Originally Posted by zze86

That's a nice looking bike!

MKS pedals are nice pedals and generally are greased from the factory but it can't hurt to take a peek if you can remove the cap. You shouldn't have to tighten the pedals too much; pedaling tends to finish the job for you.

It could just be the picture but the front derailleur cable looks to be stretched too tight (actually both cables do). You generally want a bit more slack than what it looks like in the pic. I'm surprised the mechanics did not point this out to you at all. This could be the source of your intermittent front shifting as well as the ticking noise. Could be the cable is getting pulled slightly with movement and causing the FD to move slightly and rub against the chain.