Harry Quinn Centenary frame

[Prologo12]

Hi All,
I have bought a Harry Quinn Centenary (1890-1990) road frame with gold plated lugs , pantographing everywhere etc. On which I have started a somewhat problematic restoration.
Where I need some help is with any pictures of one of these - the one I have has had two incidents of localised over-painting so that I am not certain where the paint should end and the gold on chrome plating start.
It is red which was pleaded for for 2 months before Harry agreed (Centenary frames were only available in black apparently) and parts like the beautifully polished gold plated bottom bracket were painted when I acquired it. Some paint is obviously not original but with some areas it is very hard to tell.

Also replating is going to be a careful process as it's 753 which will not stand any abrasion - I am hoping to chemically strip the old chrome in a way which will not harm the steel substrate and then hand polish the area to be plated.

Any Info would be very gratefully received
Simon

 

[Midlife]

This one by any chance?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/HARRY-QUINN-F ... true&rt=nc

Shaun

 

[Prologo12]

pic

 

[Prologo12]

Hi Shaun - yes that's the one

 

[Midlife]

Are you hoping to take it back to how it looked when brand new? Looks OK to me as it is with a bit of tidying up

BITD (the 70's) Reynolds didn't recomend chroming 753. The seat stays were especially thin and prone to corrosion. Maybe 80's 753 was different. Personaly I'd take it to someone with knowlege of the era for help and advice. Maybe try Kevin Sayles at Woodrup.

Shaun

 

[Prologo12]

Hi Shaun,
It looks ok from a distance but has areas of repainting and some of the usual surface corrosion here and there including on the gold plated lugs. It is going for paint match on Tuesday then off to metal finishers for some advice on the best approach.
Plating itself isn't a problem with 753 -it is the polishing of 0.3mm thick tubes that can lead to problems. I shall probably only have the lugs, dropouts and forks done -once I find an original picture ( I live in hope)
Simon

 

[Robbied196]

Re:

Its a rare frame and to get it back to showroom condition isn't going to be cheap. The only people I'd trust with a job like that is Argos cycles.

http://argoscycles.com/

 

[Prologo12]

Thank you for your input, However Argos would just send it to a platers who would use various abrasive machines etc and then they would stove enamel the frame in a limited choice of colour.
one of the minor problems with the frame was polishing at ends of tubes so paint did not adhere long-term and machine polishing would lose detail therefore I am planing to have the chrome stripped in NaOH and water mix (NaOH 4-10 oz./gal. of H2O.) with reverse DC current at 4-6 VDC which will not have any effect on the tubing. Then I will ensure areas to be painted are not polished and I will hand polish the lugs etc (which is very time consuming but the only way to avoid definition loss). Then the drop outs and ends, crown, lugs and BB will be nickel then gold plated.
Then I will paint the frame in the clear over base with acrylic clear and decals under clear.
None of this is a great problem, the problem I need help with is finding the original demarcation between plating and paint and whether the lug lining was an original feature etc etc