The Joy of Halfords

I think everyone's got their own Halfords horror story. They seem to invite it one themselves.

Great place to by tools and bits though

And your point is? Did the HBP actually refuse to sell you the pads?

TBF, I am confused. What is the mention of brake noise about? Have you omitted some part of the exchange? Did HBP really only say "Um. Imma not sell these to you". Was anything else said at all?

Some places seem to get slated because it seems to be the fashion to do so. In my experience all my local Halfords (Llanelli, Carmarthen and Swansea) do a pretty good job of stocking some acceptable version of many parts. If they are not on the shelves I'll ask and if not available the staff have always been courteous and helpful.

Superstar also get castigated on a frequent basis (although it is seemingly less nowadays), based upon a batch of bad brake pads a long time back, possibly over a decade. Lessons were learnt and the products were modified accordingly but still the message come through from some people that the products are of poor/ unsatisfactory/ unsafe quality. Personally I do not believe this to be the case.

TBF, I am confused

Does that happen often? The OP seemed pretty straightforward to me.

The OP seemed pretty straightforward to me.

You don’t think it at all odd that someone went into a shop, saw something for sale that they wanted to buy, and the assistant said they weren’t going to sell them to them?

You don’t think it at all odd that someone went into a shop, saw something for sale that they wanted to buy, and the assistant said they weren’t going to sell them to them?

Agreed...there must be more to this.

Superstar also get castigated on a frequent basis (although it is seemingly less nowadays), based upon a batch of bad brake pads a long time back, possibly over a decade.

Superstar were castigated because of Neil/Fruit/Tango's shilling of the forum.

Did you snatch the pads out of his hand?

I remember when I ran a bookshop (many many years ago) a kid came in with his dad.  The dad demanded, 'Where's your Harry Potter?' in a loud unpleasant tone.  I thought, '**** you, ****.' but I guessed it was for his kid and just cause the dad was a **** didn't mean the kid had to suffer.

I went and found it on the shelf at which point the kid snatched it out of my hand.  I took it back off him and said, 'Actually, I'm not selling this today.'

'But why?!' wailed both the dad and the kid.

'I just don't want to sell it today.'

Yes, I was lord of my little kingdom and I was mad with power but I did enjoy pissing off rude customers.

So maybe it's not him, it's you?

Superstar were castigated because of Neil/Fruit/Tango’s shilling of the forum.

My favourite was 'Bring the trails to life' guy.  I miss him.

You don’t think it at all odd that someone went into a shop, saw something for sale that they wanted to buy, and the assistant said they weren’t going to sell them to them?

Watch until the end...

Ah yes, the joy of Halfords.

We were told not to ride middle_oab's Boardman cyclocross off-road at all, not even tracks, as it was not suitable.

They also could not set up the gears - we went to pick it up and the front mech was rubbing badly, and rear mech stop wasn't set so the chain jumped. After three attempts I took the bike away and did it myself.
(It was a scratched ex-display at a very silly price or I would have walked away).

They're good for cheap tools.

.... and expensive screen wash

I explained that I had tried a variety of different pad brands and actually I preferred the Shimano options. I added that the current Uberbikes pads were a bit noisy, at which point he explained I probably hadn't pushed the pistons in when I'd reinstalled them. The G05s were showing on the Halfords website as available in store but we're secreted in the Fortress of Bicycle Building so I couldn't just pick them up off the shelf.

I felt like Ron Swanson in Lowes: "I know more than you"

Me: You’ve got some G05s right there.

So, that didn’t happen then? They were showing as in stock, online, but not on the shop floor.

My mate worked at Halfords when he was a student. He experienced a lot of, "I don't want the bike that fits, I want the one that's too big because they'll grow in to it." And a lot of "Johnny was just riding along and the wheel folded in half". Customers can be idiots.

You don’t think it at all odd that someone went into a shop, saw something for sale that they wanted to buy, and the assistant said they weren’t going to sell them to them?

I try to take posts at face value and not read a whole lot into them that isn’t there in the first place. Doing that is one of the things that can make online interactions so unpleasant.

‘I don’t want a hand finished wheel, I want the ones done by a machine, I’ve been cycling for 30 years, I know they are better’

- Halfords customer, on being told he would have to wait half an hour while we trued the wheels on the £70 BSO he had bought for his wife

<p>They were very helpful when I was buying a car seat recently, even delved into their book of discount codes when I was unable to find my own, 7.5% off an already discounted product. I had a poke round the bike bits whilst I was there and fairly well stocked with stuff I could actually touch!</p>

You don’t think it at all odd that someone went into a shop, saw something for sale that they wanted to buy, and the assistant said they weren’t going to sell them to them?

