Ok i feel i need to Rant, as i’m disgusted by Chevin Cycles.

I gave a friend an octalink BB to replace his knackered Square Taper one. But i gave a 72mm where his Shell is 68. So i said just nip into the guys at Chevin and show them and ask if they have any Spacers and to advice.

Chevin told him the octalink was shagged too!!! Urm no it wasn’t and that they have never heard of spacers for BB’s. and promptly tried to sell him a £50 Bottom Bracket.

Jesus you go down to AireValley and they are so helpfull with advice.

sorry i didn’t realise you had to spend a certain amount before recieving friendly advice, or i’d have never sent him down!!!! 👿

1. How have Chevin “charged for advice”?
2. He probably spoke to the shop numpty – most bike shops have one, it’s a fact of life…mistakes do get made…

Why not go back and speak to them about it…or just shop elsewhere.

Bike shop advises rider to buy right thing instead of using wrong thing shocker

I wouldn’t fit a cartridge BB with spacers, tbh.

I dont particularly like Chevin, but I don’t see what they have done wrong there. Are they not just saying that the BB isn’t the right one for the frame?

To be honest I would want a BB that fits a frame, rather one that requires spacers ie bodging.

WWASWAS – I’m not saying he should, hence saying go and ask for advice.

Not to be fobbed off by, I’ve never heard of that but here pay £50 for a new one.

Your Sentence would have been fine, Sorry sir i wouldn’t suggest that for the reason of XYZ. We do have these options in.

And Big John thats the thing NO advice was given.

shop in ‘trying to sell something’ shocker.

so, you gave a mate something you weren’t sure was right, shop said ‘it’s wrong but we have this and it’s £50 if you want it’, mate walked away having spent nothing and you’re angry?

I have just put a 73 mm cartidge octalink BB in a 68 mm frame ( bought in error) it is no issue at all bar the non drive side crank is now 5 mm wider of the centre line. the cup has plenty of support in the frame

Why not just fit it and see what happens?

Sorry, my fault. I didn’t realise it was half term.

never heard of spacers for BB’s

for octalink, neither have I.

bike shop in “don’t do bodges” shocker

did the shop try to sell him the right square taper bottom-bracket to fit his cranks rather than the octalink one you gave him?

well the title of the thread is well adrift of reality but hey that seems pretty normal

am i being the shop numpty when i ask what cranks was your mate going to put on an octalink BB if was replacing a square taper BB?

edit sorry someone asked that i think

I’m not a fan of chevin either for obvious reasons.

But I’m not sure what they did wrong.
the BBkt wouldnt work with a square taper crank for a start, so unless your mate was telling them that he was fitting a new crank too, then that would be the first stumbling block.

not sure on the shagged thing, but well its their opinion, but probably they were trying to explain that the Octalink isnt normally set up with Spacers, and that he may have been confusing it with HT2,

seems like a bit of a communications break down. Hopefully if youre on the Leeds side of Otley we could help 😉

Ok, So maybe i’m being harsh. It just felt that you couldn’t go in and ask friendly advice, regarding somethnig your thinking of doing. But instead you were fobbed off to buy £50 worth of gear.

So i’ll ask you guys then. square taper is gone and so are the cranks to go with it. Ive given him Octalink BB and crankset to go with.

The BB is 72mm and the Axle is 126, Axle same length as he had before.
The bike is a 68mm Shell though.

So – Is it possible and can you Shim out, and by shim i mean insert 2.5mm spacers that are out there on the market, to make the BB fit and work.

If so is it possible for advice wether to place both 2.5 on non drive side, split them over both sides?

The BB is fine and in good order, Money is tight so if can help it, not buy a new BB, hence the Advice.

I apologise for my outburst against Chevin, although i dislike the customer service. But that is my opinion and i should not have brought it to Singletrack. ➡

I’ll counter the service at Chevin as once again local to me. Have called them on more than one occasion off spec when I’ve needed help with a mechanical or something fitting. Have always helped no problem and in most.cases have had to insist they take something for the job !

Think the tec Is Mathew brilliant have recommended them to others and will use them again.

Also goes for you Ed @ Crosstrax

So you can have helpful LBS are you listening AT ?

TandemJeremy – Member
I have just put a 73 mm cartidge octalink BB in a 68 mm frame ( bought in error) it is no issue at all bar the non drive side crank is now 5 mm wider of the centre line. the cup has plenty of support in the frame

as TJ says – think with octalink you’d screw in the drive side fully to keep chain line and have the non drive side sticking out – hopefully with enough support not to damage the frame for good* – don’t see where you would need/put spacers
* though i wouldn’t do it

I went in Chevin a couple of years ago with a Cannondale I bought in Chamonix france.

The bike was just over two years old and the headshock was leaking. I asked them to service it. Came back a week later and they had done the whole thing FOC as they rang Cannondale (I didn’t ask them too as didn’t think it would be covered) and Cannondale said just replace it and we’ll cover the costs. Chuffed to bits and went back with cakes.

Just adding balance to the argument.

I very much doubt ANY good bike shop would recommend you bodge something.

But if you are going to do it, Check there is enough thread as the unit isn’t designed to have anything inbetween it and the frame.

You can do it and i have done it, but it’s not ideal.
But it’s hard for Chevin or me to recommend it as it could damage the threads in the frame as there would be less threaded BBKt in the frame on the drive side.

but the 2.5mm spacers can work.

I’d be tentative about recommending it off spec to someone who had come in to the shop who dosent know much about what they are doing (by what you described of your mate)

Not a fan of Chevin cycles myself , if you’re in there regularly then they’re probably fine but as an occasional customer I’ve found them to be a bit aloof.

No such problems at Crosstrax , always feel welcome wether spending £1 or £100.

Chevin charged me £35 for changing one bearing in a hub… bargain

I would always use JD Cycles over Chevin any day.

Sorry Crosstrax but all those speed cameras out of Shipley to Rodley make it too time consuming and a risk to come over your way

Lol, i know what you mean, we have the Adel shop though.

Ignoring the fact that he couldn’t have used an Octalink BB with a square taper crank, yes you certainly can just use a 2.5mm spacer behind the drive side cup. Just as much of a ‘bodge’ as doing the same on your HTII BB.