Here’s Joao’s frame & forks immediately after sandblasting, which has removed all the rust and what was left of the original paint but exposed numerous minor flaws, so the next job is to get the latex gloves on – to keep greasy fingers off the bare steel – and dress the frame & forks with files & sandpaper to smooth out numerous rough edges and make sure all the braze-ons and the seatclamp area are spot on. I’m also planning to slightly correct the spacing of the front & rear dropouts (back to 95mm/120mm to suit the hubs) and correct their alignment, which will improve Rita’s tracking & steering – plus it’ll make future wheel removal & re-fitting easier to deal with. All standard practise – especially on vintage steel frames – and well worth the effort given the time & expense that’s going into this restoration!
Then it’ll finally be ready for the respray.
Part 5 – Cleaning
Part 3 – Decals
