I let myself down – bike shop content

You know when sometimes you know you can do a job but it’s just not getting done so you have to let someone else do it? That.

I feel relieved that my BB, wheels and headset are now getting the attention they need, but disappointed with myself because it’s stuff I can and should be doing myself.

Well done for helping the local economy, unless you went to halfords. In which case hang your head in shame

I bought a new frame and wanted to move all the parts over for a long weekend riding. I *can* do it but decided that was 80 quid well spent at the LBS for a same day frame swap as they won’t spend all evening for most of the week swearing at the bike. In the end I was glad I did take it in, the rear hub needed a new axle and the new frame needed new shifter outers, so no doubt I’d have ended up with two half bikes and not been able to ride…

Stick to what you’re good at. Pay somebody else to do the rest

Not Halfords, LBS

the one in the Market Sq? I’ve always had a great service off Kev, if slightly grumpy at times. 🙂

Yep. Several weeks if not months have gone by with me not getting around to replacing various graunchy bearings. Finally decided to let someone else do it for me, although to be fair I don’t have the tools for my press fit BB.

I can do basic stuff, but I guess each bike sees an LBS once a year for a proper check over and sort out.

To be fair, the LBS does a decent maintenance course as well. But time, motivation and opportunity to do stuff usually interferes with riding time.

Part of the pleasure of MTBing for me is being able to build and repair bikes , i have the tools and the knowledge to do so , the only thing i can`t do is build wheels but i know a man who can so i am quite happy to pass on that job.

Tubeless tyres terrify me. LBS now changes my tyres 😳

There are a few jobs that I don’t have the skill/patience/tools to do well. I even get my LBS to wrap bar tape for me sometimes, because yolo.

My road bike needs a good going over, but I really CBA. Plus the aero seat post won’t fit in my work stand, so off to the LBS it will go.

Sometimes life is too short to be peeing about with stuff that’s a PITA which is why our car goes to a garage to be fixed and have the oil changed. I quite enjoy messing about with my bike though.

I took the Anthem to the LBS for new Maestro bearings last week. I did the last set myself, but it involved much mechanical brutality and swearing, so I thought it was a reasonable investment.

Nowt shameful about supporting a local business and deciding you’d rather spend your precious leisure time doing something else other than swearing at inanimate objects.

Used to look down on people for paying to get thier cars washed, now I realise that for a tenner I get a better job done in minutes and get a big chunk of my weekend back, which is bloody good value in my book.

Live in a small flat and not allowed to tinker with any mechanical work inside by the boss so I’m pretty reliant on my LBS, luckily both are pretty good as I do give them regular business. Case in point, recently decided to swap over wheelsets and drive trains (shimano and SRAM) between bikes, my LBS did it for free as I threw in a new dropper post for one bike.
As someone who did his apprenticeship in Mechanical Engineering I am confident on taking on any bike job, however if you dont have the space, time or confidence to take the job on #supportyourLBS

You know when sometimes you know you can do a job but it’s just not getting done so you have to let someone else do it? That.

Wow, stone him stone him…

Who cares, there are many things I can do that I pay others to do, it’s about a balance of time/money.

it’s about a balance of time/money

and for me enjoyment of the task. I could pay someone to build wheels but I enjoy building wheels. In fact I enjoy doing everything on my bike and would never pay anyone to do anything.

However, I don’t enjoy mowing the lawn but am too tight to pay someone, I hate cutting the hedge and am at borderline of paying someone to do it. I can fix cars but don’t even think about it these days etc,.

My wife and I are daft busy with both our jobs at the moment. We elected to get a cleaner and whilst it feels weird to have someone come in to do something we could be be doing it makes such a difference and means it gets done. She’s also a nice lady and needs the cash.

I haven’t stooped so low as paying someone else to touch my bike though – that’s only one up from paying someone to touch your gentlemen’s parts 😉

Most of our local shops charge between 5 and 7 hundred kronor an hour, so about 45-60 quid. I earn significantly less than that, and in 99% of cases can do the job quicker than they say they can, and usually to a higher standard. So doesn’t matter which way you look at it. It’s quicker and cheaper for me to do it myself.

Additionally, i very very very rarely have to correct work i’ve done myself. Correcting local shops work is a fairly regular occurrence (on other peoples bikes, not mine). This is not uncommon, the other “qualified” ex-mechanic i know from work regularly does the same thing. He rants quite often about it.

