Brass on Newbaums

[Collin A]

I'm in the process of tinkering on the Appaloosa (going to SS finally) and the process has involved several big changes and some not-so-big changes...namely this one.

Eric Marth's videos have inspired me to add more shiny brass bits to my bikes, but without sending $5 per brass bolt! Instead, I had some leftover brass wire (several hundred feet!) from a little art project I finished several years ago now, and I have also always wanted to try the twine wrap on the newbaums. In this case, I didn't want to buy some twine and figured "Hey, I've got this narrow gauge brass wire, lets try that on my chainstay wrap in case it turns out like crap." This was the result (with 2 year old newbaums):

Not the cleanest result, but the brass obviously has less twine-like properties and forces a much tighter wrap and is less forgiving in the final look. The final step of bringing the knot under the wrap is also a bit of a nuance and is not as "clean," although I'm hoping to improve it with some more attempts. For those curious, a 1.5m length piece of this wire is 2.5g.

I'm also going to try using brass washers under my stainless bolts to add a bit of shiny to an otherwise mundane fastener...and those are only $0.10 a piece!

Cheers,

Collin, "fools gold" in Sacramento

[Philip Williamson]

That looks good!

I did a similar wrap a few years ago on a couple different bikes, also using art project wire!

https://www.biketinker.com/2007/projects/copper-wire-to-finish-off-your-bar-wrap/

Philip

Sonoma County, Calif (but Yamhill County, Ore back then)

[Eric Marth]

Hey now, I like these brass and copper wire wraps! 

I would think that wrapping the wire tight and finishing it by twisting two ends together somehow would hold in place pretty well. I might have to experiment. 

Will look great once it starts to weather! 

[Brian Turner]

As much as I love finding parts on McMaster and Bolt Depot, sourcing brass M5 bolts can get pretty pricey. I recently searched eBay and the dreaded Amazon and was finding similar quality brass bolts for like $12 per 10-pack. They come from China mind you, but if you really wanted a good supply of brass hardware for way cheaper, that's what I'd recommend.

[Collin A]

The other alternative is to simply solder the connections (since its brass) rather than rely on the twine-knot method normally used (which definitely gives a very solid connection. I'm hesitant to try this on thin aluminum handlebars though...

I'm looking forward to the more muted color too, its way too shiny right now, ha!

[Eric Marth]

I wonder if brass crimp clamps would work? 

Brokebike — Yeah, I appreciate buying from McMaster and getting US made brass bolts but at $5+/each, well, that's really nuts. I mean... bolts. I mean crazy.