Detail on 1970’s Centurion
I restored a very early Centurion bicycle about five years ago. It was in very poor condition and the woman I bought it from (for $50) told me here husband would ride it to work when he was younger, and now being bedridden, he wasn’t going to restore, much less ride it.
I cleaned/polished all aluminum, got new tires, hunted down hub parts, brake pads, cables ( even learned how to make them, including silver soldering) , tires, a rim, and got the frame powdercoated. I found the proper declals. After restoration, it looked pretty good, and our co-op bicycle repair shop in town thought that it was remarkable - most bikes of this age aren’t even restorable, they just get “used up”. I sent photos to the woman I bought it from, she showed them to her husband, and that made them both happy. Of course, this prticular bike’s value vs. what I put into it is probably upside down, but it was a valuable experience anyway.
Recently, I looked again at the original photos I took and a 1972 Centurion catalog I had. It seemed like I had forgotten something; the lugs are outlined in gold in the catalog (but not all of them). These had turned black by the time I got the bike, and I didn’t really notice it. I suppose that they did this to “show off” that it was a lugged, brazed bike and not a welded bike.
So, I got a “gold pen” on Amazon for $5.00 (I bought two) and used it to outline the appropriate lugs. After cutting down the tip on one, I think that i did a credible jjob on this. The paint is oil based and, incredibly, seems to be sticking to the powdercoat very well. This was an inexpensive upgrade to the bicycle. Unfortunately, I am older and have my own medical challenges; it is hard to say if will be riding this bike in this or any future summer
. But, at least the bike looks good!
Was gold outlining a common practice in the past or was this unique to this bicycle?
Before...note black outlining.
More outlining.
I restored a very early Centurion bicycle about five years ago. It was in very poor condition and the woman I bought it from (for $50) told me here husband would ride it to work when he was younger, and now being bedridden, he wasn’t going to restore, much less ride it.
I cleaned/polished all aluminum, got new tires, hunted down hub parts, brake pads, cables ( even learned how to make them, including silver soldering) , tires, a rim, and got the frame powdercoated. I found the proper declals. After restoration, it looked pretty good, and our co-op bicycle repair shop in town thought that it was remarkable - most bikes of this age aren’t even restorable, they just get “used up”. I sent photos to the woman I bought it from, she showed them to her husband, and that made them both happy. Of course, this prticular bike’s value vs. what I put into it is probably upside down, but it was a valuable experience anyway.
Recently, I looked again at the original photos I took and a 1972 Centurion catalog I had. It seemed like I had forgotten something; the lugs are outlined in gold in the catalog (but not all of them). These had turned black by the time I got the bike, and I didn’t really notice it. I suppose that they did this to “show off” that it was a lugged, brazed bike and not a welded bike.
So, I got a “gold pen” on Amazon for $5.00 (I bought two) and used it to outline the appropriate lugs. After cutting down the tip on one, I think that i did a credible jjob on this. The paint is oil based and, incredibly, seems to be sticking to the powdercoat very well. This was an inexpensive upgrade to the bicycle. Unfortunately, I am older and have my own medical challenges; it is hard to say if will be riding this bike in this or any future summer
. But, at least the bike looks good!Was gold outlining a common practice in the past or was this unique to this bicycle?
Before...note black outlining.
More outlining.
