So Hughie met Barry, and Barry is an expert. We should always be interested in what the experts have to say, there is so much we can learn from them...... but there is ONLY so much we can learn from them. As much as expertness can enlighten us, it can also stiffle us. With great expertness comes deep and narrow thinking. I havent met Barry, but I am sure he is a great guy - and anyone who has built 20 trikes is bound to be a great man. However, when he told Hugh that he didnt believe that you could build a great Trike for a grand, I wondered if he was being visionary enough.
I have to admit i was thrown off balance for a couple of days. Maybe i had bitten off more than i could chew? maybe i was being naive or idealistic? Maybe i couldnt build a great looking trike within my budget? and as i flicked my custom bike magazines, it certainly does look like they have had a lot of chrome and slick paint jobs done on them to make them all look so....... well actually, when you look at the bigger picture..... they all look so..... so much the same! When you start to analyse the features or concepts of all these fabulous machines, the majority do seem to be working to formula. It feels like people are trying to create a better version of what is in vogue. Not many seem to be interested in creating something new.
Of course i want my machine to be aesthetically pleasing, if not beautiful, if not awsome...... but PERHAPS, i dont have to do the finish and detail to the normal formula of shiney and sparkly.
Ive been incubating this thought, and i havent concluded my thinking yet, but I have a seed growing inside that i am warming to..... I dont want to make any decisions on this yet - it is niether a good idea or a bad idea, but i'd like to let it sit in my mind for a while doing nothing until the time is right to make a decision........ the components i have for this trike are not in a condition that i can easily and cheaply polish, nor can i chrome many bits. The frame and proportions are all in my control (and i am a fool if i dont make the shape beuatiful) but the finish might take time and money that i can ill afford. But what if i turn the "finishing formula" on its head and say "lets do this different to all the shiney glitzy look alikes in the mags" maybe it could be cool as Matt black with details in hazard day-glo orange...... dont judge the idea..... just imagine for a while a black rear axle and bike frame and a day-glo orange diff and fuel tank.... dont judge it. There are, of course many other details that need to be thought about, but not yet..... just let the image rest in your head for a few days :-)
1 comment:
Good on yer Tim! Never loose sight of your objective. You never set out to impress the public or to make the best show bike. Of course it would be nice to have people stop and say "what a great job". But that is easy, you only have to re colour your hair. You said you wanted to make a great trike, and that's what you are going to do. The definition of "great" is very personal and that is what you project is all about. You never said that chrome and polish featured high on you scale of "great". Remember yoiu can have a great journey to the end of you project and never get the Brasso out.
I like the idea of black finish with high lighted features. Just think of the fun using Photoshop to try out all the variious conbinations schemes. One point with my TREVOR hat on is mat black a good idea? One oil leak and it will not look mat any more. Perhaps good old Dulux gloss might be an alternative, powder coating even better. Don't forget John for the filler to over all these little inperfections.
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