did you heat the frame with a hairdryer and stick the cans in a bucket of hot water before spraying? Not a great time of year to be painting.
Personally I would be going to a powder coater, I've has steel frames blasted and powdered for £35 before.
I would also be tempted to crimp a few more mm clearance....
I did it in the internal garage, with a heater on. It's not as warm as the house but definitely over the minimum 10C stated on the can. I couldn't see my breath. I've had this effect before with spray cans but when the panelling is too hot, not too cold.
Orange peel like that is usually because application is from too far away. The solvent part volatilises before the droplet lands on the frame and it's too jelly-like to settle out and blend with others into a smooth skin.
Could you have asked Argos to put a yoke in there to execute decent tyre clearance better than over squished, weedy tubes?
I have rattle canned several bike frames over the years and can turn out a good finish, smooth, shiny and no orange peel.
But dont bother any more as the paint is just not hard wearing enough and once you factor in labour and materials its as cheap to get it blasted and Powdercoated.
For a hardwearing paint job really you need proper 2 pack which isnt viable at home, even tried some lacquer that is supposedly 2-Pack from a can(some catalyst reacts as its sprayed out) was shite, nothing like proper 2 pack paint.
You could lacquer what you have got and after some flatting and buffing after the final finish it will look decent enough, but I'd imagine a trip to the powdercoaters will be inevitable at some point.
I like the rugged effect personally. I'm all over it!
Even the best paint jobs come off with heal rub, falls, general wear and tear. Having a rattle can to touch it up is 2nd to a raw finish for me.
My new bike is black for this reason. Its hard to get black wrong.
Good look with the build.
Just to be clear, this is spray.bike paint, and I can confirm it's NOT the same as standard car rattle can paint. It's much thicker for a start and it smells different.
I think the problem at first was I was using my normal car paint technique, which was too quick. Because it's thicker and evaporates faster, you need to be much closer and apply more thickly than car paint - in a way that would have car paint running like a toddler's nose. The instructions say you need to be 5-12cm away from the tube to spray - well, this is actually pretty difficult because you just cannot get the can that close in many areas.
It is however very even despite being peely, so I think it'll look ok with the lacquer on. However...
I’d imagine a trip to the powdercoaters will be inevitable at some point.
This was always the plan - this is only a stop-gap and also an experiment out of curiosity. To be honest, I might take it back to Argos for a full respray later on - having seen that they have the exact same colour and finish, and how good their quality is.
I might also ask the for some more crimping at the same time.
Just buy this On eBay 😀
Item no 372860745929
Nice bike that. Wonder what the chain stays are like 🙂
`A Ti El Mar frame on eBay also. Lovely looking bikes.
I'm surprised Argos didn't crimp the stays a bit more tbh.
I’m now paranoid about the frame I bought 🙁
I'll swap you for one with reinforced chainstays? 😉
I’m surprised Argos didn’t crimp the stays a bit more tbh.
Yeah I think they thought I was a clumsy biffer who breaks frames. This is my first breakage in 30 years of riding.
Molgrips - if its' 1 x 10 stuff you're after I have a Zee mech and shifter going spare that I just haven't got round to putting on ebay yet? PM if its' any use 🙂
I really need 1x11 - well, ideally 1x12 but that's too big an outlay currently! Thanks tho.
Hmm, clear coat is on, but it's going to need a rub down. I figured out how to get the clearcoat to gel into a nice gloss under direct spray but all the overspray ends up powdery on the frame and is not glossy. So it'll need a rub down with something or just a cutting compound.
It's a bit smoother with the clear coat:
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You can see the run in the top pic, but I've no idea what the blotches are - didn't see those in real life!? B*gger
Paint looks good, hopefully its robust.
I think I'd have gone for clear coat straight over the raw 😎
The peel effect wasn't too bad but it wasn't the same - can't apply paint evenly across a tube at the same time. So I decided to sand it gently with 1200, then rub with a finishing pad and finally T-Cut. The results aren't bad at all - not a high gloss, but more than satin. Looks a bit like a snooker ball. I wish I'd bought lacquer with sparkles now, or maybe done something else a bit more adventurous. But it'll look ok when I get the stickers.
Certainly looks and feels like powdercoat and feels pretty bombproof.
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Looks really good! Who’s doing the stickers for you?
Thanks. A mate has offered to convert my tracing into Illustrator, then I'll send them off to a printer. I've lost the head badge though, need to clean out the garage and try and find it!
