Raw steel frames?

[Nooch]

Anyone have a raw steel frame -- perhaps not raw, but just clear coated? Any thoughts or concerns in considering one? (not talking stainless here)

Thanks!

[Chris]

Anyone have a raw steel frame -- perhaps not raw, but just clear coated? Any thoughts or concerns in considering one? (not talking stainless here)

Thanks!

I did. I wouldn't recommend it. Chips in the clear would expose the frame and you risk rust more easily. Just my $0.02

[wai2fast]

My current ride is a 3-season old, raw True Temper OX with a clearcoat finish. The areas that received a liberal clearcoat layer are holding up well, while the areas that received a thinner layer has some surface rust. The rust doesn't bother me much as it gives the ride a bit more "character" and a reason to get another frame if/when it rust through.

[timto]

Here's a great thread on the velocipede salon where some builders pipe in with samples

http://www.velocipedesalon.com/forum/f10/clear-powder-coat-over-raw-steel-37913.html

[Nooch]

ah. yeah, that's not too cool!

[jtakeda]

My understanding is clear isn't enough to protect.

That's what everyone told me when I wanted the repaired headtube of my shark cleared.

[phcollard]

My understanding is clear isn't enough to protect.

That's what everyone told me when I wanted the repaired headtube of my shark cleared.

It depends on the type of finish used. Liquid paint is maybe too fragile but clear powdercoat must be very tough! My Alliance frame is black + clear powdercoat and it's very hard to make a scratch in this thing.

Also Kona had the 2013 Unit in raw steel clear coated. Never seen one in person but I never heard anybody complain neither. And it look cool.

http://2k13.konaworld.com/bike.cfm?content=unit

[buldogge]

Clear urethanes are a UV protectant for the basecoat and not designed to be a standalone finish.

Frankly, you would be better off wiping down the frame with an oil based product after each ride.

-Mark in St. Louis

[Auk]

Clear powder will take a beating.

[Dead Man]

Speaking of oiling... what about parkerizing? Seems like it would require an annoying amount of extra maintenance (certainly less than bare steel, though), but it'd be unique for sure

[Ryun]

I am on the extreme end of corrosion area living in Florida but my raw steel bike with matte clear began to corrode fairly quickly. I loved the way it looked but ultimately just didnt hold up to regular use

[Ken Robb]

Rivendell did a few but I thought they were ugly and Riv warned that the finish was rather fragile.

[David Kirk]

I've never seen it work out well in the long run I'm sorry to say.

dave

[Marburg]

Ignorant question, but if you're dealing with a coating where "clear" is basically the "colored" without pigment (isn't this true for powdercoat?), isn't the only difference that you can see the rust forming?

I could see pigment making a difference if we were talking about, say, UV protection. But not rust.

[buldogge]

In the case of a basecoat/clearcoat system you also first lay down a primer...in the case of a steel frame, normally etching primer.

Clearcoar or PC is basically a thin layer of plastic floating over the top of the basecoat or basemetal.

PC is best over media blasted/prepped surfaces...IMHO.

-Mark

Ignorant question, but if you're dealing with a coating where "clear" is basically the "colored" without pigment (isn't this true for powdercoat?), isn't the only difference that you can see the rust forming?

I could see pigment making a difference if we were talking about, say, UV protection. But not rust.

[Netdewt]

Speaking of oiling... what about parkerizing? Seems like it would require an annoying amount of extra maintenance (certainly less than bare steel, though), but it'd be unique for sure

Is that the same as "gun blue"?

http://www.gun-tests.com/media/newspics/Presto-Mag-Gun-Blue.jpg

[seanile]

the raw FBM Sword seemed to hold up pretty well for my friend over the years. maybe email them and ask em how they did it.

if they sandblast it and immediately powdercoat it, minimizing the contaminents, then it'll be alright for a while, but you lose the rainbows from the arc and other patina.

[Admiral Ackbar]

speaking of FBM... i come from a bmx background, and quite often people will strip the paint off their frames and run them raw, usually with clear, sometimes nothing...rust is like, so hesh, and some folks even "treat" their frames by covering them in oil soaked rags and letting them sit to soak up some oil

from what I've seen, if you use clear coat you need to be very vigilant with your prep. if everything is clean and clear of contaminants it should hold pretty well. treating it with oil seems to work pretty good too, a routine wipe down will keep it looking sharp, maybe not so much if you ride in wet weather, or a very humid climate

[Charles M]

erm...


STAINLESS


http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/kb2.jpg

[Admiral Ackbar]

first post in thread "not talking stainless here"

yeah, no.

[Walter]

Powdercoating in clear can work well but you must be very careful with the prep or you will get rust starting underneath. A buddy had his dragster frame powdercoated clear and it rusted. Then you have a real hassle to get the powdercoat off.

[Dead Man]

Is that the same as "gun blue"?

http://www.gun-tests.com/media/newspics/Presto-Mag-Gun-Blue.jpg

Similar application, but different. Bluing doesn't go nearly as deep. HOWEVER... a quality hot-blued steel frame would look absolutely crazy beautiful, so excellent idea.

Even harder to keep up than parker, but probably worth it. The heat-rings around the brazes would look like rainbows against a twilight sky... ::drool::

[Netdewt]

I have a blued steel frame dining table with a walnut top. It's great looking steel.

[parris]

The size of the tanks as well as bluing salts needed would be huge. Also if any of the salts got into any of the tubes that weren't plugged well would cause problems down the road with corrosion. Not saying that it couldn't be done but it would most likely be a very expensive operation for a finish that in the scheme of things isn't very durable for the purpose.

[guyintense]

I stripped my Paul Taylor and it's been holding up well but we don't have a lot of rust here in the desert.
http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=126228

[catchourbreath]

I had a factory clearcoated raw S&M bmx frame for a few years that held up great. It was some sort of clear powdercoating and was extremly durable. Just a few scratches with minor surface rust after a lot of abuse.

[charliedid]

Brompton's finish is rather durable.

https://brompton.zendesk.com/entries/29138762-What-is-the-Raw-Lacquer-finish-

[Scooper]

Electroless nickel plating (http://www.electroless-nickel-plating.co.uk/news/nickel-plating-road-and-mountain-bike-.php) offers a nice finish and is much less expensive than chrome plating. Nickel was a popular frame finish in the 1930s and many of those bikes are still around. The patina looks great and there's no rust.

The attempts I've seen to use either clear liquid or clear powder coat over raw steel have resulted in spidery cobweb looking rust threads appearing under the protective coating in a matter of a few months, and over time the threads become bigger and more numerous. Some may be happy with that, but I thought it looked ugly.

[unterhausen]

I looked at using Van's gun blue on a frame for my own use. I decided it looked like a pain to use properly. I have a couple of frames I'm probably just going to oil down and ride until I decide if I like them enough to have them painted. I have the luxury of just riding a frame until I get sick of the rust though.