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I bought my young lad a nice second hand bike that was advertised on a bike selling page on Facebook (also advertised on pinkbike)
Bike comes and looks to be as described however when spinning the back wheel the freewheel is making an almighty racket and is basically goosed (although not slipping at this point)
I contacted the lad I bought it from and after a bit of a discussion he agreed to order a replacement free-wheel from ATB sales to be sent to the bike shop he works for( by Manchester velodrome I believe). this was the 23rd march he said he ordered. I give him a week and contact him to see if its arrived yet and he says no as its a special order item?
Today its been two weeks and there is still no sign of itand Im not sure what to do?
Surely a freehub cant be a special order part? Edinburgh bikes have them in stock as do other shops?
Whats my next option?
None, you bought a S/H bike, if you want a new bike, buy a new bike. You either check it out before paying or accept the consequences if not.
IMO, you suck it up and fix it yourself.
I wouldn't be getting in a froth about it. Getting a brand new freehub to replace one which is still working but perhaps not 100% on a second hand bike is above and beyond what I'd normally expect.
Buy a generic freehub, fit it, regard any replacement that turns up as a bonus to hold in reserve for the next one that goes.
Aye but the lad has already agreed to buy it as he knew it was noisy but didnt realise it was that bad.
Btw it has started to slip and make a cracking sound now.
None, you bought a S/H bike, if you want a new bike, buy a new bike. You either check it out before paying or accept the consequences if not.
IMO, you suck it up and fix it yourself.
I wanted a bike that was as described by the seller and works and not one that needs parts buying for it straight away.
Btw it has started to slip
If I come back in another five minutes, it will have exploded in flames in your kitchen. 🙂
My approach would be the same. If you want the bike working now, buy a cheap freehub and get it ridden. If and when the second one turns up, it's a spare.
What martinhutch said.
There are no cheap freehubs for it. It requires a specific Formula model around £25
Thing is if he has ordered one from ATB sales why is it taking so long?
Surely a freehub cant be a special order part?
It requires a specific Formula model
Btw it has started to slip
If I come back in another five minutes, it will have exploded in flames in your kitchen.My approach would be the same. If you want the bike working now, buy a cheap freehub and get it ridden. If and when the second one turns up, it's a spare.
sorry you have misinterpreted what I meant... When the bike turned up it was making a horrendous racket but wasnt slipping then, now two weeks down the line its slipping a cracking now and that is just with my young lad riding it around the close we live on.
£25? just buy it and get riding, just one of those things. The seller is obviously not ordering one or are they going to, they are just hoping you go away.
take it on the chin, buy the new one at £25 and get riding
I paid by paypal, worth raising a dispute over ?
If you didn't inspect the bike, you have opened the door to this.
I've really tried to deal with STW regulars for exactly this reason, and / or meet up if possible.
That said, the lad owes you a bike as described. Time to choose of the time and stress is worth chasing...
I paid by paypal, worth raising a dispute over
No.
Stop being a fanny.
Hold up why am I being a fanny expecting a bike I paid for and described as in good working order to actually do that. The fact that my lad hasnt even done a mile on it and its starting to fail already suggests that the chap selling it knew it was on its way out.
why do you think he was selling it?
It's 25 quid. How much have you spent on Ill fitting bikes in the last few years? Just buy a freehub, and put it down to experience.
You could use some of the profit you made on the last bike someone on here did you a deal on?.
The story I got was that it was his nephews bike and he had outgrown it (its a small Whyte 605) so as he worked in a shop he serviced it and was selling it for him.
Its had a new cassette and chain, brake bled, new brake pads, new headset, new rear wheel bearings etc so he has done some work on it ... just not the freehub.
You could use some of the profit you made on the last bike someone on here did you a deal on?.
YGPM
Its had a new cassette and chain, brake bled, new brake pads, new headset, new rear wheel bearings etc so he has done some work on it ... just not the freehub.
And yet somehow you're complaining ?
Whatever. If your confident that all was well on that, there's no need for a PM.
Just buy the freehub. If his turns up, you have 28 days to return it.
No Im not complaining Im asking advice on what to do next after being promised a replacement part for the defective one on the bike which was sold to me as being in good working order.
For 25 quid I'd just fix it and forget about it.
Buy another one, replace it, move on.
Whatever. If your confident that all was well on that, there's no need for a PM.
There was need for a PM as you are getting involved in something that has nowt to do with you ?
I wonder what the outcome would be if the show was on the other foot and it was one of you lot sat with a bike your lad cant ride.
There was need for a PM as you are getting involved in something that has nowt to do with you ?
This is an Internet forum. Everything on here is on a public forum.
