I fully rebuilt and custom painted this bike as a gift. It’s the most proud I’ve ever been of a bike.

This all started when I found a bike abandoned for garbage day. I asked the homeowner if it was okay for me to take it, and later that day I was at a co-op getting a new-to-me front wheel.

It sat behind my house for months as I worked on other projects until a friend of mine came by and really liked the frame. I offered it to them for free under the condition that make it custom for them as a gift. Something they could be proud to use.

Later, I got in touch with them to get an idea of what they would want on it. We mocked something up on the iPad and I went to learn about stenciling. I ended up buying a used vinyl cutting machine and learned the software. Cutting out the letters and hearts for the bike.

All the text and shapes on the bike are made using a masking technique. Nothing is a sticker, it’s all layers of paint, protected by tape or vinyl. Removing the vinyl later in the process was the most time consuming and tedious process, taking me around 5 hours to complete weed every fleck of vinyl on the bike.

The bicycle itself was in poor condition. I sanded, removed vinyl stickers with an angle grinder, and used rest remover on the frame. Everything else was degreased and soaked in evapo-rust. Later cold-blued and oiled to match the black on black aesthetic.

The frame and fenders were painted using Montana Gold Spraypaint and Duplicolor Auto Gloss. Bondo and automotive sandable filler primer was also used.

Every original part on the bike was preserved. The hubs for each wheel were serviced, the crank was polished, as well as the handlebars and seatpost. All the original hardware was preserved, rust removed, and gun blued to match the aesthetic. The only truly “new” parts were the threaded headset and the single speed gold chain.

My pictures aren’t the best but I appreciate you taking the time to look through them. This has been a wonderful experience and I’m so excited to deliver this to its new owner.