Not only that but why on earth would this

’m after Shimano G05s pads, which I understand are the replacement for G03s pads.

Be anything other than just "hi have you got some G05 brake pads please?" unless they were already talking about 03s

My guess, the op asked for help, didn't like the answer and then the sales person wouldn't sell them pads which their info said wouldn't fit. (or were sat in their click and collect pile because who just goes to halfords on the off chance they have a specific type of brake pad among the thousands of types available)

[s] I guess the op hasn't elaborated as they're currently in a and e after their brakes failed because they fitted the wrong pads. [/S] I see they came back whilst I was posting.

secreted in the Fortress of Bicycle Building so I couldn’t just pick them up off the shelf.

Ah, so quite possibly sold then.

I remember when I ran a bookshop (many many years ago)

Did you fall asleep watching Black Books and get it mixed up with real life?

When I worked in Halfords in a past life one of my colleagues sold someone a tin of GT85 to stop their disc brakes from squealing.

Colleague wasn't a cyclist, he was a 17 year old nutcase who had just flopped out of basic training in the army but used act like he'd seen action in the SAS.

<p style="text-align: left;">Not sold, on the hook, with a price label. The Halfords website clearly showed them as available in store. The Shimano stuff seems to be kept in the bike build area but it is mounted on a wall display as if on the shop floor. I explained what I wanted, was challenged on what I wanted and offered Clarke pads instead. I explained I had used the Shimano pads successfully and that the 03 were now 05 (information gleaned on this very forum I believe). I was also told I'd be better off checking Amazon as most of the stuff sold as Shimano probably wasn't knock off...</p>
I remained pleasant (if bemused) at all times. And bought some other bits, car and bike related, from the store.

Sorry, I only meant this as a slightly lighthearted post, I didn't want people to get their lycra underpinnings in a twist. Lesson learnt.

Anyway, I'm in Talybont currently having cycled along the canal from Brecon and I'm about to head in to the hills under a clear blue sky. See you later!

My son's a student and has just started working at Halfords. I'd love to be a fly on the wall there 😆

I went to halfords and they didn't have any 26" built like brick shit house hybrid tyres.

@BruceWee you are Bernard Black and I claim my free copy of Tempocalypse.

And yes, I've seen such behaviour before, usually because they don't trust customers not to be wrong and then have to deal with the hassle of returns.

Anyway, glad to see this place is as pleasant as ever, you lot should stop dancing around the issue and just call him a ****ing liar if that's what you think.

@the_kenburg enjoy your ride!

@BruceWee you are Bernard Black and I claim my free copy of Tempocalypse.

And yes, I’ve seen such behaviour before, usually because they don’t trust customers not to be wrong and then have to deal with the hassle of returns.

Anyway, glad to see this place is as pleasant as ever, you lot should stop dancing around the issue and just call him a **** liar if that’s what you think.

I did not call him a ****ing liar.  I called him a ****ing ****!

Reasons I take breaks from forums, see above, FFS.

When I worked in Halfords in a past life one of my colleagues sold someone a tin of GT85 to stop their disc brakes from squealing.

I worked with someone who was international level triathlete with £0000's of bike and spare carbon racing wheels. They decided one day that silver colour denoted moving things, and moving things needed GT85...including her disc rotors.

Halfords click and collect for the win, and when I say win I mean avoidance of interaction with the staff.

You don't need to go to Halfords any more...now that Kwik-Fit is doing bike servicing...

Ahh working at Halfords was such fun!

Customer: "I want to complain.  You serviced my bike yesterday and you've made it too easy".

Me: "Ermm, I'm sorry, you are going to have to explain that to me".

Customer: "I used to do 2 laps of the park and it took me 20 minutes.  Now it only takes me 10 minutes so I get less exercise.  I'm very unhappy".

Me: "Well I stopped the brakes from rubbing, serviced the hubs so they actually spin, and replaced the seized jockey wheels on your rear mech so it will run much faster.  Can't you just go round the park 4 times?"

Customer: "I don't have time to go round 4 times.  I've only got time to go round twice.  You are a ****."

Me: "Go away".

And that was one of the better ones...

I had a similar one when I worked there. Complained that the bike was too fast down their regular commuting hill after I'd serviced the hubs that were essentially rust. As it now freewheeled a lot faster it exposed the limitations of the cantilever brakes when they went to slow down to turn into their road!

My son’s a student and has just started working at Halfords. I’d love to be a fly on the wall there 😆

Depends on the store. Some are boring and uneventful, others are a hotbed of anything untoward you can think of. That goes for the staff and the customers!