First ride

Today I removed the bottom bracket bearings, derailleur, back brake, seatpost clamp, and bottle cages (basically everything in contact with the titanium frame), and applied Park Tools ASC-1 anti-seize compound before refitting them. I also applied Finish Line Fiber Grip to the fork steerer tube before properly cinching the stem.

Finally, I tidied up a few loose ends - I cut the inner brake and shifter cables to length and crimped their end caps in place, switched the orientation of the Cateye computer mount so I could move it from the handlebar to the stem, and fitted a stand-in seatpost and my Selle SMP Plus saddle.

And with that, we were all set. It wasn't a long ride (time was limited) but it was a good one!

In some ways it wasn't very interesting - no huge surprises, and nothing fell off! The only adjustments needed once I got going were to the saddle, moving it almost as far back as it can go and raising the nose slightly.

What was interesting was that the overriding first impression was how easy it is to accelerate and to push big gears. I know that really that directly equates to speed, but if I had to sum up in one word how it felt, it would be "effortless", not "fast" - probably because I was in no hurry.

No drivetrain problems, the relatively wide ratios felt fine, and shifting was flawless and without hesitation, even from 9th to 10th under load. Top feels plenty high enough, and I think bottom should be adequate.

The only thing needing urgent attention is the handlebar grips - I don't think I'd get very far on the temporary grips, I need to get those ESI grips ordered ASAP.