I’ve just popped down my local halfords in didcot and was in the bike hut bit having a nosey around when I overheard one of the staff phoning some chap up about his bike which is in fir service…… Mr #@#@@# I’m phoning about your bike which is UN the stand now and I’m afraid it’s bad news….

Then he went into tell him the brakes are not working and need bleeding at £30 an end, it needs new pads at £20 an end, new bottom bracket at £30 and he would also have to pay for fitting of the bb and also the brake fluid as that’s not included in the price!!!!

Bike was a Carrera fury and I’m sure it had avid brakes!!

Is that a bit of a rip off or am I out of touch on prices?

Rip off.

**** me I got new seals pistons and bleed for hope m4 for 23 quid at local hope service shop

How do you bleed brakes without brake fluid? Deffo a rip off.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!!

If everything went as planned regarding the bleeding of brakes, bb removal nice n’ easy then i’d probably charge him an hrs labour for all the work so thats £20, a bb would be £15 or so and i’d fit clark pads front and rear so that’s another £15 and i’d charge him £5 for sundries such as brake fluid,copper antiseize, grease and for washing his cranks down in the parts washer.

So i guess i’d have charged him £55 all in, so i guess it is a bit of a rip off.

The bike looked fairly new to be honest!! Wouldn’t of thought it would need a bb,bleed and pads already?

Sounds a bit top dollar.

An hour to bleed the brakes and replace the pads, test etc. £60 plus parts.

£14 for a Deore BB from CRC so presumably Halfords can get cheaper. £30 fitted maybe.

Wonder how much the brake fluid will be?

The bike looked fairly new to be honest!! Wouldn’t of thought it would need a bb,bleed and pads already?

It’s fair enough having a go at them for charging more than you think is the right amount for work.

But you have no idea what needed doing, as all you did was see a bike on a work stand in a shop, so making out they are quoting for work that doesn’t need doing is a bit unfair.

My bike always looks brand new, as I enjoy cleaning it and it always looks spotless, it’s had a new BB, three sets of pads, two new rotors, brakes bled, and new rear mech so far in a year. But it looks like a new build

Many years ago ( probably 10 ish years), a localish bike shop I was in, wanted to charge £75 inc cheapy cables on a guys bike, which was v brake and gear cables. Would have cost £25 at a push for the cables and that makes £50 to fit them. He look astounded, I looked for the door…………. Genuine reasoning behind me learning to do everything myself and all of my mates bikes.

@nealglover you are right I dint know anything about the bike, the point I was trying to make was about the cost.

Would you be happy to spend £100 to have new pads and a bleed on what are perhaps less than a year old brakes plus fluid ontop?

I know I wouldn’t!!

Not quite sure where I quoted about work that didnt need doing?

I pleased for you about your bike!

Meanwhile, today, in the WANTED section of this very forum I spotted someone being offered a nearly new part at around 150% of the price it’s available for brand new from CRC

Don’t assume Halfords are the only ones ripping people off.

It’s only a rip-off if you buy it.

@nealglover you are right I dint know anything about the bike, the point I was trying to make was about the cost.
Would you be happy to spend £100 to have new pads and a bleed on what are perhaps less than a year old brakes plus fluid ontop?

No I wouldn’t be happy with the price, as I said, criticising the price is fine. It does seem a bit high.

Although he fact that a bike is a year old is irrelevant.

You can go through pads in a matter of hours depending on what you are doing.

[Quote]Not quite sure where I quoted about work that didnt need doing?[/quote]

I quoted it in my post.
But for clarity …..

Depending on year the Carrera Fury has a Giga Pipe BB; crap but not cheap so £30 sounds reasonable.

It also took me a day to get a bottom bracket out of a Fury frame, mostly due to the threads being full of paint. If I had been worried about damaging the frame, I’d have happily paid someone the standard rate for the job.

The brakes should be gotten rid of. But benefit of the doubt, maybe the mechanic had to do more work than described on the phone, but kept it simple?

What more can you do to a set of brakes remoterob?

