How do you guys feel about patina?
- Thread starter Retrorockit
- Start date
vtwinvince
Senior Retro Guru
Too much magnet fishing going on these days.
PhillB
GT Fan
I tend to buy bikes that have a lot of Patina, perhaps not as much as the one in the lake that the OP posted, but I enjoy the restoration process as much as I do riding them. It depends entirely on the quality of the remaining finish as to whether I will respray or preserve... in all the bikes I have restored, it is about 50/50. I'd never destroy a beautiful old finish for a bit of patina, but if the finish is gone, a respray preserves the bike and gives it a new lease of life.
Not everyone agrees !
such is life 
Not everyone agrees !
such is life 
Frankenorange
Orange 🍊 Fan
At least bikes don't come with the 'patina' that some classic cars come with in the shape of rats and mouse nests and all their p!ss and cr@p.
Bird poop can also be a really bad thing.
When it comes to patina, I often prefer a bike that already has a few flaws. Then I have fewer inhibitions about riding it properly. Making the first scratches on old things is a pretty high inhibition threshold for me.
Of course, top restored classics are nice to look at, but a mountain bike is still the most fun when you're blasting through the forest on it.
For me, repainting a frame depends not only on the condition of the paint but also on who painted it or whether the paint job itself is a classic like some Mountain Goat, Chance, Brodie or GT and Kuwahara.
I also have one or two frames in progress where I don't yet know what to do with the paint.
Not an easy decision.
Here is some patina for you
Guinessisgoodforyou
rBotM Winner
That was an epic rebuild
27motorhead
Old School Grand Master
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