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thanks for the clarification. your english is much better than my Spanish:)
(my mechanic is from Alicante, we have communication issues the past 5 months!)
if Freeborn sold you the seatpost and shim, they should honour the warranty, unless you have bought a frame a little small and raised the seatpost above the bottom of the frame cluster, causing the seat tube stub to crack.
Devinci are well known for standing behind their warranty.
McGowan, your doing fine mate. I couldn't, for instance, write on a Spanish site in Spanish.
Loads of people on here use shims right? Does it void your warranty?
Just out of interest, what is the measurement from the top of the seat tube to the bottom weld of the support junction?
sorry, i have been measuring it: 9'5 cms
1) You used a shim
2) Using a shim (especially that thick on 27.2-31.6!!!) generally voids warranties plus the Devinci manual quoted here is reasonably clear on this
3) You have a cracked frame
4) There is no warranty claim
Why prolong this thread? Especially, why try to drag Freeborn down?
Freeborn have a great reputation for trying to do as much for the customer as possible so rather than moan here talk nicely to them. I would expect that the best outcome might be a reduced price front triangle which would still be a decent outcome given the very thick shim you have been using.
Loads of people on here use shims right? Does it void your warranty?
Generally speaking I would expect it to without even looking at the company blurb- It would be much more of a surprise if it was warrantied
So pretty marginal then. I think that you may have to accept that this is just an unfortunate situation and chalk it up to experience though I would hope that freeborn offer you a good deal on a front triangle.
if Freeborn sold you the seatpost and shim, they should honour the warranty, unless you have bought a frame a little small and raised the seatpost above the bottom of the frame cluster, causing the seat tube stub to crack
no, i bought the shim in chainreaction or wiggle but freeborn told me that the size was OK for my height
Devinci are well known for standing behind their warranty.
i thought that 😕
pinkbike fórum:
hey
my seat post is too small for my seat tube....can i use a pop can as a shim?....will it void the warranty should something happen?
IRONHORSE:
Thanks for the e-mail. Using a soda can for a seatpost shim will certainly void the warranty on the frame.[b] A local bike shop will be able to provide you with a bicycle specific shim or the correct size seatpost[/b]. If you have any other questions let me know.
Regards,
http://www.pinkbike.com/forum/listcomments/?threadid=46850&pagenum=4
mcgowan - Member
Just out of interest, what is the measurement from the top of the seat tube to the bottom weld of the support junction?
sorry, i have been measuring it: 9'5 cms
If you've had a 4" /10.16cm shim in the frame, that's not a lot of support below the weld if it measures 9.5cms from the top of the seat tube.
Their website states that they do an accident exchange programme at a 'low price,' however much that is.
Might be worth keeping friendly with them and going down that route.
That is Iron Horse, not Devinci. Also a much thinner shim.
Kona's reply is much more as most would expect
I would purchase the correct size seat post for your frame. If you damage the frame w/under sized post & trying to shim it- It will void any warranty on the frame
Shims work fine in some frames...
What I don't get, and I know it's not very helpful to the OP, a new seatpost can be had for about £20-30. Why risk shimming a £xxx frame, when the right solution is so relatively cheap?
That is Iron Horse, not Devinci. Also a much thinner shim.Kona's reply is much more as most would expect
that's the key, some brands put it clearly in their owner's manual (Scott, Kona...) and other's not (Devinci)
Put it clearly in the owner's manual or assume it
What I don't get, and I know it's not very helpful to the OP, a new seatpost can be had for about £20-30. Why risk shimming a £xxx frame, when the right solution is so relatively cheap?
hi Jamie
because my seatpost was a gravity dropper and it costs a "little" more tan 20 pounds 😉
Of course, If I would read anything about in the owner's manual... but no, there is not anything about it
They actually do though but I'll admit that the translation doesn't seem great.
You can't write a list of all the things excluded under warranty. As I said above, a qualified mechanic should have spotted that and they do stipulate that.
because my seatpost was a gravity dropper and it costs a "little" more tan 20 pounds
Ahh. I see. Thought it was a regular seat post. Apologies.
If I buy a bike and fit my own headset does that void the warranty?
and I know it's not very helpful to the OP, a new seatpost can be had for about £20-30
not if its a dropper post it can't. Plenty of people on here seem to buy 30.9 Reverbs on the grounds they are "future-proofed" as they can be shimmed up to 31.6.
Going down to 27.2 is a hefty step though. I've worked to the "2 inches below the weld" rule for 20 years, dont know where it came from but it seems reasonable to take the stress from the weld, and personally I would never use a shim (if need be I'd sell the uppydowny post and buy a new one).
I would generally expect a traditional frame ie with seat stays, to be fine with a shim. A frame such as this that is only welded at the front to have issues with a shim. Most shims are nylon or some kind of plastic which will stretch and compress as load is placed on it. Much more than the correct sizes seat post would do in the same situation.
I really think that you should be talking to freeborn/haven about this not moaning on a forum. Attempting to damage their business because you don't agree with their assessment of what has caused your frame to fail is pretty poor form.
They actually do though but I'll admit that the translation doesn't seem great.
I don't know, but not in my manual
You can't write a list of all the things excluded under warranty
ummm...other brands write about shims and I think that the shims are very usual in our hobby, and knowing that the seatpost like GD or Reverb costs moe tan 200 pounds...
If I buy a bike and fit my own headset does that void the warranty?
Yes, but you would be smart enough to say a qualified mechanic installed it 😉
I really think that you should be talking to freeborn/haven about this not moaning on a forum. Attempting to damage their business because you don't agree with their assessment of what has caused your frame to fail is pretty poor form.
