# Monark Super Deluxe Project Paint questions...



## jimmiroquai (Jul 3, 2013)

Hi all.  I'm new to the vintage bike world, and new to restoration.  I've acquired a 60% complete, rusty, house painted Monark super deluxe. According to the date on the tank shroud, it's a '47 but i will be rebuilding it as maybe a 53.  Thing is, it's already been house painted twice.  The tank will need some metal work because one side is badly dented.  The chrome parts (tank shroud, silver wing fender crest, tombstone reflector, springer fork springs, have all been painted a thick silver.  I had to get deeper fenders for it and the pair i got was very beat up and corroded but still with remnants of original green paint with very very faded cream pin striping.  The chain guard i obtained for it was also a different color: yellow, still with visible decals.  But the best in original condition was the rear rack, which i got here on the cabe from izee2 (thanks again!).  It's a bit rusty, but it's a very good keep-as-is piece with around 85% of the blue paint and cream pinstriping intact, with the chrome on the cheese grater at about 90%. 

So to sum it up, i have a hodge podge of parts in different colors and degrees of restorability.

Here are my options as i see it:
1) Total restoration: repainting everything, rechroming chrome parts
2) Partial restoration: Keep the rack as is and repainting the rest to match, keep silver wing, tank shroud, tombstone as is.
3) Partial restoration and artificial aging: Match the paint and apply artificial wear to match the rack.

I guess what i really want is to make it look nice (I'm a bit shallow that way).  While i'm all for patina, but only if it'll match and still look cohesive (i don't want a United Colors of Benetton Monark).  But, being practical, i worry about value as well.  This is sort of an investment and if sometime in the future i'll need to sell it, i want to still be able to sell it at least at cost or better.

So what would be the best direction to take?  Advice would be greatly appreciated.

Here are some pics:


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## Sped Man (Jul 3, 2013)

Let me start off by saying abandon all hope on breaking even or making a profit. That won't happen unless you paint and rechrome it yourself. Some on the CABE will tell you that it is worth serious money when original or restored. Not true. Check Ebay for what they have sold for. I have seen them go all original for no more than $800. I saw one completely restored that sold for $700. The owner took a huge loss. These bad boys don't sell for much. Do the work yourself. It isn't hard. Use a base coat then clear it afterwards it will look great. I would keep it red. There isn't much to chrome plate on your bike. Pull those parts out and have them done. Hopefully they won't charge you an arm or leg. If they try just replace those parts with ones with good chrome available on Ebay.

Oh, I almost forgot WELCOME to the CABE! 

Good place for affordable repop parts: Memory Lane Classic and Ridable bicycle replicas


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## jimmiroquai (Jul 3, 2013)

Thanks for the reality check, much appreciated.  I did my first amateur resto (Rollfast late 40s) on my own and had a great time doing it.  But that was just an original non collectible frame and fork with repro parts.  This is my first all original parts build and i'm hesitant to mess it up.  Though Do you recommend that i repaint the rack and chainguard to match or keep as is?


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## Sped Man (Jul 3, 2013)

Repaint the whole bike and rechrome what needs to be rechromed. If it is too expensive to rechrome then replace those parts with good used part. Half of the joy of owning the bike is restoring it to the way you want it. If you want to make it look original then repaint it like it use to look like. Pick a color you like and go from there. Parts aren't that hard to find. I suggest heading to the next bike show in your area. You will find plenty of parts to pick from. Ebay is also a good place to hunt for parts.


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## OMBAC-RAT (Jul 10, 2013)

*Here's a picture*

Here's a picture of the Green & Cream If you are interested...


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