Waltly Ti gravel - dropped seatstay and fat tubes - in progress

[cst_jpr]

Inspiration
After crashing a CF frame, I wanted something corrosion resistant and able to take more abuse.

I used some of these frames for ideas:
https://bearclawbicycleco.com/thunderhawk-titanium-650b-gravel-bike/
https://shop.knollybikes.com/collections/frames/products/knolly-cache-gravel-grinder
https://masoncycles.cc/products/bokehti-frameset

Keep in mind I have no idea what I'm doing, but you may see some ideas you like.

Design stuff:
- The cable entries into the frame look amazing. I specified just "hole cutout" and was expecting them to simply route a hole, but they included adapter plates and everything.
- Seatstays: you can drop only so much until they will interfere with the rear flat mount disc. At that point they have to bend the seatstay to clear.
- Seatpost dia: "seat post is 31.6,then you need to choice our 34.9 seat tube ,if you use 27.2 seat post then need to use 31.8 seat tube"
- Dubble butted: no don't even ask. A lot of the options in their quote PDF aren't even available or are incorrect, so just specify them in the email instead.
- Brushed or sandblast: It looks like they sandblast regardless, then hand sand the frame? Brushed is better for anodizing, sandblast gives a more even look.
- Weight: 1.95kg with thru-axle. Quite heavy, probably would be lighter if I didn't use such wide tubes

Timeline:
Waltly as with probably all other bike component manufacturers are likely slammed for orders. Email Sumi with your requirements, be patient. The design stage only took ~17 days (Nov 1) this will depend on how much back and forth there is. Then production was about two months on top of that. I chose "cheap" shipping, another 1.5 month or so to Canada.

Process for etched logos:
- You need to use an old version of CorelDraw (eg X5) to be able to export a compatible EPS file for them. Inkscape won't work.
- To create: Export as EPS, save in version 2 format.
- Text cannot be too thin or it will be hard to etch (like 1mm), even after thickening some text on mine it turned out not great. The big bold logos are fine though.
- I didn't specify size, I think they will just resize it appropriately to fit in that spot.

Future plan:
- Wash all the sand out.
- Anodize part or all of the frame. I did some test anodizing and could only get a few "good" colors: purple, dark blue, brown. Maybe with technique or more chemicals you can do better.
- Run internal electrical wiring for lights.

[tripleDot]

- Weight: 1.95kg with thru-axle. Quite heavy, probably would be lighter if I didn't use such wide tubes

The weight is pretty much at par with my 2 Waltly Ti frames (29er mtb & gravel bike). Both are just under 2kg. I believe the weight is more because they are using thicker tubes, 0.9mm Iirc. I have a few friends who owns Lynskeys & Litespeed titanium bikes that are around 1.5kg frame weight, I've tap their frames & they are noticeably thinner tubes. Another friend with a Salsa titanium frame was actually heavier than my Waltly frames simply because it was 2 sizes bigger than mine but pretty much the same tube thickness.

I've emailed Amy (my Waltly contact) last week and she said the current turn around time is 3-4 months. It used to be just 45days. I remember by frames were actually ready for shipping just under 45days.

[bxcc]

Future plan:
- Anodize part or all of the frame. I did some test anodizing and could only get a few "good" colors: purple, dark blue, brown. Maybe with technique or more chemicals you can do better.

Nice looking frame! What are the build details?

I was told it would be 2 months from submitting final plan to the frame being completed. It did take another 3 weeks or so to work out the frame details so that may have changed. I'm expecting / hoping my frame will ship in mid to late May. I opted for FedEx ($280usd) shipping to the US which only took 4 days last time. April and May is prime gravel riding season so I'll be late to the party.

What were you using for solution and power supply when you tried anodizing? I did the blue on my other Waltly frame with a 28v power supply and it came out great. It has seemed to dull a bit though. I did the head tube logo and some small bits like headset spacers with 9v batteries clipped together as well. The issue with the batteries is that they don't provide enough current to do bigger items. I ordered a 0v to 120v variable power supply from Amazon that I hope will give better results this time around. It should arrive next week and I'll test it with some extra spacers I have. I have some Ti m5 x 16mm screws coming from AliExpress that I hope I can get to bright pink and possibly green. I'll keep you posted on the results.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DJ25QL2/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_7?smid=A12APH4T5I08JR&psc=1

[cst_jpr]

Nice looking frame! What are the build details?

I was told it would be 2 months from submitting final plan to the frame being completed. It did take another 3 weeks or so to work out the frame details so that may have changed. I'm expecting / hoping my frame will ship in mid to late May. I opted for FedEx ($280usd) shipping to the US which only took 4 days last time. April and May is prime gravel riding season so I'll be late to the party.

