Originally Posted by rockmuncher
A nice post Pat,
and it seems to agree with what I had in mind. Rig is 105. Chain will be replaced every 5000km, cluster 10000km or with chain replacement if required.
From experience from maintaining my old steelo the bottom bracket is the guiding light: if it needs service then retire the bike. You couldn't use this guide in the old days because bottom brackets were high maintenance. Nowadays they need (relatively) little maintenance. Let me know if I'm wrong...
You're wrong.
Your frame and most parts should last much longer than any part with bearings.
And clean the chain in some solvent every 1500km. Better, keep two chains, one clean and one on the bike, and swap the dirty one for the clean one every month.
You may already know, but correctly adjusting the ball and cone bearings in the hubs can greatly extend their life. Most people just ride them as they come and that is usually too tight, unless you have an exceptional LBS.
Also, get a torque wrench and crank remover when you get the bike, remove the crank and reinstall it to the correct torque settings.
Also readjust the headset so it is not to tight when you get the bike.
If you correctly set the bearings on a bike and keep them correctly adjusted, they will last a long time even with hard use.
Don't count on your LBS to do these things correctly.
You can go to the Park Tool web site and get all the torgue settings and adjustment instructions.
Cheers.