Just wondering how many people have ever taken advantage of the kind of set-price menu bike servicing offered by Evans, Edinburgh Cycles and the likes - good value? Good service?
i have quite a few times had my commuting mtb get a full service at cycle surgery as they do a very good, thorough job and living in a flat with no garage or outside area it's just not very practical to strip hubs and do jobs like that.
it always comes back looking and feeling like new. costs a fair bit, though. i always compare it to the amount i'm saving not getting the tube!
i took my syncros rear wheel in to edinburgh cycles for a freehub & bearing service/replacement. they had it for about a month, charged me about £45 and couldn't even source the correct freehub for replacement, blaming jungle for not being able to supply the right one. took the wheel back and the 'service' of the freehub lasted all of 2 weeks (it was pretty ****ed though). i got on to jungle and they were actually loads of help and contacted syncros in canadia and identified the correct freehub.
so i probably wouldnt use them again...
Every time I've had my bike worked on by LBS or whatever, I've been happy with the results. It's too pricy for me to do often tho.
Learn to do it yourself, it's quicker, massively cheaper and gives you greater knowledge about your bike. Only things I use my LBS for are replacing spokes / wheel building and servicing Fox forks (do my RockShoxs myself). Not sure how much servicing you actually get from a shop, when I stripped my stumpjumper FSR at Christmas I literal had everything off the frame including bearings before cleaning and rebuilding.
Biggest issue is getting hold of spares and service kits although a good LBS should be able to sort you out.
On a modern bike with Cartridge bearings what ACTUALLY needs to be serviced nowadays?
Forks, Rear shock, Bleed Brakes, true wheels (is this part of a service), indexing. Anything else?
[i]living in a flat with no garage or outside area it's just not very practical to strip hubs and do jobs like that[/i]
What do you have a kitchen for? That's where all my maintenance happens!
i have in the past - but wont again, ive not been happy with the price or time its taken.
Thanks folks -
It's interesting to compare what bike shops claim to do for the money - a lot of the basic servicing seems to consist of "checking" things - eg brake pad wear, play in bearings. Once you actually want them to fix something it's extra!
Interestingly Evans looks very expensive (£12 to fix a puncture anyone?) but their service schedule is a lot more comprehensive than eg Edinburgh Cycles.
What would people want done as a basic level of service?
On a modern bike with Cartridge bearings what ACTUALLY needs to be serviced nowadays?
Forks, Rear shock, Bleed Brakes, true wheels (is this part of a service), indexing. Anything else?
Replacing cables, pads; greasing headset or at least checking for play. Checking chain wear and replacing if necessary - ditto cassette, chainrings. Checking tightness of all bolts. Clean and lube transmission. Check straightness of rear mech hanger (and even frame or forks). Many, many bikes still don't have cartridge bearings (any Shimano hub for a kick off) - so degreasing and repacking those is a service job - which means removing rear cassette and having the right cone spanners.
I know most of this stuff is basic for regular riders but it's beyond a lot of less "serious" cyclists.
would a shop charge less for a ridged single speed???
Less than for a singlespeed without ridges.
On a modern bike with Cartridge bearings what ACTUALLY needs to be serviced nowadays?
You obviously don't own a Stumpjumper FSR. If I don't strip the bearings annually they seize and then the bike creaks like mad. Most cartridge bearings aren't hermetically sealed. Other thing to think about is bearings are designed to rotate ideally, not just rock back and forwards like pivot bearings do.