Everything.
In advance of next weekend's Legend of Gelert around Snowdonia thought I'd better check out the Defy. Planning ahead, and buying myself a well-overdue birthday present (the Park Tools work-stand (the home version)) I stripped the Defy to the frame and BB. Then ordered a new middle ring and bolts - it's serviceable, but not for much longer. Cartridge BB is fine - replaced a couple of years ago.
Cleaned, TCut, car polished and then waxed the frame and forks. Now gleaming. Changed the chain suck frame protector (it's 6 years old!).
Soaked the calipers in FS10 overnight and they came up a treat - gleaming. Dropped out the fork, cleaned and re-greased the headset bearings. Soaked RD and FD and chainrings overnight in FS10 and they also came up a treat. But, I'm changing away from the dry lubes as the crust of wax they leave behind is really tough to shift - my LBS suggested using the wet version, so will give that a go.
Fitted new gear cables (inners and outers), polished the black plastic Defy 'guards and refitted, junked the old chain at 0.75 wear and fitted yet another new KMC X-93 chain (are there any other makes?) with new quick link and then spent an hour getting the old indexing and limit screw adjustments and cable tensions just right. What used to be a nightmare job with the bike upside down on the garage floor is now a work of simple pleasure with the gears at chest level in the work-stand. A tweak here - yes - can see what that did, just a bit more and a tweak on the cable tension, yes - nearly there. Ah, bliss! Silent shifting. All fixings re-assembled with CopaSlip. Seat tube out, cleaned and re-greased. All the pivot points had a drop of oil.
Remembered to set the bars and forks to dead ahead, and tightened the stem bolts. Re-set the brake pad spacings just so, (must remember to order new KoolStop pads - these are OK, but not for much longer), bottle cages, computer sender unit and pump mount back on, and test ride. Silent, smooth, like new, but with 10,000 miles of battle scars on the frame.
But, why oh why did I not buy a work-stand years ago? That Park Tools PCS9 must be the best £70 I ever spent - even if Yodel did deliver it to next door's shed thinking that was No. 3. Idiots.
Well, the bike's ready for the climb out of Beddgelert up to the Pen-y-Gwryd, even if I'm not.
