"Patina" is our destiny?

[Joe]

RossoAndy- my bike is at-least a 4 owner lower mileage example that sat in a garage for about 8+yrs before Shaun bought it and got it running again. That said, many new parts have been installed in the last two years of my ownership. The rear tail has has touch up respray some time ago and looks dull, the front carbon fender could use a clear coat spray to bring it back as it’s dull too. As we have taken the bike apart to repair it, I have obsessively cleaned & detailed on it. There are detailer sprays on the market that bring the shine back and make a big impact. When most people approach the bike they comment how clean it is for its age, some argue it can’t be 22yrs old.

I get the desire to make it perfect, but it would be a tall ask to replicate the same assortment of colors and get the results you would demand. When someone resprays a Rosso, even if it’s just the valve covers, it’s the first thing I see on their bike as standing out for all the wrong reasons. 
 

✅ My vote is clean detailed to shine again patina.

[al_roethlisberger]

It's interesting how when something sits for years it begins to show its age, even if it is sheltered.   

Paint and other finishes oxidize, as of course do metallic parts, and plastics can do weird things too as they age, especially if they were cheaply made.

If one hasn't checked on it for a couple+ years, it is always amazing to find something like corrosion or peeling paint and wonder "how did that happen?".  ...time happened 

For example, my bike has been sitting covered for many many years in a garage, and cleaned and started at least a few times a year, but the garage is not climate controlled.  So condensation, humidity, dust, "air" have still taken a small toll on some of the finishes, and in a few cases a more serious toll.

One example is the front subframe.  The left side where it bolts to the engine has rusted significantly and the paint on the subframe around that bolt has peeled away.  I can only assume this is where condensation from humidity settled for years and got under a knick in the paint.  It's not a big deal, I actually have a spare NOS subframe, or can just have this one repainted, but is interesting to see how things can deteriorate even when sheltered.

 

 

 

[p6x]

On 3/7/2023 at 2:27 AM, rossoandy said:

 many paint people say they can replicate it but its a gamble, will I be disappointed....

I don't know which paint people you know, but there are tools that exist to find out the exact original color code and the current one if you only want to do a partial respray.

A lot of us remained with what we learned many moons ago. Some stuff remained unchanged, but other did improve.

You should not be disappointed. My "guy" always told me he would color match anything; without the slightest hesitation. Maybe he is only bragging?

[docc]

More "patina" talk . . .   > Auto Anthropology < . . .

https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/auto-anthro-the-power-of-patina/?hashed_email=b4b94022c1bd45a1fa61becf3ab2e64665eaea4bd3297978c54e145dd672e019&dtm_em=b4b94022c1bd45a1fa61becf3ab2e64665eaea4bd3297978c54e145dd672e019

Historian and archaeologist Shannon Lee Dawdy quite literally wrote the book on the topic, researching Patina: A Profane Archaeology in New Orleans in the years immediately before and after Hurricane Katrina. She writes:

“Two desires coexist: for the youthful, replaceable commodity and for the old, well-worn object … most new commodities lose resale value as soon as they are purchases, but eventually… an object that begins as a generic and replaceable commodity transforms into an idiosyncratic possession with little shared worth, and later into a collectively valued treasure.”

And this,

Dawdy, again, has the answer. She explains, “[we] value things for the way they transcend their own commodification.”

 

[audiomick]

On 3/10/2023 at 6:31 PM, p6x said:

... there are tools that exist to find out the exact original color code and the current one if you only want to do a partial respray....

Yes there are, but...

Respraying to match the rest of the part involves "measuring" the colour of the surrounding area and matching it. Well equipped paint shops can do that, but it wont be the same as new, just the same as the rest.

To get it back to close to original, there needs to be a part that has been well protected over the years. I had that issue with my 1976 Z900 in the late '80s. The paint was apparently not really long-lasting, or maybe the bike was left standing in the sun for long periods before I got it. The tank was very badly faded, and peeling in a number of spots. The lip of the tail-piece under the seat was, however, still in very good nick. I got the paint shop to match that. The result was probably not exactly original (deep green with a fine metallic touch) but looked great. I found it much nicer thank the "patina", which just looked worn out. I dare say some would have kept it "original" as a sign of the "authenticity" of what the bike had been through. I liked it better with the new paint. 

Having said that, I don't plan on having any of the three Guzzis re-painted, although the V35 Imola could use it. The paint isn't that bad, just obviously old, and I would rather have it as it is than have a re-paint turn out looking "better than new" and therefore somehow fake.

Edited July 3 by audiomick

[audiomick]

1 hour ago, docc said:

More "patina" talk . . .   > Auto Anthropology < . . 

Nice article, thanks for the link.

I like this:

Quote

However, beneath the Chevelle’s mismatched rust-and-primer bodywork lurked a brand-new rear end and motorsport-grade steering, suspension, and brakes.

That is something that I like. A "sleeper", if you like. Pay attention and effort to the way it works, and worry about how it looks when that is all sorted, and there are still some resources left over.

Much better than renewing the paint, and then running out of money for making sure it all works properly, and maybe making it work better. 

 

PS: the Cadillac wing with paint around the Logo and the rest rust is wrong. That has been sand-blasted or acid-etched to induce a forced "patina". Otherwise, the rust would be all the way to the letters of the logo. Bit of a wank, I reckon. 

Edited July 3 by audiomick

[docc]

12 hours ago, audiomick said:

PS: the Cadillac wing with paint around the Logo and the rest rust is wrong. That has been sand-blasted or acid-etched to induce a forced "patina". Otherwise, the rust would be all the way to the letters of the logo. Bit of a wank, I reckon. 

Hey! Don't be talkin' 'bout my wank like that!

[Jaide]

The longer I have my bike the more little flaws I notice, like the fairing being a bit crooked when I had to put the damn thing back together!

Turns out after looking at pictures I made before it's been like that since I bought it, and it definitely annoyed me a bit. But then, I saw pictures of a mint condition, all original Ducati Supersport 750, and the fairing on those bikes are even more crooked! Even despite that they're priceless classics. If it doesn't matter on those bikes, why would it be a big deal on my Lemans?

[audiomick]

8 hours ago, docc said:

Hey! Don't be talkin' 'bout my wank like that!

Rest easy, @docc that's honest to goodness bona fide patina on that cover. I'm impressed. 

The Cadillac just looks contrived. What a co-incidence that the patch of paint under the name is intact, and all the rest is rusted away.