Odds, ends, and random thoughts...

Cleaning off the camera for the end of the week and have just a few little fiddly bits to share...

First up, folks always want to know why high end liquid paint jobs are so expensive when they can get their frames powder coated for so much less.  Well, let me give you a quick example.

I had to run to the paint shop to finish the touch ups on Chris's frame...

... just needed some more titty pink and a little clear catalyst.  Yep, just these two little cans of chemicals.

Total cost $94.00.  Consider that these are just two of seven different materials used in a typical custom paint finish and you can see how the base material costs begin to add up.  Throw in the time it takes, some intricate jobs can reach over 20 hours, and you've got a pretty spendy process.

Now, when I powder coat coat a frame, the total process can take less than an hour and the materials are a fraction of liquid finishes.  Here is a 5 pound box of powder...enough to do 4 frames.

Total cost for the powder, $28.00.  Just food for thought.

What a difference a year makes.  Here are two versions of Shimano's Direct Mount front derailleurs...the first generation had very little vertical adjustment, so the positioning of the mount had to be spot on.  The newer version on the left offers a longer vertical slot, shorter cage, and a bit more throw.  A nice redesign to help out with the diversity in ring sizes of some of the new 2x10 systems.

Chris was using a aftermarket Rohloff adaptor on his frame, kinda a bulky set up that places a lot of load in a small area.  I threw in a Rohloff specific dropout for his sliders and then realized I did not have an OEM axle plate to send with it.  Given that I needed to get this frame out the door to UPS, I sucked it up and spent 4 hours making a custom piece and painting it rather than wait a couple of days to have one shipped to me.  Not the best time management on my part, but it is what it is. 

  Final tid bit...I got this rear end replacement frame all shot with a nice base metallic silver and a top coat of red jollipop, a translucent powder candy.

Tomorrow, I'm going to walk y'all through making a belt drive gate and explain it's advantages over some of the other systems for breaking the frame to pass the belt.

cheers,

rody