Almost There

The Highball build is done. I got the *correct* front derailler mounted...



Started out with a top swing, which didn't work. Mounted the saddle...



Then I bled the brakes.

I was a little worried about how this would go. Shimano sent a tiny bottle of mineral oil. Surely this wouldn't be enough? Bleeding isn't hard. But it was messy because of a poorly timed opening of the brake bleeder port. Shimano's instructions are overly complicated. I followed them at first. And got nothing but a sqiushy lever. Then I bled them as I've bled hydraulic brakes hundreds of times before... hose on the bleeder, other end in a jar, squeeze lever until no more bubbles, make sure reservoir doesn't run low. Simple. The Shimano procedure seems to be crafted to use a minimum of mineral oil. From their literature they seem to believe mineral oil is some sort of mega-hazardous and toxic liquid. It isn't. The tiny bottle... was plenty. About half of it left over despite my 'wasteful' procedure.

Slapped some pedals on, tuned the shifters, retorqued all the bolts, and provisionally adjusted the shifters, brake levers, and saddle. First ride tonight!