(MBBO#5 Class 1) 68 Vista Torino 500

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Joined
Feb 22, 2008
Messages
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Location
Denton TX
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I had a great time on this one. It took a beat up boys frame and most of the parts from a girls bike to make this, but it was worth the effort. Here's the highlights.
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Donor 68 girls bike.

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I first threw it together as a coaster. But I figured that since I had the 5 speed sprocket from the boys frame, why not make it the 5 speed it should be. I had everything except a shifter.

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The correct Simplex shifter and derailleur were located.

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Then came the paint stripping, metal prep and painting!

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The assembly of the bike was easy and straight forward. Biggest challenge for me was reviving the original headbadge to its former glory.

Everything finally came together once the decals arrived. It looks so much like the catalog photo.
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All the pieces parts came together to form fun riding bike.
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Because of this bike, a 68 Vista Torino 300 was spotted at a swap meet by KJV. He was kind enough to pack it up and send it me. I have also shown its rebuild in MBBO #5. Here they are together.
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Last edited:
What a transformation! Love the gold paint, your seat work, all the detailing...turned out great! A couple of 'grand Torinos' for sure...:41:
 
I personally don't care for gold, but this bike is an exception. Gorgeous! Looks brand spankin'. Again, for the third time, nice work.

furyus
 
Looks AWESOME !!! :thumbsup:
 
I personally don't care for gold, but this bike is an exception. Gorgeous! Looks brand spankin'. Again, for the third time, nice work.

furyus
furyus, I was originally going to paint it the brown that's on the 300. But because the original seat on the girls bike had that gold tint to it and the boys frame came with gold handgrips, I decided on the gold. I've only ever seen 2 Vistas in gold. It was a one year color. I'm not a gold fan either, but I do like the way it looks on this bike. I picked up this 65 Columbia just to show the similarities and the differences between the two?
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Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
That's a beauty! Great transformation.
 

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