Paint it Black!

Words by Ben - Snaps by Ben

There's always a point in a motorhead's life when it's time to get new wheels for your car. Usually this happens soon after (or even before) getting your ride, after a change of taste or wheel fashion, or after the wheel suffer a bad fate after an accident of some sort. In my case, it's an incident which resulted in one of my back rim getting busted that got me to start hunting for kicks again. 

While searching, my mechanic lent me a set of Volk Racing CE28N, and the mismatched style started growing on me. Since I couldn't find another set of K-Speed K391, and I still couldn't afford my dream SSR Professor SP1R, I decided to change the rear wheels to TE37r, for a subtle mismatched look. After all, aside from having 6 spokes instead of 5 spokes, the design was rather similar and would be prefect for the looks I wanted to achieve. 

The only issue - they were black, while my K-Speed were gunmetal grey. I figured that would not be a problem as I would quickly fix it with some sanding paper, a couple of spray cans, and some elbow grease, like I did a few months back when I resprayed my autocross/track rims to blue, as you might have spotted in the Spark Motorsports Gymkhana post. 

So I got the rims, the sandpaper and found some spray cans that, I hoped, would do the job just right. After burning quite a bit of elbow grease preparing the first rim, I couldn't resist to go ahead and spray... And the result was horrifying. So much for gunmetal grey, or even deep grey, I ended up with a flat, dull grey. 

The more I looked at it, the more I hated that grey. 

The sad part was that when I asked for a rims spray shop for help, they told me that the paint I used was too soft for them to spray over, and that sanding everything off would not be possible. Not possible is not in my books, and I went ahead to find another solution, which I found when a friend recommended me to Plasti Dip. 

For those of you who are not yet familiar with the miracle solution, here's a quick intro: it's not paint, it's rubber. In the main lines, you'll be spraying coloured rubber, which sticks to virtually anything, and can be pulled off whenever you want. Key words: sticks to anything. Just what I needed! 

Of course, there are always a few catches to miracles: It only comes in matte finish (but there are additional sprays to add shiny textures, and it can be peeled off. The matte finish wasn't a problem as I made up my mind to spray the wheels black, but the peeling off part was my worry - as I wanted to keep the chrome lip on the rims (I'm not fond of full black rims), I would have to mask the lip, but I was afraid that removing the masking would pull the paint off the whole rim. After a bit of research and some good advice from Singapore's Plasti Dip dealer, the plan was set, and I proceeded as follows - 

I started by thoroughly cleaning the wheel... 

I then masked off the lip, the tyre, the lug nuts and the air valve. Masking off the tyre is not necessary as you can peel off the paint once you're done, but I just like masking off stuff, so I went ahead. As I was spraying with the wheel mounted on the car, I also masked off the brakes behind the rim. 

This done, I sprayed the first, thin layer over the whole rim, all the way to the masked area. The aim of this was to give a rough, sticky base for the other layers to grip on. 

I let the base dry for 10 minutes and added more layers of black, but only on the spokes. I avoided spraying on the masked-off area, and applied three coats, leaving 10 minutes to dry between each layer. 

For the final layer I sprayed a generous, thick layer over the whole rim, especially around the lip. As soon as I was done spraying, I quickly pulled the mask on the lip, lug nuts and air valve. I removed the newspaper on the brakes from behind the wheel to avoid any risk of messing up the job and let it cure for 4 hours. 

The paint was not pulled off along with the masking, and the result was just perfect, to my eyes.

I need to do a proper photoshoot!

Dapper Bikes - Distinguished Gentleman's Ride 2013

Words by Myloh - Snaps by Ben 

Suits, Bikes and Singapore. See the link? Neither did I, at first. That is until one steps foot into this haven of American air cooled twins, British triples, Italian open dry clutches and not forgetting the array of Japanese idiosyncrasies about.

Held on the 29th of September, this madness is the Distinguished Gentleman's Ride. Established in 2012, it is a fast growing global movement that raises money and awareness for charities for prostate cancer research, but most of it is really the celebration of dapperness even sharper looking bikes. 

For 2013, the Singapore leg of the ride started at Motorwerks' new premise in Ubi industrial estate. 

Despite the broiling heat and relatively remote locale of the starting point, this year saw the arrival of more than 200 rides of various shapes and sizes. 

Ranging from grim hogs to the petite Vespas (some of them we spotted in Mama Mia Vespas!), this was a veritable smorgasbord of rides and people. 

