Orange C16r 1995. Updated 020619.. Finished!

After finishing my recent Sunn Xircuit (see thread on here) I saw this locally for sale.
It’s totally original and had been hung in the garage by original owner for around 15years without any use!

It has full stx Rc groupset and appears to have been totally unmolestered barring the coloured bottle cage bolts and maybe the tyres

Needs a full restore as everything is seized and covered in 15 years of dust but appears a gem beneath.

Although it looks black in the pics it is more of a dark ink blue up close? Not sure if this may have been special order colour or they were like this?

Anyhow, it does have minor surface rust from obvious condensation but is solid so I will have it Powdercoated and new decals (Gil m again).

Now for colour... not sure what to do here as I rather like this very dark navy/ink blue so may go for an original match. Maybe some gurus on here will help me with what colour this was and year which I’m guessing is 1995????


Here’s a couple pics for now... will update post as I go.

Andy

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Nice! Looks like it will all scrub up well.

Definitely a '95, as it had the brazed on seat clamp (rather than a separate collar), as well as the canti mount on the rear wishbone. I had a dinky 15" one of the same year, that I have since sold on.

Can't help with the colour though, mine was most definitely black. Perhaps others can shed some light

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Yes it’s satin black....

It was the dust that made it look inky...

Satin black confirmed after a little polish of part of it...

Haha....


Loving this bike already...

Deciding whether to keep it black when powdercoat or do something else like grey?

????

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Frame just back from powder coaters.
Satin black as Orange intended.
Fantastic finish and over the moon with quality.
Retro decals from Gil m should be here by the weekend then it will start to take shape.

Only slight ponder moment is that I also have the opportunity of a P7, so if this comes to fruition then I may sell this C16r as a frame set all done and ready to build with decals fitted... I have always wanted a good P7 however am torn as I know this C16r will turn out a lush build judging by the finish on this frame.... decisions :?:

I’ll have the BH weekend to consider my options....

I’ll update as I go with further pics as decals go on!

....

Re: New project: Orange C16r 1995? Updated pics

Very nice, though personally I cant see a great deal of difference between the P7 and Clockworks. Likely about 50 quid in money original cost wise.
IMHO

Can I ask what they charged you and if you needed to do anything - block off BB or mounts etc.
Im looking to painted or so a sus frame, and not sure if im doing it myself, or maybe a powdercoat, dependent on cost.

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Maybe you’re right and maybe this will look better than the silver P7 frame I have in mind... I know it will look lush once decals are on.

I had it done by local Powdercoaters I’ve used before here in Durham. All I did was remove everything and stuck some m5 bolts in the frame mounts and bottle mounts. The guy did the rest. Cost me £40 for frame and forks and it’s a perfect finish. He knew what he was doin and had done motorcycle wheels before for me (like my R1 in background).
Guess you will get good and bad Powdercoaters tho so I’d go to someone trusted otherwise you’ll need to spell out what needs masking.
And remember to remove crown race from fork too.

I would never get the frame laquered either after PC as they can end up being too thick causing issues with cable guide holes which will leave you having to bore them out slightly with a dremmel.

Hope this helps
Andy

Re: New project: Orange C16r 1995? Updated pics

Looks great!

The C16R was lighter than a P7.

There wasn't a model "order of greatness" with Orange, different models had different qualities.

So the Clockwork/C16R was their steel XC hardtail and the P7 was a more "hardcore" frame.

So yeah the P7 was a little more expensive, but the C16R lighter - horses for courses.

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Thanks very much for that info. I wasn’t aware of that which now gets me leaning towards the clockwork. I just assumed that the P7 would have been lighter too.
This does feel like a light frame so if I do push on with this instead it will be interesting to see how it compares to my Sunn Xcircuit build, especially in terms of weight and ride.

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=395522

Hopefully I’ll get the decals on the frame over the weekend and will
post pics when done .

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I’ve started applying the top quality and exact repro decals supplied by Gil M.

I made templates of positioning of original decals before the powdercoat so they are in exact same place to the mm...

2 x decals done and more to go but taking a break as I’ve decided to open a bottle from the box I was resting on

More pics to follow when complete.....

Update 070519...

Frame decals finished. Painstaking but we’ll worth the result. I’m over the moon with it.

Still have forks to go.

Been deliberating over the headset as I always put a new headset on when I strip a frame however I quite like the original STX 1 inch threaded. I think it’s salvageable and will change the balls inside the sealed bearings.

Alternative was a non Shimano NOS alternative. I’ll give the Shimano a go first.

The original seatpost is also in a shim and is a bit corroded (the post) so I’m gonna fit a 30mm shim reducing to a more common 27.2mm to allow me more choice of post and will go alloy rather than original cro mo to shave a little weight. Again, don’t know whether to stay original with a silver alloy post or go black and maybe fit some newer and wider black alloy flat bars to match it up... ????

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Ok....

So today I fitted the new BBB 1 inch headset which works and looks ace!

I did have to persevere fitting the crown race from this headset as the F7 forks have a shim which the crown race sits on which is very tight. However by lightly filling away any burrs I felt and by applying lots of grease and GT85 I managed to hammer it into place with some plastic waste pipe over the steerer and by hammering this down to seat it. I love this method as the pipe will always damage before any metal parts.

I needed to re use two small spacers off the original STX headset just to get the stack height right and so that the brake cable holder would not foul the top bearing lock nut.

I also fitted a brand new un55 68 shell 110 length (original size) BB and some nice purple anodised frame bolts to match the 4 x original ones which came on the standard bike.

The seatpost and stem have been polished and the final few decals were applied.

I also fitted a new shiny seat clamp (for anyone reading who is doing a C16r it’s the 19mm one on eBay that fits perfect).

It’s all is looking like it just came off production!!! And dare i say it... maybe even better due to the quality powder-coat...

It’s so good that I even considered offering it up for sale as it is to fund another project and to try and curb my obsession. But seems a damn shame to do that and never ride it after putting so much time and effort in.

Here’s some updated pics. Enjoy...