I added some more clear coat today and rubbed it down a bit more with some better quality 2000 grit I found instead of 1200, so finish is a bit nicer.
However, I'm really not overly happy with the fix. Fitted the cranks and there's really not that much room between the chainrings and the stay. Previously, with the spacer fitted correctly, there was loads of room - the chain would never have got caught. But now I think it will. With that and the lost clearance, I think I am going to look at crimping it at some point. I've got some ideas...
Looks good now it's painted
What speed os your cassette? I have 10 and 11 speed Shimano mwchs and shifters I wouldn't want alot for....
Can’t believe this is just at £275 with two hours to go , anyone after a bargain(possibly)
Item no eBay 372860745929
Blackm, if he's not interested in the 10s I may be, especially if clutch mech and shifter with it too. Want to convert my lads bike from 9 to 10
Spray.Bike takes a little practice; sounds like you've already figured out a few of the issues. The first time I tried it I was deliberately slapdash and it did chip really easily; on recent frames I've been more diligent with prep and used more lacquer, and so far it's fared better. Haven't tried T-Cut to buff up the finish, might give that a go.
I won't mention that I've had two chainstay repairs done for under £20 each at the local smithy 😉
Can’t believe this is just at £275 with two hours to go , anyone after a bargain(possibly)
Item no eBay 372860745929
Son of a b*tch.
I might have to bid on that.
Went for £387 in the end. If I hadn't already had mine fixed it would have been a decent bargain, but not if it would have left me with another frame to shift.
Still mega cheap at £387 for a complete bike
No I know. If mine hadn't been repairable I'd have bought it for a fair bit more than that.
I think I'll call Argos tomorrow. I stressed I didn't want to lose tyre clearance and I have. I feel they could have talked me through the results better.
@molegtips that El Mariachi on eBay has been relisted due to a timewaster
Shut the front door...
Looks a very well looked after frame
Shut the front door…
My mate who's coming down to BPW on the 3rd lives close to that too 😉
Bollocks.
Anyone want to buy a frame with slightly less tyre clearance than usual?
I don't think I can make it work tbh. I could flog the fork and wheels off that bike, but the drivetrain isn't worth much. The dropper I'd keep but no-one's going to want the one of my current bike. I'd be well out of pocket here and end up with a frame that'd be even harder to shift.
Did you get a chance to speak to Argos again?
If only someone on the forum had offered to help out for minimal cost.... 🙂
Just kidding. Tricky situation for a professional repair business. They will be nervous of large amounts of crimping due to the known crack risk. Somebody earlier said "just fit a yoke", but that is at least an extra £200 for a Paragon one. A plate yoke design would have worked, but you can't buy them off the shelf so that adds the cost for CAD time, sending out for laser cutting, bending and more prep before it will fit etc etc so all cost and risk for something very bespoke as a retrofit to an existing frame.
If you do go for a crimp then DON'T just squash it in the vice - that will just give you a flat / pointy oval tube that will crack along the top or bottom edges. You need a former to push the middle of the tube in on itself without growing the tube vertically. See photo below.
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that El Mariachi on eBay has been relisted due to a timewaster
Was it a time waster or was the seller not happy with the price? Seems to happen a lot. I've been watching a few bikes on eBay recently and they bid to a much lower price than the seller wants (compared to the buy it now) then get relisted. Ones been "sold" 4 times now.
Right, Argos said that they can crimp after it's been built. I said at the time 'I don't want to lose much tyre clearance', so they've written on their form 'check clearance for 2.4s'. Of course, the 2.4 does fit, but only if you leave the dropouts on their longest setting and there's only a few mm clearance. If I put them in the shortest setting the tyre doesn't even turn. So that counts as 'losing too much clearance' in my book. I would have gone for a slightly less severe crimp, but there's no crimp at all.
They're calling me back soon.
If you do go for a crimp then DON’T just squash it in the vice – that will just give you a flat / pointy oval tube that will crack along the top or bottom edges. You need a former to push the middle of the tube in on itself without growing the tube vertically. See photo below.
I had been wondering about doing it myself. My idea was to make a form then line it with some sort of hard setting putty to form to the outside chainstay shape exactly to minimise pressure. Then make a form for the inside based on the original crimp out of a piece of steel rod hammered to the correct curve. But that's last resort if Argos won't help.
If only someone on the forum had offered to help out for minimal cost….
I know mate.. it was always a difficult choice!
I’ve been watching a few bikes on eBay recently and they bid to a much lower price than the seller wants
Surely that’s just one of the pitfalls of selling on the ‘Bay?