match 'em up!
As a longtime titanium bike owner, I’ve always been jealous of a beautiful painted frame but Ti and carbon frames don’t need paint like a steel frame needs paint. But I want some painted beauty. It’s like buying a white car; I can’t do white, need some color. So between a Ti frame and a carbon fork…I got nothing.
Well, a little knowledge is dangerous and throw in a compressor and an automotive spray gun and the potential for mayhem goes up. You want to paint your fork celeste green? Good luck with that as you go into your local auto refinishing paint store and try to describe Bianchi’s celeste green or De Rosa pink – blank stares. They will hand you huge stacks of paint samples all related to cars. Celeste green is a big problem, the nearly celeste green of a 1981 Fiat, no problem.
I found a used, top-end Trek Madone frame on eBay a few years ago, to bring my wife out of the Ti age and into the Carbon age. It was a project one frame, meaning it had been custom painted at the Trek factory. When we had the frame in-hand someone pointed out it was Subaru Forester green. Yep, that is correct. Who wants a bike painted Subaru Forester green? I was not ready to take on that repaint so I had it done somewhat professionally, at the local surfboard fabrication and repair spot. Years later the front fork needed to be repainted and I knew I could handle it. I practiced on an old alpha-q carbon fork and decided the Merlin’s fork was going to get it too.
Who wouldn’t want to match the stem to the fork? There are no Rules about this, but visually I think it works. Stems like paint. If I was going to paint forks I was absolutely going to paint some stems too. I think the secret to this might be the clear coat that goes on after the color coat. It is a catalyzed product, tough and flexible. It’s why your car still looks good after a few years on the road.
You can do all this with a rattle-can of color paint from the hardware store but you can’t spray a catalyzed clear coat on top so it might not hold up well. And this spraying is nasty but fun when it’s done, if it goes well.
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@EBruner
you need to send them that Garmin mount!
@Teocalli
I can't really comment on the EPMS is question as either the internet or my computer appears to have been so disturbed by it that has removed the picture.
Homemade food is definitely the way to go, you know exactly what you're putting in and you can tailor it to suit what your body likes/deals with best.
@chris
I thought it was just me being on a mac. Must be @fraahhnk's new Rule filter.
@Teocalli
Saw this on Cycling Tips this morning. Doesn't matter whether it's any good or not but being 3D printed titanium makes it automatically awesome and great value for money.
@chris
Mrs Sandy has obtained the British Cycling recipe for flapjacks. Highly recommended. I think I'm now 85% oats.
@Teocalli
Sadly, if there is such a thing it hasn't picked up @Gianni's stubby erectile stem issues in the lead photo. Is that thing off a mountain bike?
@RobSandy
I base mine on John Torode's recipe but vary the fruit. At the moment I'm on a high Fig/Date content. One great thing about homemade is that you can make them less solid than the commercial ones so they take less chewing.
http://www.wheelsuckers.co.uk/forum/topics/john-torode-s-flapjack-from-last-weeks-cycling-show
Wrapped in Rice Paper I cut them into easy bite bars as below.
@Teocalli
Nice hob. Induction?
@RobSandy
Radiant - H did not fancy buying a whole new set of pans.
@Teocalli @RobSandy
Do you know anybody who has ever tried one of those Bora extractors? They look great in the commercials on Eurosport.