The event was made alive with special highlights such as the Slo-mo Drag Race, where contestants competed to be the slowest on two wheels (not an easy task for even seasoned pros). 

Another highlight was, of course, the most dapperly dressed awards. 

Alongside were the many motoring souls who gathered for friendly exchanges in what feels like the largest gathering of the biggest extended family ever, whose common love for two wheels are the bonds that bind.

Once all riders had gathered and the contests were over, the real highlight of the day started - a grouped ride across Singapore. The hundreds of bikers straddled their beloved two-wheeled steeds and swarmed the roads to enjoy a smooth ride under the sun. 

The extended ride saw the motorcycling community represented not only by the variety, but the awesome camaraderie of the riders in this unofficial "brotherhood". 

Each traffic light was an opportunity to laugh and chat among friends, and all riders were rolling about with a smile on their faces, glad to share their passion with like-minded individuals. The fun was also shared with other motorists and passerbys who stopped and watched, amazed, as the mass of bikers rode about. 

That I think sums up the spirit that holds the group, gets it and keeps it growing. 

Till next year then! 

 The event was so massive and fun that we had to give you more sights - enjoy!

Paris je t'aime! Part 1 - C42 - The Citroën Showroom

Words by Ben, snaps by June & Ben

Paris, the city of romance, the city of love, the city of fashion, the city of architecture, we've heard it all. But the city of cars? Heck yeah, Paris does have something for us motorheads! The Champs Elysées isn't only a jewellery box for high fashion brands, it also houses a series of showrooms that bridge the car and the fashion worlds. As I walked down the famous avenue, my feet led me to No.42, the Citroën pad, called C42. 

The building isn't hard to spot, with its full glass front that incorporates the chevrons in its design. It's inside that things get interesting as the showroom, stretching over 4 stories (make that 5 with the basement), showcases 7 platforms giving glimpses of the past, present and future of Citroën's range of cars.

The showcased rides are changed as the seasons go by, and my trip to C42 greeted me with the C5 Airscape, a drop-top concept version of the C5 that looked rather production-ready. The open-top ride set the mood of the showroom for the summer season, as heralded above the main entrance: Open Air by Citroën.

Behind it was the souvenir shop, where you can find almost all the models that Citroën has ever build, in small scale, and some other chevron-branded items and clothes.

The basement of C42 was dedicated to WRC and featured Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena's DS3 WRC under an arch boasting their 2012 victory.

Going up the levels of the showroom, Citroën had the Rosalie on the first platform. The Rosalie first rolled out of the factories in 1932. It was a lightweight racing car that set a few track records at the Montlhéry racing circuit and was the chevron brand's bread and butter between 1932 and 1938. This particular model, like the Airscape beneath it, followed the open-top theme.

Half-a-storey above, the DS3 Cabrio set on an accessible rotating platform, was being swarmed by adults and children alike.

The youngest even had the opportunity to set their eyes on what could be their own DS3. I could hear the moans of kids bugging their parents for one of these.

Above the DS3, Citroën had me take another step back in time with the 2CV Spot, and its retractable soft top. I've always loved the 2CV, and while this one looked well maintained, I always prefer hearing them zoom about the streets, leaning ridiculously in the corners, like no other car can.

Above the 2CV was the Méhari, which was celebrating its 45 years. The topless ride was well known for its plastic body which was easy to maintain and made it the perfect little off-roader. Tipping the scale under 600kg and powered by a flat twin engine, this car could get about anywhere, and became a popular army vehicle in the 80's.

The 6th platform was showcasing the original DS (DS19), once again in its convertible variant. From the mid-50's to the 70's, this car was one of France's most beautiful creation. Not only was it gorgeous, but its 18 years of secret development made it push the ride-versus-handling boundaries of cars back then. The DS (pronounced as déesse [deh ess] - goddess in French) became and instant classic and branded Citroën as an automotive innovator.

Finally reaching the top floor, I came face to face with a box, apparently hiding a new car. Was it heralding the future of the chevron brand's cabriolet range? 

Hopefully Citroën cut slots in the box to let curious minds see the content. So I peeked. After all, they did say "be indiscreet", so I did.

Yeah. The DS4 cabriolet. or with a glass roof, I wasn't sure. In all honesty, I was expecting a stonking hot drop-top concept or something along these lines, and the sight left me a bit disappointed.

No worries tho, the Champs Elysées had a few more showrooms along its stretch which, I hoped, would fully satisfy my motorhead cravings.

Stay tuned for the next Parisian experience: Mercedes' showroom!