What were you using for solution and power supply when you tried anodizing? I did the blue on my other Waltly frame with a 28v power supply and it came out great. It has seemed to dull a bit though. I did the head tube logo and some small bits like headset spacers with 9v batteries clipped together as well. The issue with the batteries is that they don't provide enough current to do bigger items. I ordered a 0v to 120v variable power supply from Amazon that I hope will give better results this time around. It should arrive next week and I'll test it with some extra spacers I have. I have some Ti m5 x 16mm screws coming from AliExpress that I hope I can get to bright pink and possibly green. I'll keep you posted on the results.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DJ25QL2/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_7?smid=A12APH4T5I08JR&psc=1

No build details really, but I want to try the DIY berd/carbon rim mentioned in another thread. Keeping an eye out for the rope.
If you want etching, get the files ready before they ask is about all you can do now I guess.

Power supply I used was bench supply (DP832, 3A 32V+32V = 64V max). The power supply you linked looks like a good choice, and you'll be able to slowly ramp up and see the color change. Just be careful when at really high voltages, eg wearing thick rubber gloves.

Attached is the deep purple/ink color, I believe it was around 24V. You can see the polished smooth bits look great, but the seatpost that is all scratched up does not look as good. I might try polishing but I suspect its a huge amount of work.

[cst_jpr]

Recommended when you get your Waltly frame:
- Remove all screws. One of my screws was cross-threaded and stuck, much easier to remove it now than after prepping the frame.
- Thoroughly rinse the thing with water to remove the sand. They thoughtfully put drain holes everywhere.

Anodizing:
Started today at 19.5V, setup: Ground clip going to a sheet of tinfoil, then solution saturated paper towel in between, frame connected to positive lead.
Getting some discolored areas, probably surface contamination. But not removable with isopropyl, or the H2SO4 in the water itself.

Will try a few more solvents, apparently simple green is good but I don't have it. Also will compare H2SO4 to a baking soda mix. Worst case it may end up needing a light sanding in that area.

The etched portions really stand out which is cool (dark), I'll get more photos next time.

[bxcc]

So far I've tried making my solution with distilled water mixed with TSP, sulfuric acid, or baking soda. Baking soda gave me the best results. As for cleaning the metal, naptha has worked well. Whink Rust Stain remover will work too but it will leave the metal with a dark film that will need to be removed. Green Scotch-Brite works good but make sure you test it first as the finish might be slightly different where you hit it with the scotch brite. The Whink also works well for undoing any anodizing that you may not be happy with.

[cst_jpr]

I compared baking soda and H2SO4 and there was no noticeable difference for me, so baking soda wins due to its safety factor.

Tried various isopropyl, solvents, strong lemon cleaner, CLR acid cleaner, nothing had any effect on the under-anodized areas. Maybe a stronger acid would work.

Moving on to sanding/polishing, this got instant results. But yeah the scotch brite pad I had was a courser grit that whatever Waltly used on the frame, so good warning there, it won't look the same.
I may end up polishing the entire frame. I'm not sure how much polishing the etched areas can take, ~10s of fine grit polishing is OK, but I'm sure any sort of ~500 grit or less will take them away quickly.

This guy is getting amazing results with a very simple setup:
https://cyclingtips.com/2018/10/masterclass-anodising-titanium-with-mooro-cycles/

[bxcc]

Thanks for sharing that article! I’ve read it before but it’s been awhile and I needed the re-read. I’m struggling to get the pink that I want for my new frame. I have various headset spacers, screws, and even a stem. I’ve gotten some decent rainbow fades but can’t reproduce a solid pink.

I have a Cricut and make my own decals and templates. I need to find a vinyl that will withstand sandblasting but can still be cut by the Cricut. Too many projects at the moment.

[cst_jpr]

This guy is saying pink is a different process: http://www.torontocycles.com/Titanium_Anodizing.html
He's also explained why the purple color I had was more likely to have these color variations in it:

Pink vs. Purple Titanium Anodizing:
There is some discrepancy on Pink and Purple Colors. Purple is quite dark and when wet can look brown, which is the color with the lower voltage. Purple can also be difficult to make because it's a
narrow voltage band. A few volts less and it's brown. A few more and its blue. Dark Purple also smears and isn't the best color.
Pink is a high voltage color and is also a different process. It's not true pink and some customers will say its purple. This is not the case. In the store pink is also lavender.

From this video it appears to be down to surface finish/roughness, in this case only one surface looks pink:


edit: the ~20V level is really easy to buff out, once you get up to over 60V the colors are a lot more tough and need to be sanded off. Its expected as the layer thickness is higher, but, its more than you'd expect. Was able to get a really dark pink but only on the weld bead.

[bxcc]

Thanks! I’ll take a look at the article. I should have 30 Ti m5x16 screws arriving tomorrow so I’ll play around with them this weekend. Trying to get as close as I can to matching the pink aluminum parts I have for the new build. Frame is still a month out so I have some time. I’ll post some updates either way.