finishing the winter maintenance

Snow, snow, snow on the ground today, and 34F when the sun rose. Ain't no road-ridin' goin' on today, so I figured I'd use the day to finish the road bike rebuild.

Take off the wheels, take out the brake shoes, put in the new ones. They don't go in easily, and the brake shoes will need to be readjusted where they hit the wheels. Early on, it was too cold to open the garage door, and I just couldn't get the front set correctly. When it warmed up, and I opened the garage door and wheeled the bike over to work in the sunlight, the adjustment was easy. Sometimes, the difference between a job you can't figure out and an easy job is just getting enough light on the subject.

Take all the cables off, take all the housing off (but save 'em to measure the new pieces). This time, I remembered to re-set all of the barrel adjusters before I cabled up again! Also, I replaced that under-the-bottom-bracket cable guide; the old one didn't quite fit right, and the bracket had a mark where the cable contacted it. I don't know if it would ever cut through, but the guide is, like, a $2 part, so it's a good idea to put on a new one.

I also readjusted the height of the shifter controls (moved them a bit higher). It's a bit more comfortable now, although my default position is about 3/4" less "aero".

Took off the stem, took out the headset bearings and re-greased everything, then replaced the whole stem-headtube-handlebar assembly. I thought there would be rust inside to attend to (there was last time), but I didn't see any (good!).

Now all the cabling is back on. The front derailleur has already needed an adjustment, and will probably need another by mid-week. But the shifting and brakes are all smooth and working for now. Last thing is to tape up the cabling to the handlebars (my brake and derailleur cables are both routed along the bars) and re-wrap the bars. I put black tape and cable housing on the brushed-titanium-grey frame, so one of the big decisions is what color tape to finish the handlebars with. This incarnation is blue and green. That tape, and the bandanna I hang from the seat bag, are about the only spots of color on the bike.

Later this week, I'll plan to adjust the cables, and go over all of the bolts with a torque wrench. But other than that, this bike is ready for another year.