Frame Painter Recommendation -- Anyone in SoCal??

[Pearsom]

I'm thinking about a respray on one of my steel frames. Paint, not powder coat. Single color with clearcoat and new decals. Ideally local in the LA / SoCal area.

Can anyone recommend someone good and reasonable? I know Joe Bell is in So Cal, but I understand he's on the high end price-wise and this particular frame doesn't call for a real high-end restoration

My online searching also came up with Alan Wanta who is in Florida, Yellow Jersey in Wisconsin and Assenmacher in Michigan... but then I got shipping costs and I'd ideally like to see the paint before it gets sprayed...

First time doing this so thanks in advance for any recommendations / suggestions. :)

[echelon_john]

Jim Allen
The CycleSmiths
37015 El Tesoro Rd,
Ranchita, CA 92066
760.782.2737
cyclesmiths@wildblue.net

[FlashUNC]

Jim Allen is your guy.

[cadence90]

Yes, Jim Allen/Cyclesmiths will be the closest to LA given your needs/budget. He has a good reputation, but I have never seen any of the work first-hand. A little difficult to get in touch with at times, in my experience at least.

Joe Bell is indeed in a league of his own out here, and is very communicative, very nice, but is (deservedly so) also very expensive.

You won't find any bicycle-specific wet-painters in LA/much of SoCal, because of high rent costs/overhead + highly stringent EPA regulations as I understand it.

If shipping becomes an acceptable option, Wanta has a very good reputation here. More than a few PLers seem very happy with the results.
Joe's Carbon Solutions in Watsonville, CA has a good reputation.
I'm not sure if Mikkelsen is still active up the Bay Area/Oakland?
If you come across Ed Litton, also up in the Bay Area, the negative reviews are significant; I would avoid.

A couple of others are mentioned in this thread (https://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=184663) I started a few years ago. But, I didn't really find any jewels in that search; never had any work done. I found the auto-body suggestions a nightmare really; those guys just don't want to waste time/effort/detail/precision on a bicycle, ime.
.

[dziekiel]

I keep hearing how exorbitant Joe Bell can be, but can you quantify that? For a straightforward repaint to what it was from the factory, plus clear coat and decals, what are we talking about, roughly?

thanks

[old_fat_and_slow]

No experience with this shop, but used to be recommended quite a bit.

Cyclart.com

Vista California

[dvs cycles]

No experience with this shop, but used to be recommended quite a bit.

Cyclart.com

Vista CaliforniaThey moved to Arkansas.
They did a great job on my 1987 Pinarello Montello when they were still in SoCal.

[bfd]

I keep hearing how exorbitant Joe Bell can be, but can you quantify that? For a straightforward repaint to what it was from the factory, plus clear coat and decals, what are we talking about, roughly?

thanks

OK, this may not be an apple and orange comparison, but Allan Wanta starts at $395 to repaint a bike in one color.

http://www.wantaframes.com/firstpage.html

Joe Bell starts at $750:

http://joebell.net/pdf/JB_form_09-17_v2.pdf

Good Luck!

[donevwil]

No experience with this shop, but used to be recommended quite a bit.

Cyclart.com

Vista California

Cycleart is/was indeed very good, did chrome and paint on wife's Colnago back in ~'05. Now in Little Rock, AR, however.

[cadence90]

I keep hearing how exorbitant Joe Bell can be, but can you quantify that? For a straightforward repaint to what it was from the factory, plus clear coat and decals, what are we talking about, roughly?

thanks

Joe Bell is not "exorbitant" at all imo, not for what he delivers.
.

[David Kirk]

Joe Bell in Spring Valley, CA.

dave

[dziekiel]

Joe Bell is not "exorbitant" at all imo, not for what he delivers.

Fair enough, I often see people describe his pricing as such and then some, so I just wanted to get an idea of what people here might have actually paid for a job.

[FlashUNC]

Joe's queue can also be a while.