I had a day off work today. Between the balky derailleur trimming yesterday and the inclement weather this morning, it was a perfect day to kick off the Switching to Glide project.

Kuroko was waiting patiently as always, blissfully unaware of what was about to transpire.

I started by removing the bags and tire pump, and then the hardware from the handlebars: the bell and the mounts for the headlight, Garmin GPS and GoPro camera.

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I decided a bath was the next order of business. It’s been a while since I’ve given Kuroko a proper washing up.

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I had to take a break at the next step to remind myself which direction the pedals are threaded. (It’s right-hand thread for the drive side, left-hand thread for the opposite.) Then a moment’s work to break the chain (after digging the chain tool out of the toolbox).

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I finished up the preliminaries by removing the handlebar tape. It’s very nice tape, but there are a few cuts already so I won’t be reusing it.

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After that it was time to put Kuroko into the workstand and get serious: remove the wheels, cut the brake and derailleur cables, and remove the derailleurs.

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I removed the front brake caliper, but the rear is waiting until I can extract the bolts.

Measure twice …

Before removing the shift levers from the handlebar, I took a moment to mark the position using a paint pen. This will make it easier to mount the new levers and match the position.

I pulled the brake cables through next. The shifter cables are a bit more challenging to get to, so I first removed each lever from the handlebars, and then peeled back the rubber hood to give better access to the cable head. I left the cable housings in place for now because I’ll be using them to guide the new bits into place: the derailleur wires and the hydraulic hoses for the brakes.

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With all that done, I was left with two separate piles: items for disposal (cables and bar tape), and items that will be reused or be put into the spares box.

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And then it was lunchtime. I’d made good progress. Once I’ve extracted the bolts and removed the rear brake caliper, I’ll take off the crankset as well and then give the frame a thorough cleaning and polishing. There are some paint chips to touch up, too. I’m trying to decide if I want to spray the inside of the frame with WD-40 or something similar to prevent further rust. (I’m only concerned the WD-40 might eat away at hydraulic brake lines and Di2 cables.)

The search is on

I’ve got some extractor bits which I bought when I was refurbishing Ol’ Paint, to get out a couple of broken water bottle cage bolts. (I ended up drilling them out.) I’d done that at the office workshop, but here I am in the Workshop in the Sky. I need a power drill (and to overcome my qualms that using one might disturb the neighbors).

I spent some time yesterday afternoon searching for a drill on Amazon. My choice was between no-name cheap jobs and more expensive brands I’ve actually heard of. This one fell in the middle. (I’m sure it’s just a rebranded Chinese unit, but I feel more secure when it’s backed by a Japanese company.) Amazon said it was available for next-day delivery, so I assumed it would show up this evening, possibly after dinner. In fact, the driver showed up during lunch.

OK, so I have the drill and … where are the extractors? I spent more than an hour today emptying out the toolbox, searching through closets, even checking the suitcase where I’ve stashed some items — twice. No sign of them (or of the tap and die set I got at the same time). I’ll have a look at the office tomorrow, and if I still haven’t found anything I’ll get a new set. I’m sure the moment I’ve ordered the replacement, the first set will show up somewhere.