Beth, and others contemplating this, as general advice for this type of thing,
if you do know a framebuilder or have one nearby, you can usually call and schedule a time to drop off your frame for simple quick repairs. If you just want a few braze ons and no paint, many builders will slip you in the queue for a quick turnaround job. Offer to pay cash. If you want a repaint/powdercoat, try to pick a builder that does this in house and again, offer to pay cash. Some builders are way too busy for repair or reworks, but lots of others do quick turnaround jobs for cashflow help and appreciate the work. Repair and repaint is pretty lucrative for people who are good with the torch. Call first! and make sure that when you drop off the frame, that it is just a bare frame in clean condition, so they can throw it in the stand and get to brazing without having to remove bb's or headsets, etc... Usually a sixer of good beer or a good bottle of wine etc is appreciated if you got a solid favor from a busy builder. Specific to Beth's question, you can probably get the canti bosses done frame and fork for $100 or so, I would not be surprised at plus or minus 50 on that. I think you are in a good market for it. Moving the bridge could be anywhere between 20 and 100 depending on what your bridge looks like, how easy it is to remove and what kind of bridge you want in there (just a tube with no hole? Arched bridge? Canti hanger? Diamond reinforcements?) . Call around though, I suspect you know enough framebuilders personally that it should be pretty easy to get it done, cash will help. . Repaint will cost what you want it to cost, from $50-100 at the local powdercoat shop up to whatever you want joe bell to do. Have fun. Making a frame work for you again is the best part about owning a steel bike. Tarik On Sun, Dec 13, 2009 at 10:56 AM, b hamon <periwinkle...@yahoo.com> wrote: > When I ordered my 1999 Custom LongLow, I knew a few things at the time: > > --I wanted to be able to run 32mm tires with fenders; > --I wanted long-reach side-pull brakes because I was still a young mechanic > and fund them easier to adjust out on the road than cantis; > --The bike would be a rear-loader. > > Fast-foward ten years and now I know some new things: > > --I can adjust cantis just fine and find that they stop just as well as > anything; > --after several attempts at frontloading I don't like it enough to change > my fork rake to accommodate it, so I remain a rear-load rider; > --I want to run bigger tires. With fenders. > > It's the classic dilemma of not knowing then what I know now, and wanting > to change it. > My 1999 LongLow could be much more bike, and getting a framebuilder to add > canti braze-ons and perhaps raise the rear brake bridge a touch would -- > SHOULD -- probably cost me less than buying another bike (sorry, Grant). To > that end, how much should I expect to pay for these modifications? I have > another bike to ride in the meantime so I can handle a couple months' wait > but probably not much more than that. Also, while I live in > framebuilder-glutted Portland, the builders I know personally are all > heavily booked into the next decade. Suggestions for a second-tier builder > whose wait-list is shorter would be welcome. > > Beth > Portland, OR > > http://bikelovejones.livejournal.com > http://veloquent.blogspot.com > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<rbw-owners-bunch%2bunsubscr...@googlegroups.com> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > -- Tarik Saleh tas at tariksaleh dot com in los alamos, po box 208, 87544 http://tariksaleh.com all sorts of bikes blog: http://tsaleh.blogspot.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
