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[i]Why are bike shops apparently so precious about assembling stuff you bought yourself?[/i]
I've lost count of the number of times people have bought in something they've bought on eBay and asked me to fit it, only to discover that it's knackered.
Slightly bent rear derailleurs are a favourite - get the parallelogram twisted and no amount of adjustment is going to get that thing indexing properly. Solution? eBay it as "slightly scratched but in good condition".
Stripped stem faceplate bolts? Loctite some in and eBay it as "sold as seen" - it looks OK until you get to about 3Nm and it all pulls apart.
Brakes that "just need a bleed" often have knackered seals or cracked pistons, "part worn" shocks are frequently leaky or blown, and I've seen several wheels that "just need a new spoke" but have taco'd rims.
I'll try and work with whatever you bring me, but I'll also try and warn you that if I haven't supplied the parts and don't know the provenance, it's not my fault if you got stiffed on eBay and they don't work properly.
As usual the STW "this is why all bike shops are shit and I am now massively superior" keyboard warriors are out in force. But FWIW (and I doubt many read this far down the post before writing me off as another defensive LBS) I think the OP had pretty bad service. I'd be interested to hear the shop's side of the story, but this is where communication is so important. "we couldn't finish the job because..." or a timely "we need to discuss fitting xyz part" can prevent so much of this, especially if there's a deadline.
When you skip all the crap, this is a terrible experience.
Name and shame, will clean their act up. Ever looked on trust pilot or review center? people kick off for a lot less.
My favorite personal experience was a customer claiming I had sold him a fake Wilson tennis racket all down to the fact he had used it for a season and the "W" was wearing off the strings. Wilson sent him a letter explaining it was a genuine racket and this happens, We even offered a few re-string to shut him up. but we still got abuse in every forum, on his blog, a letter from his solicitor etc.
Common sense says just check a bike before a big event, but that's not the issue. The fact someone doesn't take pride in their work is.
I got a bit sick of what I thought were crappy services from my LBS, so I learned to service my bike myself. Armed with a little knowledge I built a bike from scratch with shiny new parts and on the back of that built another with used parts. I now know my bikes inside out and do all repairs and maintenance myself.
The irony is that now I know my onions I suspect my LBS were actually doing a decent job and it was my expectations that were crappy.
Pierre for president!
I'll try and work with whatever you bring me, but I'll also try and warn you that if I haven't supplied the parts and don't know the provenance, it's not my fault if you got stiffed on eBay and they don't work properly.
Yup that's totally fair enough, as long as you make it clear at the outset (or just refuse the work because of the issues you mention). What's not fair is to take on the work but do it badly/grudgingly, and without warning charge the customer far more than was agreed.
It's not just about second hand parts though - it seems some bike shops get the huff if you bought stuff elsewhere and want to pay them to fit it. Again, either have a policy that you don't do that - or accept the job with good grace, charge accordingly and do it well.
Given that decent service/repairs is pretty much the only USP of a bike shop these days you'd think people would be bending over backwards to provide a decent service, instead of acting like sulky teenagers. 😕
Bit surprised to see this stuff about disrespect and being insulted if people bring in parts to be fitted. If people are happy to pay the asking price for the service the shop is supposedly offering where's the offence? If I took parts to a shop with my money in hand and they got on their high horse I wouldn't be back there if I could help it- after all they clearly don't need the business, and if that's actually the case then good luck to them.
That said, if the shop wants to steer clear of it for other reasons (the ones bencooper and pierre have mentioned make a lot of sense) then obviously that's fair enough too and I'd go somewhere else with no hard feelings.
That's a slightly cynical way of seeing it. As a trade person who'd say that and has said basically that in print (ie writing an owner's manual) I don't see it as 'telling' of anything beyond concern for safety aside from or above + beyond liability rights. It doesn't change the responsibility of the retailer/mechanic. It's just common sense advice and encouraging good practice through product familiarity. ie, many in the trade are riders too and will advise others to do as they would do themselves. People make mistakes sometimes, good practice will find the mistakes before problems are caused.The idea that you should as a matter of course check your whole bike out immediately after the work is done (and IMO the valid comparison with car servicing) says about as much as you need to know. Very telling and informative suggestions from the trade....
(As an aside, I'm not an accredited engineer but I've checked my car over after a basic services eg wheel nuts and brake tests on a quiet road, as well as learning how to do services, replace brake pads / discs, radiator and other basics myself. I also have a scar from when I was a junior racer who fixed his own bike but didn't check it properly before a race.)
All this is sod all to do with the OP tho, that should be sorted between them as the only way of getting anything positive out of the situ.
In response to the OP's questions "what should I do?"
