Firewing 1953 Columbia 3 Star DeLuxe (2nd) - 3/15 TRADED

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Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

LukeTheJoker said:
Looking awesome KingFish!
Love those pics outside in the lane!

Luke.

Thanks Luke. The sun was going down and shining up the lane just right. We were also painting one of the windows and had a ladder outside, so I went up on the ladder to get this shot.

IMG_2279_zps1c6f55dd.jpg
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

noodlenoggin said:
Wow, this bike is all kinds of cool! There's no end of cool bits to point at, and I'm curious what's going on with the Chrysler part...

Thanks man! I am going to trim up the 1948 Chrysler tail light to fit low on my rear fender as my tail light for FireWing.
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

that is one wickedly awesome machine Kingfish!
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

kingfish254 said:
LukeTheJoker said:
Looking awesome KingFish!
Love those pics outside in the lane!

Luke.

Thanks Luke. The sun was going down and shining up the lane just right. We were also painting one of the windows and had a ladder outside, so I went up on the ladder to get this shot.

IMG_2279_zps1c6f55dd.jpg
good looking rat bike as it sits in the forbidden courtyard....???
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

mitchelangelo said:
that is one wickedly awesome machine Kingfish!

Thanks man! I am having fun, so I must be doing something right.
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/9 Full Mocks WIth Wheels

MazdaFlyer said:
good looking rat bike as it sits in the forbidden courtyard....???

It's getting there, but I REALLY need to get rid of that blue and white.
I am starting to wonder if QueenFish didn't blow up my tire as punishment for having bike stuff in the forbidden courtyard? :p
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I have been looking these lane photos over and I am thinking that the leather wrapped ramshorns almost disguise the coolness of them. The leather is too close to the bike color and it just blends in rather than show off how they compliment the curve of the tank and chainguard. I am going to test something different on the ramshorns. I think I might remove the leather and paint them primer red as well. What do y'all think??

IMG_2276_zpsfda660d1.jpg

IMG_2273_zps1e2b51bb.jpg
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

There's something very nice and almost alive about the leather. Like a real ram's horn I guess. I've felt like this bike looked like an animal from when I first started watching the build. I think the bars and the seat are the main contributors to that.

I actually like them chrome too. The chrome picks up the other chrome like the springs.

If you don't use photoshop (I don't really but it seems like at least a few of the builders do) you can always print one of the photos and just use a primer red pencil or marker to check out how they would look. It's amazing how much that can help to visualize things.
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

DANG that is sweet

Troy
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

You might consider wrapping the outer 10-12" with the leather (loose the torpedo grip) and leaving the inner portions of the bars chrome. Then you have both the look / feel of the leather wrap (which I agree with bruce, should remain) and still have the contrast of the chrome against the frame and tank so they stand out. Also something to think about - Velo Orange sells elk hide bar wrap. It isn't wrapped around and around like typical bar tape, but is a rectangular piece the length of how far you want coverage, and its baseball stitched around the underside. Looks really cool, also happens to be very comfortable too. Its not too difficult to work with, I used it on my RRBBO7 bike. If you go some of that and found a way to age it, it would look good with what you're doing here...

Link: http://store.velo-orange.com/index.php/ ... grips.html
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I kindda like the bars bare with a nicely patina'd grip. I think the wrap hides the whackyness of the bars :wink:
just my 2 cents :D
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I actually like the way the one is wrapped, just as-is. Yes, it camouflages the inner portion of the bar, and then it's like the outer half is coming from nowhere -- neat effect. The leather wrap does match the paint, in a good way to my eye. In the end, though, it's your build, not mine. :mrgreen:
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I think the leather does make the bars blend in too much, they are a focal point of the bike and should stand out a little.

The only thing is, they are really clean compared to the other shiny parts. Maybe scuff them and encourage some rust on them (real rust). I accidentally got that last year with a bare metal fork. I put gun blue on them, once I got the color I used some spray on cleaner and polish to make them shine, they looked good, but then I came out to the shop 2 days later and they were covered with rust.

Here they are the night a put gun blue on them and then shined them up with the product you see right beside them:
SAM_0851.jpg


And here they are on a bike, but this is how they looked just 2 nights later, for all I know it could've happened overnight:
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Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

What if you went with an ivory paint and aged it to match the rims? I actually prefer them without all the leather wrapping but think the grips should still be leather.
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I really appreciate all of the great feedback buddies! Definitely a lot to think about.
The bars are currently painted silver, so I don't know what shape the chrome is in underneath. Guess I'll strip them down and find out.

expjawa, those elkhide covers are sweet. I remember those on BonniRocket last year. I like that idea. I might even get the honey colored ones since I have been considering using the leather below that I picked up yard saleing last year. I'll have to see how the lighter leather looks on the seat. It might be better to have a contrast between the bike and the leather. I'll have to mock up and see.

WP_000408.jpg
 
Re: FireWing 53 Columbia 3 Star-6/10 Ramshorn Question??

I love the gifted teardrop pedals, but I am thinking about trying to find something like the ones below.
Does anyone know where to find brick red block pedals like these?
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