I need some good ol' mechanix advise for my new bike
 

I just recently bought a 2003 specialized allez comp. with ultegra componets. It has about 2000 miles on it and I am told it has been sitting for some time collecting dust and that it need a good scrub and tune. What should I do? I would like to learn and do it myself, as I enjoy this kind of stuff. Any info on a list of things I should do? Thanks

Brandon

I would *gently* hose it down, very low pressure with some mild soap. Clean the chain with degreaser, make sure its dry and clean, and relube it *using a quality bicycle lubricant* (ie, not WD40 or motoroil). If the shifting is sloppy maybe give the adjuster barrel on the rear derailleur a 1/4-1/2 turn and see where that leaves you. Check to see if the headset is loose by applying the front brake and rocking the bike backwards and forwards a bit with the wheel locked... if the headset is loose you will probably notice that it feels kind of sloppy or is a bit noisy when you do this. Check the true of the wheels, check to see the brakes are in far enough.... should be pretty good to go after this.

Can I use automotive brake cleaner to clean the crank and cogs before I lube them up? Or is that stuff too harsh???

Check that all the "dangerous" things are tight (but not too tight), such as:

cranks
pedals
handle bars & stem
brakes (where they attach to the bike, and where the cables are held*)
seat post
STI levers (where they screw onto the bars)
wheel skewers

and make sure the tires haven't gone dry and crusty on the sides

*It's easy to over tighten and break the bolts that clamp the brake and gear cables. These don't have to be very tight; only tight enough to (obviously) hold the cable.

This will get it very clean. The problem is that you may also flush out, or contaminate the grease in the hub and bottom bracket.