Sunday, March 8, 2009

Custom Paint Job for Surly Big Dummy Cargo Bike - VOTE HERE

Ok...Uber Hubby and I decided that we had saved up enough money to finally order the frame for my Surly Big Dummy Cargo Bike. Click the link to see what a typical complete bike looks like, but most people seem to just order the frame only & then outfit it with their components of choice. Since we were up in Minneapolis yesterday anyway and I wanted to strike while the iron was hot (i.e. UH was in the mood to spend), we stopped by to meet my new BFFs at Hiawatha Cyclery to get the ball rolling.

Here's the thing...If you click on the Big Dummy link (above), you'll note that it only comes in that horrific military olive drab green color. Sorry, that's just one crap-tastic color for a bike, and I'm not spending this kind of money on a custom bike only to have it be the ugliest color I've ever seen. Thankfully, the folks at Hiawatha had contact info for a local powder coat shop where my problem can be easily remedied. I'm calling Powder Coating Technologies first thing tomorrow morning.

The color options/possibilities appear to be endless. I'm going to have the bike frame and rims done, but I'm not sure if I want everything the same or if I want the rims to have some kind of shocking contrast to the frame. Should it be Candy Apple Red, or perhaps Bass Boat Purple (complete with silver metallic flecks)? I just don't know.

I've checked out Xtracycle's Flickr page, another site called xtracyclegallery.com, and various other photo sources, but I'm disappointed at the lack of imagination there. All the Big Dummies I've seen, with VERY few exceptions, are all the same awful Army green color. As a Navy veteran, I simply can't be seen riding an Army green bike.

THAT'S WHERE YOU COME IN....Please come up with something groovy, creative, or just plain different and leave your comment here to vote on how you think I should have this bike painted. I'm hoping to meet with the paint guy next weekend or on March 20th at the latest, so there's not a lot of time here. I'll be sure to keep you updated on what I decide, with final photos once it's all done.

8-28-09 Update: Click HERE to see the outcome.