1982 GJS A Frame

An uncommon old racer with a twist.

EDIT — SOLD
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It was a slow, then fast paced build. But It really came out the way I had envisioned it... really, even better.
Here's sort of a parts break down:
- 1982 GJS A-Frame & Fork  (serial # 2206)- Campagnolo Tipo Hubs- Araya 7x Chrome (1.75") Rims- STAR BARS - (replaced the Powerlite bars)- Bubble Font A'ME Rounds (used)
- Redline 400 cranks
- Tuffneck 44t Chainring- Tange MX-3 Headset w/ gold inset- Tioga Compe 3 Blue/Green label (Natural Gum)- TufNeck Pro stem- San Marco (suede) "Aero-Laser" seat- Race Inc. Seatpost- Suntour XC pedals (un-braced)- Urchin Cages - for XC pedals- Dia Compe "DCMX" - 2-bolt - Seat Clamp- Dia Compe Tech 3 Lever - gold- Dia Compe MX 900 rear caliper - w/ dc pads.
Here's how it all came about :
I picked up the frame and fork from a member on here a while ago in a nice trade deal (thanks Jerry). it was structurally in amazing shape. The dropouts were near perfect, No damage at all, and really no rust. The bike came from the south west (thankfully - a dryer climate)., and was probably sitting out in the sun and sand.. which caused the original candy red finish to fade to primer and raw in most spots, but somehow perfectly preserving the frame without damage.
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It was ugly, but filled with potential. Since the finish was toast... I knew I wanted to make this bike really special - (parts, color, the whole theme). Since being mainly a freestyler, most of my bikes have a sort of (if not blatant) freestyle look. But I knew I had to give this GJS the respect of becoming an authentic racer again.  I've always had it in my head that I wanted a very 70's look... Paint-wise - I couldn't find any decent true shots of the stock GJS Tangerine color.... But I knew I wanted it to have an older vibe - something pre-80's.    Sort of an ode to old schwinns or  a vintage bumper car... Brown, Gold  or Orange with big sparkles in the paint.  So I sent it down to florida - and Lou did a fantastic job on the paint work.  We sent samples back  and forth - and he nailed the color.
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As the frame and fork were getting painted, I started thinking about decals and how I didn't want the standard block of chrome sticker over a beautiful paint job - but I wanted the branding to be more integrated and intentional looking. ... to accent the fine details and sparkle of the bike. I didn't want the decals to out-loud the uniqueness of the frame (unique gusset, bends, bridges, and dropouts.) From the serial number ( # 2206 ) and  research I gathered the bike is most likely a 1982 model...  and it seems GJS started their new decal design around this time for some of the bikes. I never saw them in chrome, but I always loved that chrome/clear look on painted hutch bikes. Designing the decals myself, this gave me an opportunity to add a hint of my own flavor to the bike. (just a little visual treat if you're looking close enough)...Having to explain to many people when asked "what's GJS stand for?"  Telling people that is was a family owned BMX company and it stood for "George, Jeff, and Scott".  I added a small sticker to each side of the main gusset that says "UTTERBACK".  (( My own father was an engineer / inventor / motor-head and worked on many friend's cars, dragsters, projects, tooling and machines as well as being an inventor and tool maker with his father - my grandfather.... and  would label himself  on his designs and machines this way.  I felt like this decal was sort of a tiny ode to him, and all small self-made / family owned endeavors... )). Mainly, I just felt like the last name should be worn proudly - yet subtly and tastefully on this bike.
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Anyway - Before I even got the GJS, another member lucked upon these original NOS natural gum colored Comp 3's - and I had always wanted to use them for a build. So the idea was brewing for a while.  I traded off a bunch of stuff to acquire the parts to create my ideal racer.  I knew I wanted the frame color to pop... so I was set on using Chrome for most everything else. but like to have a subtle color accent to compliment it. I love the squared off look of the early chromo Powerlite bars too. I think they give the bike a very strong and aggressive look. I always loved the look of the extra high flange of Campy Tipo hubs. So this bike really became a canvas to use all of the cool race parts I always wanted to build with.
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This all took tons of work (from me and) many others to get together....Thanks so much to Jerry for the frame set,  Lou for painting it perfectly, Lee for lacing up the Campys, Lil' Jon  and Scott for some essential parts and advice. Louis for the top notch decal printing, JrNY for the tires. Johnny Johnson for the great deal on the headset, Cappy for the stem, and Dan for a sweet deal on the cranks... and silverhw (bill) for the sweet cable - just in the nick of time. )
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(Somehow - It even got the honor of "best in show" at Summer Slam this year... I was really surprised and humbled that it got that kind of recognition... there ware Tons of unattainable , perfectly built bikes there this year - Thanks again to all who gave props to this GJS - I was truly overwhelmed.).
The bike really came out exactly how I envisioned it.~ chromey

View Bike In Museum

Last edited by chromey (2016-11-23 7:35pm)