I finally have my bikes back, and they're in a rideable state! (Well, the Charge still needs some work...)

I built them at BF's parents' house, where there are easy-to-clean floors and less "help" from my four-footed roommate who has a taste for Park Tool's grease and dirty chain lube. BF's dad took the road bike's drive train apart and thoroughly cleaned it. It was pretty gross. (BF: "How does your bike get that dirty?!" Me: "I actually ride it..."*)

Of course, when it came time to put everything back together, we found a problem. The parts box had exploded, and one of the bolts for the stem was missing. It was about this time that we discovered we were out of degreaser, so off to the one place in town that's open on Sunday. They didn't have a stem bolt, specifically, but they did have bottle cage bolts that were the same diameter, and close in length. We put almost everything else back on, and discovered that the bolt didn't fit. Not because of the bolt itself, but because the washer was too big, and you can't take the washer off the bolt. (Who thought that up?!)

By comparison, the other two bikes went together very easily (although one of the bottle cage bolts from the Iguana got lost), although I think I'm going to have to pay someone to deal with the brakes on the Charge. I went on a lovely 10-mile ride with DBF's family on the road bike. (I took one of the bolts from the Charge's stem for the occasion. I put it back!) I'm still trying to get everything dialed back in fit-wise, especially the handlebar rotation on the road bike. And I did find a replacement bolt for the Avail.

So: if you ship your bike, note where everything is and take a picture so you have a reference when it's time to put it back together. Also, if you're packing it yourself, put a TON of tape on the parts box and put the bolts in a plastic bag, since I'm not sure FedEx reads the instructions on the side of the box that says "Do not lay flat" in all-caps.


*Despite my best efforts, he's ridden about 20 miles this year. And this is the one that got me into cycling...