Story of a summer love. GT Zaskar 1996

[Obi-Juan]

This is a true story.
I was walking and suddenly I saw her. There she was, majestic and haughty. She wasn't pretty, she was much more. She was from a good family and born to succeed. And she knew it!
She looked at me from her window and I stood dumb in front of her. I felt too small next to him.
But I already had another great love and I also didn't dedicate much time to MTB. Even so, almost every day I stopped by to see her and say hello. I dreamed of the battles we could win together.
And one day she left, logically she wasn't made to be in a shop window, she needed to dominate the world, that's what she was born for. Well it was nice while it lasted, it was just a platonic love during the summer of '96

 

[Obi-Juan]

But one day by chance I saw it, in October 2023.
My mother always recommended me not to remove the loves of the past, they always bring problems and nothing good. I am a good child and I always listen to mom...but sometimes I couldn't avoid seeing her again.
And in February he disappeared from my life again and I found myself empty.
This time she found me, it's already March and I'm not going to listen to mom, stay with her!
My God!!!! How badly life has treated you. I honestly wanted to run away.
But it was clear that he needed help, to recover that arrogance that he still had in his DNA. You can't deny help to someone you love.

 

[Obi-Juan]

It really wasn't a project for me, I've never polished except for some small pieces with the Dremel.
It was clear that this is not a project for a Dremel, plus I hate it, it is too fast and small, it is very easy for it to slip and dramatically scratch a pipe.
But it was an opportunity to learn something more and if it went wrong I could always take it to a professional. In my work I have sometimes had to use polishers...I don't know in England, in Spain they have very bad character, they are very strange. ALL without exception. It must be because of the dust they suck in when polishing, so I didn't want to give them this project unless I failed.
First advise me that. Then see what tools I have that could be useful. CBuy sandpaper of all thicknesses, felts, mops and above all a special paste for polishing aluminum that was recommended to me at the hardware store and that has been a success (the one I had is more for methacrylate and steel).
The time has come: to sand and polish!

 

[Obi-Juan]

As you have seen in some photos, it had traces of tar. I was able to remove it with an industrial cleaner from Wurth that is brutal and also does not attack the paint (I saw some of my carpenters use it and I thought that if it is good for wood it would be good for everything). It also helped me remove traces of almost 30-year-old adhesive quite easily. By the way, when removing the stickers the original color appeared: mirror polished, that made everything a little more complicated for a novice. More challenge = more fun, or so I thought, Jjjj.
When I started polishing the results they gave me hope and a lot of encouragement but I discovered that once the mirror polish starts to come out it is very delicate: everything you touch is marked and if it rubs against something it is easily scratched. I say this as advice in case someone wants to perform a polish.
I bought rubberized gloves to be able to manipulate the frame without having to press too hard and it also didn't leave residues of grease from the hands or sweat that seeps through the pores of the metal.
When I started polishing, I bought many, many cotton gloves, like the ones jewelers use, they are cheap, about 0.58 cts. so when they get a little dirty you can safely eliminate them and take others.

 

[Obi-Juan]

Finally after 2 weeks I managed to finish it.
It was time to varnish and here the same doubt: the best thing would be a professional
I have several powder coat suppliers. One of them also provides very good quality varnishes. But I know that I would store my frame for a few days until it was varnished, along with large pieces of metal and that could damage the work done. Also, before varnishing, they immerse it in a very powerful degreasing liquid and I was afraid that it could affect the frame (during polishing I cleaned with a degreaser that attacked the bare aluminum. Luckily everything was quickly cleaned and I was able to clean it with oil and when polishing again everything was resolved). It was a big scare.
The second option would be to varnish it with someone specialized in carpentry. I have several very good ones. But I know that it would take a long time and they would also store it for days with great risk. Also, I don't want to mix work with my particular hobbies.
So I started doing tests on an old Alan that I have and at first it didn't go very well, but in the end I got it.
The time has come: to varnish!!! And disaster happened

 

[Obi-Juan]

Prepare a closed area in the winery lined with foam to avoid dust and dirt (and mosquitoes, when I varnished the Alan one got stuck in the varnish). And I started, but it turned out badly.
A total disaster. Well, it was time to remove the varnish with acetone and start the whole process again.
I worked on the stickers in parallel. Discovering the original color in stickers discolored by years of sun and bad life was not very complicated either.
Then take the measurements carefully to respect the proportions and scan the logos.
But something has gone wrong and the side logos are not proportioned correctly. Yesterday I was reviewing the files with the design department and I think the problem has been corrected, let's see if they can do it for me on Monday.
Well, I haven't been able to remove all the scratches, some were very deep and I'm afraid to keep sanding so much, but I think it turned out correctly.
Now missing...EVERYTHING!!!
Spending so much time on the frame has made me forget much of the assembly.
Well, I have a Race Face square Ti bottom bracket that I suppose I will use and I think I know what stem and handlebars should go with the frame. The rest is an adventure that begins today

 

[Obi-Juan]

I have already collected the decals with the correct proportions.
The pieces are also starting to arrive. The Zaskar, in addition to being beautiful, has a robust appearance. It was also a racing machine. The official team used the Xizang, but a large majority of fans used this GT to compete. So I thought about manufacturing it with reliable and robust-looking parts, in line with the image of the Zaskar. And of North American origin whenever possible.

 

[Lostcause]

That’s looking very nice , I’m looking forward to seeing the build. Great job

 

[nic0]

bravo

 

[sheppf1000]