There should have some shims behind the lock ring when you pulled it apart. These are so you can adjust it to the wear and get a smooth running (really it gives the facotry some tolerance but meh).
Also add a drop of locktight to the lock ring. No one wants that to come undone as they ride Long.
Aye there were some shims in there, reminded me of doing my MGB wheel bearings recently haha, I just put them back in how I found them and it seems pretty happy. I used a punch and hammer to make sure the lock ring was done up nice and tight so shouldn't be any issues there.
Following on from the last update then, my various bearings that I ordered finally arrived and the pace of progress stepped up a notch. Not too many photos because grease and my phone don't mix, but I soon had both front and rear wheel bearings greased up and installed, a suitable preload set and the freewheel reinstalled on the rear wheel
Greased up the bearings for the bottom bracket also and installed them.
Now I was a little stuck here as the tool I'd ordered to set the lock ring for the bottom bracket hadn't turned up, so I basically continued building whatever else I could back onto the bike. Wheels, mudguards and derailleur went back on the frame (along with new, greased up headset bearings)
In that photo I've also removed the friction shifters for a clean up and regrease
Which was fairly straightforward, just lots of photos to remind myself how they came apart so they went back together in the correct orientation! I also removed the front chain ring selector (I'm sure thats not the right name but yeah) which was stuck previously, and gave it a long bath in Deox C to remove any rust
Deox C is fast becoming a favourite of mine.. Anyway, once rinsed off, I used some WD40 fairly liberally to drive out the remaining water and then lubricated the joints with some light oil, it seemed to have freed up and was moving as it should. Fitted it back on the bike roughly where it was (it had left a slight mark in the paint from years of being there)
I then disassembled the brake levers for the clean and grease treatment. I did go over the ally bits with some metal polish as well, but didn't go crazy to get a shiny finish as it would look at odds with the rest of the bike.
The bars just needed a little clean with some wire wool to remove the remnants of the old grip tape and a light polish on the exposed bits before I fitted the levers back in place
Turning attention back to the drivetrain again, fitted a new chain with a quick link which made things very easy, a little bit of head scratching about how the rear derailleur worked but eventually realised I needed to apply tension by wrapping the spring round and it all started to look right and work properly.
Then bought some brake and gear cable and started linking everything up. The gears were quite simple to do, and with the cables fitted I was able to set the limit screws on the rear derailleur so it was all working fine. The brakes were a little more tricky, trying to hold the calipers closed while pulling the cable through and tightening the locknut required one more hand than I possess
(I understand there are tools to make this easier)
Bike was starting to look a bit proper now
Made a bit of a boo boo with the rear brake though..
A quick trip to Halfords saw me given a new one out of their spare bits draw and I was careful not to overtighten it with my next attempt
The lock ring tool for the bottom bracket also turned up so could finally set the bearing preload there, lock it down and get the other pedal on!
Cables all nipped to length and capped to stop any errant cables from stabbing me (though I still managed to have a small strand on one of the excess bits of brake cable embed itself in my finger
) it was then time to wrap the bars. I'd been dreading this a little as it's the sort of thing that if you get it wrong, it will look curse word. Followed a good guide on Youtube though and they've turned out pretty well
So it's pretty much done
there is a significant problem though, while the front wheel is fine, the rear one is quite out of true such that its contacting the brake on and off as it spins, making noise and dragging. So now I'm wondering whether I buy some spoke tools and tweak it with the wheel in place on the bike or take the wheel off and get someone with the proper truing kit to sort it for me
Nearly there though!