Bontrager

I got a new frame and I'm taking the Ultegra grouppo off my Scattante and putting it on a Giant TCR A1 frame and I have a few questions.

1. I didn't have a chain tool to take the chain off last night so instead I unscrewed a screw off the FD arms (not sure what they're called) to make room to take the chain out. Easy. Assuming some threadlocker and we're good to go.

2. Since I didn't have a chain tool, I removed the cage over the jockey's on my RD. I could have sworn there was an extra washer in the bottom jockey but after I carefully cleaned everything there wasn't a washer. I'm assuming it was really a cap over the bearings. I looked at an exploded view of the RD and there's no washer. The jockey's line up just fine. I have the bottom jockey facing the correct way so that the directional arrow is turning clockwise when pedaling forwards. Should I worry about anything since it's lined up and working o.k.?

3. I noticed the top jockey doesn't spin freely when I turned it. The bottom jockey will make maybe a full rotation when I flick it. The top just stops after maybe 1/8 of a revolution. When dismantiling the cage to get the chain out I noticed that the part that the bolt goes thru is made of plastic on the top jockey and metal on the bottom and am guessing that's contributing. I didn't tighten down the little bolts significantly at all and don't think i'm binding it. What do you think?

4. Is there a special chain link I should look for when I get a chain removal tool? I'm assuming from what I read on sheldon brown's RIP site that if I find the special pin I can possibly reuse it.

5. Do I just need a chain whip and a locknut tool to swap the cassette over to my new Mavic Ksyrium SL SSC's?

6. Anything special I need to do with the BB except unscrew it and screw the proper sides in to the new frame? New frame already has threads. Assuming the width is the same when I dry fitted the crank (to take a picture)

I'm swapping the cheaper portions of the drivetrain because there isn't any perceptible wear and everything looks good after I cleaned the crap out of it. My computer says there's < 1000 miles on the drivetrain

Yes, this is my 1st build. Can't you tell?

barba

Get a chain tool!

I would consider getting a new chain when you make the swap if you are at all near due for one. If you do break the chain you have, you will either need one of the special pins or a masterlink to rejoin it. Make sure you do this right with a replacement pin or you risk a broken chain.

You will need a chainwhip and lockring tool for the cassette. You will also need the appropriate tool to remove the bottom bracket and install it on the new frame.

Peek the Geek

To answer your questions regarding the pulley wheels, the two different types of bearings and fact that the upper doesn't spin freely are both 100% normal.

You should either get some spare chain pins or a masterlink, as Barba suggested. Do not re-use pins.

Best of luck!

sharkey00

You do need the cassette tool but instead of a chain tool you can just ball up a rag and use your hand to apply force to the cassette to keep it from moving. Unless the thing is rusted on there it should work fine,

HillRider

Have you really removed a cassette lockring that way? Either you have VERY strong hands or you don't put your cassettes on tight enough. The torque spec is 40 N-m and that a lot, particularly after the lockring has been on a while and gotten wet and dirty a bunch of times.

sharkey00

I guess the trick is resting the wheel on the ground on the tire and leaning on the cassette with the rag. I doubt I could do it with the wheel lying on its side. Also, the cassette will spin a bit but the rag gets stuck in it a bit giving you a nice handle.

I wouldn't exactly try this on your new $2000 road wheels with 2 spokes but on my bombproof mountain bike, trust me it has seen a lot worse than that.

Bontrager

I got the right tools for the job. Makes it much easier

The funny thing is that I relooked at them and pulled 'em apart. The top one (the one that doesn't spin as freely) is ceramic! I thought ceramic was supposed to be the next best thing to frictionless.

The bike is all together now. I'm quite happy with learning some in's an outs of the swap. I didn't cross my deraileur cables at the head tube and again under the downtube, though. Seems to work fine on a few tune-up rides including at slow speeds when I turn my hbars more - doesn't shift accidentally from cable turns or pulls.

Bontrager

Sorry....Here's the completed build. Thanks for your help!

Old School

Very nice!