We'd buy a sodding hub or a wheel. It's not rocket surgery, it's pretty simple. You bought a used bike, in that circumstance it could have been a gear cable, could have been a brake bleed, could have been a tyre, in your case it was a hub... It's used.. That's how the used bike market goes !
Deleted... out of order due to frustration.
What I've done in the past with buyers like you is to drive over and full refund, taking the bike back. Then I make it my life mission that they never get to own anything of mine again. Ever
You don't live on Chorley New Road, do you.... 😉
Keyboard warrior? 
Grow up, stop greeting and fix your boys bike.
What I've done in the past with buyers like you is to drive over and full refund, taking the bike back. Then I make it my life mission that they never get to own anything of mine again. Ever
You don't live on Chorley New Road, do you...
Im very happy with the rest of the bike ta.
the point is he promised to replace it and went as far as saying he has ordered one which was fair enough. Im asking if its normal for a freehub to take two weeks to arrive or has he had my trousers down
Just take the advice given and move on instead of trying to re ask the question in different ways until you get the answer you want.
Keyboard warrior?Grow up, stop greeting and fix your boys bike.
I deleted that as Im hungover to bits and a little frustrated that no one is seeing my side of this. My Bad.
Yes I understand its a used bike and yes I understand that things break. However when you mention a fault to the seller on unpacking the bike and then he says I knew it was noisy my bad I will order a new one and then it doesnt materialize after two weeks you start to get a bit pissed.
He's probably had your trousers down for £25, it's not an earth shattering amount.
Id have not wasted time or disappointed my lad. I'd order the part asap and fix the bike. But TBH some hubs make a lot of noise, its the pawls clicking over the teeth. Id just service it and ride on. It be quicker and my son would be out riding. Its also SH and if its broke I'd fix it. Sold as seen. Or not in your case.
It is when you are married to my wife
and a little frustrated that no one is seeing my side of this. My Bad.
Have you ever thought, if everyone else disagrees with you, then you may be wrong ?
My lad would have been riding the bike within 24 hours as i'd have sorted him a new hub/wheel, so to stay "my lad can't ride the bike" is your fault.
Fair one
Its a bike for his birthday in May. He isnt having it yet, we were setting it up so the bars and saddle etc were all ready to go on the day.
E mail him again, ask if it's arrived.
Communication between both parties.
If you are not happy with his answer, do what YOU feel is appropriate.
Personally, if you got it for a good price, suck it up and put it down to experience, for all you know it's in the post to you and will arrive today, if you don't ask him you won't know.
Can you service it? Noisy freehubs often just need a bit of a clean and a re-grease.
I dont think its serviceable to be honest.
Communication has been good to be fair which is why Im asking how long would a freehub take from ATB sales?
The price was average for the bike, seen them cheaper but also more expensive.
Bypassing the fact that you should just buy and whack on a cheap replacement hub yourself ( I never knew you could get them for as little as £25!), too many years buying Hope kit I suppose. I can well believe that it could take a good few weeks for a specific part to turn up at a shop.
The number of times I've decided to give my LBS another shot over the internet, to be then told that the item I want will be in the shop in 3-5 days, to then still be waiting after this time....
I ordered a Genesis Croix de Fer from the shop local to my work a few years back (the bike was just out), and was told the lead time was 2-3 weeks. I patiently waited...and waited...and waited, all the time being told that the bike was on its way. Three months down the line and I eventually contacted Genesis myself to be told that they'd sold out of that model of bike almost immediately and would be shipping more in till the following year!
Last year, the shock on my brand new Orange Four blew, I waited two months for the bike shop to replace it and it was only after advice from here, that I eventually got the shop to get their thumbs out and sort it...within a matter of days.
In my experience, bike shops aren't always as efficiently run or communicative as I'd like them to be.
So yeah, I can believe that the part specific part you're waiting on has been ordered, but that it's just floating around in a box somewhere waiting for someone to post it. I'd still buy a new one myself though and fit it so you can get the bike wheels down on the ground to enjoy the spring weather, whilst trusting on the good nature of the fella you bought it from to come through with what will be a spare freehub!
C.
Im asking if its normal for a freehub to take two weeks to arrive or has he had my trousers down
I'm sure it's relatively normal. Freehubs are always pretty specific so if the exact one you need isn't in stock it can take a while chasing them down through importers and distributors unless you are lucky.
If you pull the cassette off you can probably get the number and do a search for that specific one. You might also find that some other hubs share the same freehub (there might be a Novatec one) ...
You might also try Whyte or a big distributor seller or someone like Swinley that has a big hire fleet of low end Whytes and see if they have a spare they could sell.
Given the supply chain is shop - UK distributor - Formula in Italy - UK distributor - shop, that plus any delays in comms between you and the seller and the seller and the shop, plus several postal services, it could easily take two weeks and likely more.