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I've been intending on getting this frame resprayed for absolutely ages. Ah, the first bike I built up myself (which took over a year as I went on an ill-advised year of trying to stop being a lawyer without really having a proper plan in place to work out what else I was going to do, which meant money got rather tight and purchases of chainsets and wheels dropped quite a way down the agenda).

There's a metal cleaning and restoration place nearby that apparently does a pretty good job of bike frames (I realise I'm going a little budget option compared to, say, sending it off to Mercian, but the reports of the jobs done really have been good, and they will also do colour matching, which is a bonus, rather than just picking a nearly matching orange). Get some transfers from Cotic, as well as a replacement Reynolds sticker, and then rebuild. Easy as that.

It's never easy as that.

But it's a fun blast bike, and I'd like to have it up and running again. At the same time I'm giving in on the 30s Sunbeam that I've been restoring for about 30 years now and will be stopping my hunt for similar frames that might garner a replacement bottom bracket - instead seeing if I can get something made bespoke to fit by a chap I was told about in very nearby Porty.

The way I figure it, I should really get these two up and running before I can legitimately be looking at an old steel frame for a fast, lightweight, road bike (at which point the cross bike becomes permanently shod in cross tyres for racing, and rides on rougher surfaces - you see, every different bike has a very clearly defined role...). Oh, and I think the commuter needs the brakes either seriously looked at or replaced (a job for this weekend). But then that one has the excuse of being ridden almost every day, in all weathers.

Hmmm, I believe this latest n+1 yearning was brought on by wandering the bike shops at lunchtime looking at some new fingerless gloves (too warm for full fingered on the commute now!), which necessarily involved various ganders at shiny new bikes.

Sometimes, just sometimes, it's not just Mel who is disappointed I'm not rich...