# 2011 Specialized CRUX - RAW Aluminum



## cooper58 (Jan 31, 2007)

Removing the paint dropped a pound off of the frame


Before: 









After:


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## Chico2000 (Jul 7, 2011)

I got three glasses o' wine in me, so excuse my French, that is effin sweet!

One of my buddies back in 199? had a raw alum Manitou MTB frame that looked like that.

How'd ya strip the paint?


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## tihsepa (Nov 27, 2008)

That is bad a$$

I have been thinking of stripping my CAAD.


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## mudge (May 15, 2010)

Wow! How'd you strip it? I'm guessing bead blasting. Did you put anything back on in the way of a clear coat to keep it looking nice? How'd you strip the fork?


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## cooper58 (Jan 31, 2007)

mudge said:


> Wow! How'd you strip it? I'm guessing bead blasting. Did you put anything back on in the way of a clear coat to keep it looking nice? How'd you strip the fork?


I used paint stripper to get the paint off. I had the fork repainted and a friends body shop.


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## carlosflanders (Nov 23, 2008)

A pound? You really believe this?


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## cooper58 (Jan 31, 2007)

carlosflanders said:


> A pound? You really believe this?


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## tihsepa (Nov 27, 2008)

carlosflanders said:


> A pound? You really believe this?


Yep..


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## HEMIjer (Oct 18, 2008)

Did you at least clear coat it afterward?

Love raw aluminum look though have two frames with raw finish 200 CAAD and 2011 giant anthem 9r, awesome job but clear coat it to get some level of protection on that thing.


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## carlosflanders (Nov 23, 2008)

cooper58 said:


>


25% of weight from paint?

100-150 g would be a typical figure for paint weight. 450 g is shocking.


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## mudge (May 15, 2010)

carlosflanders said:


> 25% of weight from paint?
> 
> 100-150 g would be a typical figure for paint weight. 450 g is shocking.


Maybe it was lead-based paint?


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## limba (Mar 10, 2004)

Looks better too.


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## XLNC (Feb 6, 2012)

At the bike show in Toronto last weekend, one place had a brushed aluminum Tricross (disc to boot). Looked really nice but could have doubled as a cargo ship anchor.


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## gobes (Sep 12, 2006)

cooper58 said:


>


Yes, but what did it weigh with the paint?
I would guess that the frame weighed around 1500g with the paint. 2 lbs 15 oz is about 1335g.


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## carlosflanders (Nov 23, 2008)

Yup, shoulda been about 1500 g, maybe less depending on size.

It's implied that original weight was about 1800 g. Not realistic.


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## Gripped (Nov 27, 2002)

carlosflanders said:


> Yup, shoulda been about 1500 g, maybe less depending on size.
> 
> It's implied that original weight was about 1800 g. Not realistic.


Note that it's on the scale with seat post binder and brake noodle. Wonder if there are any other bits. I'm pretty sure the 1500 weight is naked without any hardware.


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## dinosaurs (Nov 29, 2011)

Gripped said:


> Note that it's on the scale with seat post binder and brake noodle. *Wonder if there are any other bits.* I'm pretty sure the 1500 weight is naked without any hardware.


Derailleur hanger?


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## AndreyT (Dec 1, 2011)

cooper58 said:


> Removing the paint dropped a pound off of the frame


You need better scales. Removing the paint alone could not drop an entire pound from the frame. (Unless it had like a 1/2 inch layer of paint on it.)


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## cooper58 (Jan 31, 2007)

AndreyT said:


> You need better scales. Removing the paint alone could not drop an entire pound from the frame. (Unless it had like a 1/2 inch layer of paint on it.)


So, how many frames have you stripped the paint off of? The paint had 2 different layers of red & black plus the white stripes under the clear coat was a decal that had to be peeled off. 

I guess my Park Tools scale sucks?


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## cooper58 (Jan 31, 2007)

The frame is a 49cm


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## smoothie7 (Apr 11, 2011)

i guess by doing that not only do you have a lighter bike but it keeps your competition wandering what bike you have


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## cs1 (Sep 16, 2003)

cooper58 said:


> So, how many frames have you stripped the paint off of? The paint had 2 different layers of red & black plus the white stripes under the clear coat was a decal that had to be peeled off.
> 
> I guess my Park Tools scale sucks?


I don't think anyone is trying to insult you. One pound does sound like a lot of paint for a 49cm frame. But it does look nice. There is a thread over at mtbreview on raw aluminum MTB frames. 

http://forums.mtbr.com/bike-frame-discussion/lets-see-your-raw-aluminium-572818.html


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## MoreCowbell82 (Jan 14, 2011)

That is completely awesome - what kind of paint stripper did you use? My plan is to do the same thing to the Allez frameset...


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## dinosaurs (Nov 29, 2011)

MoreCowbell82 said:


> That is completely awesome - what kind of paint stripper did you use? My plan is to do the same thing to the Allez frameset...


Auto parts stores sell aircraft stripper in either a brush on or aerosol form. Its pretty nasty stuff though, I've always worn gloves and a respirator when working with it. 

Alternatively, you could take it somewhere and have it media blasted.


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