Gents,
Regarding gold plated Colnagos. The ones I've seen and worded with are actual gold plated. The reason they don't hold up is because once gold plated, the special musical instrument lacquer (thermal setting) was not used to protect it. Exposed gold is only microns thick when new and a little rubbing and polishing, or just natural wear will remove the soft gold plating in a relatively short time. What is left behind is the base layer of nickel plating that helps give the gold plating some of it's brightness. Often once the nickel is exposed rust soon follows. If the gold plating rusts or peels from below then it was poor prep and/or processing.
Some gold looking stuff is the same musical instrument lacquer with a gold tint, that when sprayed over the bright nickel looks like gold but is more durable and colorfast than unprotected gold plating. I've done both. One will be able to see in person a frame I built in 1981 which has gold plated lugs, crown, brake bridge, and dropout faces at the 2007 Framebuilders Show. The gold is still flawless. It was gold plated, lacquered, and clear coated with Imron as the final step. That seems to work over the long haul insofar as preventing natural brakedown of the gold and protecting from cleaning and polishing.
Brian Baylis
La Mesa, CA
Greg S. and Chuck S. wrote:
snip) and that's an issue that is worthy of debate...were
> the Mexico Oros gold plated or simply gold lacquered over chrome?
> Looking at several old Oro frames....I would put money on the lacquer
> with the exception of the Pope's bike and also the later Nuovo Mexico
> with the gold stays and fork blades.
Just had a frame from 1977 restored... wasn't gold lacquer Greg, the
frame had gold plating.
Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, CA USA
the pope's bike may have actual gold plating (I wouldn't know), but the frame Chuck had restored I'm familiar with, and I believe the "gold plating" was a form of gold-tinted chrome. Very thin, very fragile, and, in the few examples of the type I've seen, did not hold up well at all. But it was plating. Not paint.
Gold plating would have done better, assuming a good, clean job with no way for water to get to the base metal underneath.
Charles Andrews
SoCal