Remove that FRM stem for a start. The stem is another worry I wouldn't want hanging over me. FRM don't have a good history for reliability and the 85kg rider weight limit would be a concern for me too in such a crucial component (regardless of being 75kg myself).
I would like to see what you ride if you consider sram XX, a BOR666 chainset, XX brakes, FRM stem and carbon bars junk??
All,
Just wanted to thank everyone for their input be it negative or otherwise....
As expected there are some idiots....indeed some may say that I was for not building my own bike!
As mentioned I generally do service/build my own bikes but as it was the first race of the season, new bike, new nice bits I thought I would get it professionally built as a treat to myself if you like.
Something that keeps cropping up though is "why didnt you check the work yourself?"
You are perfectly correct although I have been going to this bike shop for a number of years and always been satisfied with the work that has been done for me....
Therefore you kind of build an element of trust in someones workmanship so why would I check it??
Some clarrification on the dremmel side of things is also required I feel.The guy dremmeled the adaptor within the frame not the frame itself as apparently the BB30 axle wouldnt fit through. I am yet to confirm this as it is built and I just want to ride the bike!!
The outcome of this post for me is a few lesson learnt.
-I wont be going there again...
-I will do my own bike building in future...
-I wont ever tell anyone I am an engineer again..
-I will learn how to spell lathe properly...
-I wont ever refer to my bike as a steed again...
Believe it or not the positive comments have given me closure on this!! I was really annoyed to the point I wanted some kind of revenge but at the end of the day life is too short.
I could quite easily have named and shamed but it is his livelihood at the end of the day and if he does this kind of thing to everyone going in there then he will be his own undoing!!
many thanks once again all!!
its a funny old game innit
was only in the bank the other day and heard the manager state "theres no such thing as customer service anymore" in the context of the conversation i literally laughed out loud
Damn good honesty policy however
Your bank has a manager? I have a "business relationship manager" who is about 15 and who looks like his main relationship is with his right hand.
He also writes emails in text-speak.
Wot like?
U R in det. U O us dollar innit.
Ah, so I think I've figured out what the cranks are?
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Are they well known in the UK? That spider is the scariest thing I've ever seen (including spiders....)! It's not surprising the LBS didn't know immediately what to do with them. I still don't understand the dremmeling though.
If you're an engineer, WTF didn't you build it yourself?
MTFU & STFU
As usual the STW "this is why all bike shops are shit and I am now massively superior" keyboard warriors are out in force.
Really? Where? I haven't noticed that myself; just some people criticising the shop for failing in their legal duty to comlete the work to a safe and satisfactory standard (fact), and others bleating on about 'if you're an engineer you should do it yourself'.
Like this nonsense:
If you're an engineer, WTF didn't you build it yourself?MTFU & STFU
Oh dear.
This has been a very useful thread. I went to (new) LBS and went through work proposed work requirments in detail. A lot of common sense sadly dashed with "we saw you coming." They might have got away with it before really starting to take the proverbial. Checked it all out wi other LBS and 80% BS designed to empty my pockets. So very much Caveat Emptor.
Accepting that keeping a bike on the road is going to be at least/more expensive that a car is more than
Iove isn't logical. It's bloody barking!
At walleater...
Yes those are the ones!!
Dremmelling occured apparently to the dia of the bb30 axle being ...well 30mm and the id of the through bore on the adaptor being 24mm apparently?
Like i said without taking it apart i dont know but it seems highly unlikely to me that th adaptor would be of such a reduced dia that 30mm wouldnt go through?
Ive never seen an adaptor but assume it is just a plastic sleeve threaded either end?
He is implying that it is threaded then the centre of the adaptor reduces down below 30mm?
As for not knowing what do with them? It is bb30 chainset, doesnt matter if it is hollowgram, sram, tune or indeed the bor one supplied...i assume only the axle length changes.
At lord felchum.... If you read the post i have explained why i didnt build it myself, just because i can doesnt mean I have to? I think the award for biggest tool of the thread has to go to you...well done!
Like this nonsense:If you're an engineer, WTF didn't you build it yourself?
MTFU & STFU
Oh dear.
Come on now, No need for that.
We need nonsense, without it this forum would be a very boring place.
(cancel that, cba)
bencooper - MemberYour bank has a manager? I have a "business relationship manager" who is about 15 and who looks like his main relationship is with his right hand.
He also writes emails in text-speak.
Bollocks, whats best to get beer out of a keyboard? 😉
Bollocks, whats best to get beer out of a keyboard?
Straw, suck really hard.
I once met a Tai lass who could suck a golf ball through a hosepipe. She also made great frames.
