Hoods always seemed a better starting place to me, so thanks for the confirmation!

Quick update: the boss and front derailleur are back in action, and rear rack is installed. Pics coming soon.

In your opinions, is it worth it to change the rear derailleur from the Shimano Light Action that's on there now to a Shimano 600 7-speed? If I installed a 600 RD, that would make the entire drivetrain 600 tricolor, but if the quality difference is negligible, I'll keep it as is.

I definitely want to change the cassette, as the gear ratio is a little too low right now for my typical commuting speed, and once I get to cadence I'm usually cross-chaining too much for my comfort. At least an 11T on the high gear, perhaps even 10T if I'm feeling adventurous. I'm finding a lot of Hyperglide cassettes on eBay that are 11-28, but I feel like 28T on the low end might be a little much...or am I just overthinking things?

Last question for today: I'm on Sheldon Brown's Freewheel vs. Cassette Freehub page, and I'm thinking that these Dura Ace upgraded hubs are cassette freehubs. Am I right, or oh so wrong again?