I didnt make out they were doing unnecessary work I merely made the assumption that as it was a newish looking bike that the breakers/rest of the bike shouldn’t need that much doing?

rip off, but i think it severs them right for taking it to Halfords in the 1st place!

this is why i learnt to do stuff like this myself! i have avids so tend to have to bleed them every now and again anyway 😳

The charges on the brakes seem excessive, you could buy a brand new set just about for those prices

my brother wanted his hoses swapping on his euro set-up XT brakes (and he doesnt live local to me). LBS quoted him 30 quid an end for a full bleed. Dunno if thats standard or high end for a bleed, or includes a “you bought em mail order” tax, but I’d hope an LBS mechanic would be able to swap hoses around without needing to do a full bleed…

It’s only a rip-off if you buy it.

The OP isn’t the potential victim. I think the OP’s point is that some shops can take advantage of the unwary/ignorant which offends those of us that are neither, and can ultimately serve to put a casual/novice off (picture conversation between punter and partner “our last car service cost less than that!”).

Well just to even things out, last Sunday they charged me £6 to change the headlight bulb in the car 45 minutes later and with half the front of the car dismantled it was no closer to being changed 🙂

Halfords in Bangor spent three hours and several changes of gas to try to get my AC working – didn’t succeed as the pump had failed, so didn’t charge me anything.

That’s nuffink i paid £185.99 for my bikes brake service. And that’s on top of £89.99 general service.

But i don’t mind as its worth it to know its done properly.

The brakes are OTT. BB, less so, as mentioned up the page it may be an accursed GXP which are shortlived and expensive

Is that a set of pushbike brakes?

Christ you can get a set of brand new xt brakes with rotors and everything for £165

They said my brakes were out of balance and needed calibrating.

They’re avid 5’s.

You have got to trolling now or not very clued up on your brakes!!! You cam get a new set of avid 5 for a lot less than that!!!!

But still won’t be bled balanced or calibrated.
They’ve never worked better since having it done.
Not every one knows their way around a tool box!

Halfords have quite a rigid price plan when it comes to work done on a bike. The list is available for people to look at. It is steep in some respects and not very flexible. But if memory serves me right that’s about right for Halfords pricing and not something hes made up. Mind its a bit mean charging for brake fluid.

Halfords use a rough guide as to how long a job will take and then give a set price. This then has a set code to put through the till. It gives consistent pricing if nothing else because some stuff like bb can turn into a right bitch of a job if stuck.

In comparison to Evans its about the same, an LBS might be more forgiving but that’s how they gain their business.

Well just to even things out, last Sunday they charged me £6 to change the headlight bulb in the car 45 minutes later and with half the front of the car dismantled it was no closer to being changed

I bought a headlight bulb from halfords, they offered to fit it for a fiver, I sneered at them. 2 hours later and with half the front of the car dismantled I began to realise I am not the mechanical god I thought I was.

Thing was they never realised that the bulb I had given him and said ‘I need two of those’ came out of same car, thereby I had already had it to pieces to remove the bulb
I kept quiet that he was doing it all wrong, and should just have undone the other two bolts that allowed the headlight unit to be pulled out far enough to unscrew the bulb from the rear
Funniest £6 spent ever 😉

Killwill I’m not sure if you are a troll or someone very naive!!

Renton what’s naive or trolling about paying for the peace of mind for solid brakes?

It ain’t that expensive given how long it took.

Anyone that goes to halfords for work on a bike deserves everything they get.

I didn’t use Halfords. It was my LBO’.

Anyone that goes to halfords for work on a bike deserves everything they get.

That’s the spirit! 😐

I agree. Halfords are numptys.

Halfords have quite a rigid price plan when it comes to work done on a bike. The list is available for people to look at. It is steep in some respects and not very flexible. But if memory serves me right that’s about right for Halfords pricing and not something hes made up. Mind its a bit mean charging for brake fluid.

Halfords use a rough guide as to how long a job will take and then give a set price. This then has a set code to put through the till. It gives consistent pricing if nothing else because some stuff like bb can turn into a right bitch of a job if stuck.
Yes, when i used to do it, people got less labour charges if it was perceived to be part of something else already being done, and i never charged for consumables.

Had some slx brake hoses that came euro style switched at Harry hall in Manchester a couple of months back….£20 all in for both ends.