Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetics ?

[bduc61]

I have just received this steel frame with decent paint all over but for two areas on top tube and headtube

where some "bubbles" are under the paint

bizarre as these are the only areas on the frame that are affected

I can't decide if this is nasty or not. If i scratch slightly, it does not budge

If it had been repainted , I could have thought, this was a poor job with frame poorly prepared but it seems to be the original paint. But I am not sure about that.

What do you think ???

does it spell issue for the future ?

Can I ride it as such ?

Problem is also that the paint is 2 colours and I certainly don't have the cash and the pro available here in France to have it repainted properly !

But I am going to complain heavily to the seller as this was not disclosed properly before the sale :roll:

sorry for average quality pics - but I have tried to show the damage with an angle to show the relief

EDIT
BETTER PICS

 

[47p2]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

The head tube looks to have been painted and the paint 'faded' into the top tube and down tube. The bubbles look to be a reaction between the original paint and the new paint which can be caused by several things. You need to make sure the head tube doesn't have any damage

 

[BobToo]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

I'm sure my Dawes Fox has bubbling like that (it's 300 miles away at the moment so I can't check) and I don't think it's eve been repainted.

 

[Nob]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

primer & paint reaction I'd say

 

[bduc61]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

BETTER PICS ADDED

The 4th pic shows actually the lettering of this colorado serotta frame !

It seems original paint - as this is apparently not a sticker or very thin - how is the serotta lettering applied ??? - and bubbles show under the letters

I am really perplexed as I doubt any frame would have left the factory like that so what has caused these bubbles - can it be underlying rust ???

help from the paint pros needed :idea:

 

[Jonny69]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

Looks like there was some damp when it was painted. You might see it changes when the weather is hot and cold. Nothing to worry about, frames are very thick steel and can take quite a lot of corrosion before they are affected structurally.

 

[glpinxit]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

Nothing to worry about, frames are very thick steel and can take quite a lot of corrosion before they are affected structurally.

Can't agree with this, top flight tubing used in the best steel frames is very, very thin at 0.8mm or less - Coke can thin - so any corrosion at all may be very serious.

 

[orbeas]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

Looks like it has been stored in a damp enviroment sometimes in its history...

 

[half cog]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

I would worry about it a lot more apart from the fact that it is on the lugs. Lugs are thick metal unlike the frame tubes.I would have thought by the time you had rusted through a lug your frame tubes would have holes in them. Why not just take a flake off and see what is underneath. Also try and see inside the tubes to see how much rust has formed. I have something very similar to this only a couple of small patches of very small bubbles on the stays of the ellis briggs I bought.I think mine is paint degradation. Twenty five year old frame in original paintwork. Will get it shotblasted and re painted in the next couple of years.Sad really as I could only find two paint chips to touch in when I bought it. However I am also finding tiny bits of clearcoat with holes through also suggesting the paint is on its way out. You need to dig about a bit
Peter
Just another thought . If this is all in the area of the lugs I wonder if the flux has not been cleaned of properly when it was brazed. Could be a chemical reaction. Ask a frame builder

 

[retrotrack]

Re: Suspicious bubbles under paint - nasty or just aesthetic

Structurally it will be absolutely fine.


The paint has sweated. This happens when bike is kept in damp conditions. The moisture is drawn between the metal and the paint thus expanding. The only way to remove this is a) repaint or b) live with it.