Just do this and talk nicely to Freeborn again- It is the only hope you have of getting the frame sorted although I would say they are not obliged to do much for you
If I buy a bike and fit my own headset does that void the warranty?
well said 🙄
Ha, of course. I don't understand why companies sell frame only options then. I've voided all my last 4 builds as I'm not a mechanic.
The new bike is going to a mechanic.
Can I fit my own bb when the one with the bike wears out 😉
Hang on, do Devinci dealers sell mail order bikes?
I really think that you should be talking to freeborn/haven about this not moaning on a forum. Attempting to damage their business because you don't agree with their assessment of what has caused your frame to fail is pretty poor form.
of course i have been talking with them
for example the first thing that they said me was to send the frame from spain and they will decide if they could raclaim under warranty... not a very friendy answer to start 😐
not a very friendy answer to start
How else would you like them to proceed?
[quote=mcgowan ]for example the first thing that they said me was to send the frame from spain and they will decide if they could raclaim under warranty... not a very friendy answer to start Sorry, but how else would you expect them to react?
haha are you ****ing kidding me? You expected them to do a warranty assessment from 1,000 miles away??
Hang on, do Devinci dealers sell mail order bikes?
you are the one Mosey 😉
speaking about " professional cycle mechanic " and selling frames by mail order???? WTF!!!!
*The bicycle was not entirely assembled by an authorized devinci
retailer;
Does this mean that any mail order Devinci, that comes in a bike box partly built, has its warranty voided as soon as it leaves the store?
haha are you **** kidding me? You expected them to do a warranty assessment from 1,000 miles away??
no, but first they could asked me some photos, asked about what parts I have been using... a Little bit of the kidness that they show me when I was buying the bike
Standard reply. You won't find many companies who will process a warranty claim without physically seeing the item in question. You chose to buy from a supplier over the Internet in another country. You should expect to have to send it back in the event of a problem. So that, to me at least, seems totally fair.
That's the same for any brand - you've just got to hope/assume that common sense comes into play, but any mail order bike should just need (along the lines of) bars turned and pedals on so it's not really being assembled away from the shop
True legend but Devinci went to the effort to put "entirely" in the warranty document.
Anyway I'm going off topic.
The bicycle was not entirely assembled by an authorized devinci
retailer;Does this mean that any mail order Devinci, that comes in a bike box partly built, has its warranty voided as soon as it leaves the store?
freeborn told me that the frame had warranty for life, they did not talk me about assembly it by an autorized devinci retailer...
Send it to them and speak to them. Although they have no reason to give you a new frame for free based on what you have said hereyou may well be surprised. If you don't send it to them and start the possible warranty progress how can you know what the outcome will be?!
Yeah the bike 100% has to be sent in. It's the risk you take. Just like if I bought a Canyon.
Standard reply. You won't find many companies who will process a warranty claim without physically seeing the item in question. You chose to buy from a supplier over the Internet in another country. You should expect to have to send it back in the event of a problem. So that, to me at least, seems totally fair.
one spanish friend broke a ragley bought in jejames and they did not ask to send back the frame to the UK...
Certainly a significant amount of bikes stipulate that the bike should be assembled by a qualified bike mechanic. Every manual supplies with every frame I have ever brought or sold has said the same. Or at least that it should be professionally checked before use.
Quite a price difference between a Ragley and a Devinci. Plus there's could have been an out and out warranty. This case is not as such due to the shim.
But that is the exception rather than the rule in my experience. They would have been perfectly reasonable to have asked for it back.
Send it to them and speak to them. Although they have no reason to give you a new frame for free based on what you have said hereyou may well be surprised. If you don't send it to them and start the possible warranty progress how can you know what the outcome will be?!
the answer from them have been very clear: NO WARRANTY
new front triangle by 350 pounds and other costs...
definitely i prefer to repare and strengthen it by a welder here in spain: 100 euros
Snapped a kona using a shim. They warrantied the frame.
Buy big brand tat.......
Changed my seat post to a Thomson on my Giant Advanced XTC and this allowed Giant to refuse the warranty. Component change! Unofficially it was a flex issue and nothing to worry about. Officially it was a frame failure.
Gave up with Giant and spent the cash (£££££) elsewhere and this persuaded similar sized buddies (ex rowers) to do like wise. I'll add Devinci to the list.
I think the OP is right to be sorely annoyed. He's spent a bunch of money on parts, used a long shim and built the bike correctly. The frame warranty doesn't mention shims not being permissible (and given the limited sizes and popularity of dropper posts it's not an unusual requirement for a shim to be needed) and given the bike came without a post, why wouldn't you use one. Buy a printer, and the instructions will say things like "don't dip the printer in water", but a bike frame has a warranty with an unwritten clause? It's nonsense.
I'll give some examples of good service - I bought an Orange frame from the shop I worked in. The headset I bought was out of tolerance slightly, and on installation split the head tube. Orange warranteed the frame on the basis the head tube "was tight" also. Replaced without any hassle. I tore the head tube off another while riding. Again, replaced without hassle. The only question I was asked was "what happened"? Oh and both Oranges were supplied with seat posts shimmed to fit the frame!
From the same shop a customer bought a frame, took it out front and dropped it on its head loading it into his car. Giant, with no pressure offered a new front end for a nominal fee (75 quid).
If the OP felt the distro/frame manufacturer was working with him trying to solve the issue rather than just rejecting, maybe we wouldn't be reading a stressed first post.
For the record, I hate shims. And never use them.
I'll add Devinci to the list
and I will add Giant to mine, thanks 😉
ask them for proof that a shimmed seat post makes your frame more likely to brake provided everything else is the same with regards to insertion depth etc.
I bet they can't prove a correctly fitted shim makes a difference.