"I said that I am engineer by trade"
Oh the humanity
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Dremmelling occured apparently to the dia of the bb30 axle being ...well 30mm and the id of the through bore on the adaptor being 24mm apparently?
Like i said without taking it apart i dont know but it seems highly unlikely to me that th adaptor would be of such a reduced dia that 30mm wouldnt go through?
Ive never seen an adaptor but assume it is just a plastic sleeve threaded either end?
He is implying that it is threaded then the centre of the adaptor reduces down below 30mm?As for not knowing what do with them? It is bb30 chainset, doesnt matter if it is hollowgram, sram, tune or indeed the bor one supplied...i assume only the axle length changes.
If they really dremelled as described then I can't decide if they need to enter the 2013 World Dremelling Championships due to their craftsmanship, or if indeed you were to remove the cranks, you'd find a complete clusterfork. Seeing that they couldn't tighten stem bolts, I'll take a guess..... As for 'only' the axle length changing, well that's a pretty big difference, in that I don't know a shop that has BB30 spacers lying around. Most BB30 set ups don't even need any spacer, just the spring washer which allows for crappy tolerances (Well, Cannondale did come up with it....).
The attitude of the bike shops on here just reinforces why I don't use them and learnt to do it myself. If you have a good one then support it all you can, but most I've experienced don't deserve my pity, let alone my money.
+1
But as a few people have said, there are some real idiots on here who seem to be suggesting it's the OP's fault because he doesn't build/repair his bikes himself! In this situation the bike shop should be offering at least a full refund and if I was the OP I wouldn't use them again, and would possibly name and shame.
I feel for you as an ex-bike mechanic a bare minimum standard of work was not performed here and id hope you would try to get at least some of your money back there.
In regards to those saying if your an engineer then do it yourself then having worked near a large engine manufacturer the amount of 'engineers' we would see with half assed bodge jobs come in defied belief then again we used to see a retired engineer who scratch built his own electric recumbent bicycle with just about the best welding work i had ever seen. There are many different types of engineer and the skills are not always transferable however a person with a sound mechanical knowledge, patience and the correct tools should be able to do at least basic bike servicing.
The attitude of the bike shops on here just reinforces why I don't use them and learnt to do it myself. If you have a good one then support it all you can, but most I've experienced don't deserve my pity, let alone my money.
-1
The attitude and service I have received is second to none in 95% of the shops I have been into. Better than the service level in B&Q, Wicks, Halfords, Random Off License etc. In every industry there is bad. In LBS terms I mostly find good. In the end it's a relationship, both have to be on the same page for it to work though.
^^^^ +1
All the shops I know are superbe, in fact a Halfords in Wales went beyond the call of duty to help fix some SID's that had failed mid ride.
My local is fantastic, but more of a social club for me. He knows I buy online, but then I do all my own stuff.
The bike shop hasn't handled this very well and certainly should ahve kept you in the loop but I do have a few queries:
1. You say the BOR cranks came with external cup BB? How is this ever going to fit a BB30 frame? The bearings in the cups will most likely be wrong. Is it possible the shop used the bearings form the external cups and had to fit them to the existing BB30 adaptor hence needing to enlarge the 24mm internal diameter to 30mm+ for your BB30 cranks?
2. When told the cranks won't fit without spacers you have asked them to refit the old ones so you can race at the weekend but feel you shouldn't have to pay for this extra labour even though it's not their fault? I know they didn't have BB30 spacers but many shops don't keep spares for parts they never stock. Many people buy most of their kit mailorder these days so shops may only come across the need for spares once or twice a year at most.
3. Several posters state the bike should have been test ridden but if you haven't taken in a complete bike and have asked for the calipers to be left loose and not setup then they can't really do this can they?
As for bikes being more expensive than car servicing you guys all have very cheap cars with long service intervals. Just about any quality entry level tyre costs more than bike tyres, labour at garages are £55+VAT per hour or more with many main dealers being in excess of £100+VAt per hour.
I have a high performance sports car that I would say compares to a high performance MTB (rather than comparing a budget car to a high end bike). My tyres are £700+ for a set, brake pads are £220 for a set of good ones, discs are £300 all round. The car needs a minor service every 6k and major at £12k at a cost of £350 and £700 respectively.
A set of aftermarket Ohlins shocks are £2500 and need servicing every 12k at £600 for a set. How on earth is running a modern bike more than a car???
How on earth is running a modern bike more than a car???
Because other wise the rant wouldn't work!
Because other wise the rant wouldn't work!
Ahhh OK, sorry I'm not up to speed on how this forum works 😉
I would comment, but I really can't be a**ed to read a long-winded, ranty thread.
Carry on, as you were.
"... I could of done ..."
Need I say more?