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Ha, I don't think I ever opened up the chaincase all the way - I'd not seen the chainring was a bit ratty. OTOH, in the chaincase's favour, it allows riding in all kinds of clothes without worrying about chain muck, and - unless you've changed it - that's still the original chain on there. For something that's done at least five thousand miles in all weathers with only the odd (couple of times a year?) addition of chain lube, that's looking pretty good.
The Nexus shifter is ok - I slightly prefer the rapidfire action, but finding one suitable for a Nexus was a faff and I gave up. The only thing to beware of is that (like STIs) the cable will eventually fray at the shifter end, and if it frays enough it's a pain to remove. You should start to feel it go, and it's a fairly slow process, so it's not like you don't get fair warning.
Thrustvector-
what was cool was that the chaincase has little brushes in, which i presume keep the chain fairly clean. the whole drivetrain's in remarkably good nick, but as I was changing the cables, i thought a new chain would be a reasonable idea, and while i'm at it i MIGHT get a new sprocket, but costs...
also, disconnecting cables from roller brakes and hub gears is a new fun experience for me!
fizzy.bleach
i finally began sorting out the workcycles kr8 i bought off @Thrustvector
the plan is a clean and touch up of paintwork using hammerite cream mmmmm.
i'm not a massive fan of several aspects of the kr8, namely the chainguard, cranket, stem, maybe the bars, grips, seatpost, and saddle. I plan to replace them all, but might have to be sensible about costs. there's also a danger of throwing money and time at the bike to make it look more "bikey" when it's got that lovely curvaceous tube in it which looks a bit euro-socks-n-sandals-mum-who-lets-her-kids-have-a-rat-tail.
so here's how it was when i picked it up on a sunny thursday in walsall
below you'l see it in pieces, plus some close ups of the worst rust on he undercarriage where i've pulled off the flakiest paint.
replacing the contact points should be easy, but the crankset might be a challenge. does anyone know the chainline of the Shimano Nexus SG-8R36? i measure the cranks at around 47 or 48. it's so bloody hard to get an accurate measurement from the seattube. the internet throws up all sorts of answers.