How do I date my Paramount?

[Freqman1]

Yep I'd be stripping whatever parts and either trash the frame or hang it on the wall. V/r Shawn

 

[cooltouch]

The tube with the cancer is the top tube. I have no idea of the history of the storage of this bike, but I can guess. It was in my neighbor's garage, but he inherited it from his father, so who knows where his dad kept it or for how long it had been in a corrosive environment. I suspect it had been in my neighbor's garage for about 10 years, however. I live in Houston, Texas, where it isn't unusual for the temp and the humidity to both reach the high nineties concurrently during the summer. One thing I learned the hard way was that, if any of my plain steel tools were stored in my garage without a coating of oil on them, they'd be covered in rust in a month.

Because of this damage I've found, I think I'll be a bit more aggressive at rust removal with the WD-40 and 0000 steel wool to see if I can uncover any more rust through areas.

 

[cooltouch]

Well, I've got good news and, well "it could be better" news. I attacked the rust pits on this bike's frame and I tell you what -- WD-40 and steel wool is a wonderful thing. I have successfully removed all traces of rust from my motorcyles' exhausts on more than one occasion using this combination, and often the rust was heavy enough where I didn't think I could bring it back. But I always have. I held out less hope for this frame, though.

But I was pleasantly surprised, this WD-40 and steel wool got rid of all of the pitted areas of almost all the frame. The exception was the top tube where some small flakes in the chrome have happened, and the forks, which were very heavily rusted. The WD-40 and steel wool got rid of all the rust on the forks, it's just that they don't look as bright as the rest of the bike.

About that top tube, as near as I can tell, those spots where the chrome has flaked off are not indicative of any deeper corrosion. I pushed down on those areas hard and I could get no deflection. And around the hole, I chipped back just about all the diseased metal and what remains around the periphery looks like good tube metal. I didn't have any magnification or lighting or measurement tools, but just using my old Mark 1 eyeball, I'd guess at the tubing thickness right there to be about 1/32".

I'm gonna check around, see what it might cost to get that spot repaired, and then perhaps to get the frame rechromed. I'm thinking I might can find someone local who can TIG weld a patch in there. As for a rechrome, who knows. I'm bearing in mind the rabbit hole you guys have mentioned.

 

[Freqman1]

Well, I've got good news and, well "it could be better" news. I attacked the rust pits on this bike's frame and I tell you what -- WD-40 and steel wool is a wonderful thing. I have successfully removed all traces of rust from my motorcyles' exhausts on more than one occasion using this combination, and often the rust was heavy enough where I didn't think I could bring it back. But I always have. I held out less hope for this frame, though.

But I was pleasantly surprised, this WD-40 and steel wool got rid of all of the pitted areas of almost all the frame. The exception was the top tube where some small flakes in the chrome have happened, and the forks, which were very heavily rusted. The WD-40 and steel wool got rid of all the rust on the forks, it's just that they don't look as bright as the rest of the bike.

About that top tube, as near as I can tell, those spots where the chrome has flaked off are not indicative of any deeper corrosion. I pushed down on those areas hard and I could get no deflection. And around the hole, I chipped back just about all the diseased metal and what remains around the periphery looks like good tube metal. I didn't have any magnification or lighting or measurement tools, but just using my old Mark 1 eyeball, I'd guess at the tubing thickness right there to be about 1/32".

I'm gonna check around, see what it might cost to get that spot repaired, and then perhaps to get the frame rechromed. I'm thinking I might can find someone local who can TIG weld a patch in there. As for a rechrome, who knows. I'm bearing in mind the rabbit hole you guys have mentioned.

I think chrome alone will put you over the money on that bike. Just my2c. V/r Shawn

 

[cooltouch]

Yeah, that's kinda what I was figuring.

 

[nauseated]

The wall thickness is 0.7mm out in the middle of the tube. You could have the top tube replaced and paint the frame afterwards,
the chrome will probably not be worth redoing.

 

[Vicious Cycle]

If the tube is rusted that badly the others cannot be far behind. I would salvage what parts you can and hang the frame on the wall. The triple crank, Headset and hubs have value. 1972

 

[cooltouch]

It's only the top tube that appears to have any internal corrosion damage, and even that appears to be minimal. All other components of the frame show no signs of corrosion intrusion and they cleaned up great.

I'm going to try something with the top tube, see how well it works., First, I am going to thoroughly dowse the interior of the tube with a rust converter that uses phosphoric acid. This converts the iron oxide to a ferrous phosphide compound, which is very rigid and totally inert. I've used this stuff on steel before and it works very well. Then I'll have a patch either brazed or TIG-welded into the opening. If/when I sell the bike, I will make a full disclosure about the top tube's state.

I have a question on another topic. This bike has a generator attached to one of the rear downtubes. The fixture that holds the generator also holds a rear light. There's a wire running forward to what I assume was once a front light but it's gone now. The whole assembly looks like an aftermarket add-on. Is this the case, or would this have been an available option? I plan to remove it entirely and just leave it off. I've never liked these generators. My first multi-speed bike was an old Schwinn 3-speed -- at least I think it was a Schwinn. This was back in the 60s, so it's been a while. Anyway, this old bike had a generator, and when I flicked it on, it really made the bike harder to pedal, so I just never cared for it. If/when I sell the bike, I'll include it in the sale in case the future owner would like to make use of it.

 

[WillWork4Parts]

It's only the top tube that appears to have any internal corrosion damage, and even that appears to be minimal. All other components of the frame show no signs of corrosion intrusion and they cleaned up great.

I'm going to try something with the top tube, see how well it works., First, I am going to thoroughly dowse the interior of the tube with a rust converter that uses phosphoric acid. This converts the iron oxide to a ferrous phosphide compound, which is very rigid and totally inert. I've used this stuff on steel before and it works very well. Then I'll have a patch either brazed or TIG-welded into the opening. If/when I sell the bike, I will make a full disclosure about the top tube's state.

I have a question on another topic. This bike has a generator attached to one of the rear downtubes. The fixture that holds the generator also holds a rear light. There's a wire running forward to what I assume was once a front light but it's gone now. The whole assembly looks like an aftermarket add-on. Is this the case, or would this have been an available option? I plan to remove it entirely and just leave it off. I've never liked these generators. My first multi-speed bike was an old Schwinn 3-speed -- at least I think it was a Schwinn. This was back in the 60s, so it's been a while. Anyway, this old bike had a generator, and when I flicked it on, it really made the bike harder to pedal, so I just never cared for it. If/when I sell the bike, I'll include it in the sale in case the future owner would like to make use of it.

Dude, that gaping hole is not Minimal corrosion damage. Corrosion conversion compounds may work for body panel repairs but this is structural tubing. ...Already thin wall structural tubing at that... If you're going to repair and trust it for your own use, that's one thing, but if I found out a patch repair had been done to a bike like that, I would no longer be interested. Might even be hard to find someone that would still want it at a significant discount rate.
Don't get me wrong, I love seeing things resurrected. Just trying to save you some headache man. I'd call that frame a lost cause.

 

[fattyre]

Yeah the whole repair idea is a huge red flag. Try as you might, but internally rusted tubes aren’t just a localized problem. You asked for some knowledge and I’d advise that you listen to it. Some of these folks on here really know what they are talking about and I’d hate to see someone attempt to ride that bike and get injured when the frame folds in half.

Its really not that uncommon of a bike so try again if your really into the fixing up a Paramount thing.
As others have mentioned, strip the parts to sell to make up for your loss.
Although part of me would love to see the attempt to tig weld in a section of top tube and make it look legit.