It’s the unknown that gets me. On my mountain bike I know from experience how easy/hard maintenance jobs are. For example I know what I need to order to replace my Hollowtech bearings, I know what’s a good/bad price and I can swap them over in the garden with the kids running around my feet offering to “help”. No fear. With my road bike it’s a BB30 press-fit bottom bracket so it’s a case of learning a new maintenance job and possibly even buying/borrowing/making a tool to fit them (and take them out??). An unknown and therefore I CBA.

now I realise that for a tenner I get a better job done in minutes and get a big chunk of my weekend back, which is bloody good value in my book.

^this. Absolutely this. Our local hand wash is even fewer £££

I’ve always paid for maintenance on bikes, having never fully understood the mechanics behind something dangling off the back of the frame that skips about and has on occasions taken out spokes, several at a time.

Until recently where two LBS have totally ballsed up my bike rendering it useless, so last week when my SRAM shifter broke again I bought a pair of Park wire cutters, bar tape, Jagwire cables and watched a few clips on you tube and felt thoroughly satisfied that I’d completed the whole lot myself and that the rear mech didn’t even need adjusting once the cables were run through and tightened under the Allen bolt.

I couldn’t help feeling a little bit disheartened though as I’ve spent over 30 years being terrified of touching the the rear derailleur and now that I’ve realised how simple it is the same is available wireless. Story of my life.

Within a builders van there are tools to do every job….

I like to tinker, if I have the time. It used to be cars/land rovers. These days I don’t have the time or inclination to by laying on the drive covered in oil. So the car/van usually go to the garage for work. But I do like to fettle the bikes in the garage of an evening, kids in bed, missus at work, nowt on TV, beer and tunes in the garage.

I might take longer to do a job than a pro mechanic at the LBS. But most jobs still usually quicker than the round trip to the nearest decent LBS. And cheaper too of course. So 2 hrs tinkering in the garage, or an hours round trip to the LBS (potentially twice) and £50 labour. Plus I can’t get the bike to/from the LBS when I work during the day.

Also as I’m not on the clock I think I do a more thorough job than most LBS would do. Generally clean/grease/loctite each and every bolt or component removed/refitted during a job. Often LBS don’t/can’t do this in a time frame that makes the job a sensible price the customer can stomach.

I’ll tackle most jobs, buy the tools needed, and check out tech manuals / youtube videos if it’s something new and I’m unsure about, eg swapping the air shaft in my new Rebas. Need to get an epic bleed kit and do the XT brakes on my HT next. Building wheels is something I haven’t tackled yet, and headset cups and press fit BB’s are always a worry, so that depends on frame value.

Used to look down on people for paying to get thier cars washed, now I realise that for a tenner I get a better job done in minutes and get a big chunk of my weekend back, which is bloody good value in my book.

Car … wash. Does not compute!

Can’t remember the last time I washed the car or even took it to the car wash. Probably gets done when the car goes in for a service.

I’m a home mechanic for all the reasons cited above.

Cost, time to drop and collect bike, waiting time (typically about 2 weeks round here for bearings, wheel builds etc), shonky work that needs correcting, versus, the ability to devote more time and thoroughness to the task, buying the tools cheaper than the labour charge (mostly), able to turn stuff around quicker, confidence in the kit because I’m sure it’s been done, not having to field bullshit, urban wisdom and plain wrong information from wrench monkeys convinced they know everything because they’re in a workshop.

It’s a total no brainier. I can’t service rear shock damping circuits or face and ream frames. Apart from that, I’ve taught myself even everything else. It’s even easier now with youtube and all the online resources. All it takes is patience and being methodological.

yep my LBS do most things on my bike. I barely have time to ride it with 2 small kids let alone spend ages faffing with it. LBS can do a better job, it keeps my face in with them and helps us both out.

if you have the time, space, inclination and tools then crack on if it’s what you want to do…

My LBS have mostly been excellent, methodical, timely (or at least honest about timings) there when you need them, excellent results and knowledgeable staff. I’m happy to do 99% of the stuff myself but would never get upset about paying for the service. I needed a wheel built for a race while I was away with work, it was ready to go when I landed. Same with a service for something else. In the end it’s a great resource to have.

I’ve used LBS’s for similar and whilst they are a great resource to have due to busy life, wife & kid plus the fact I work away from home, I find driving through and dropping off to pick up and drive home then when ready to go out and ride the crank arms come loose or the chains the wrong length or they tell you that the gear cables been replaced and the reason why the rear mech won’t drop the chain into the bottom 2 sprockets is because it needs replacing? Which they did 2 months previous. When in fact the reason why it won’t work is because they lied and didn’t replace the rear cable to the mech that was rusted and crudded up inside.

Different experiences, but driving twice to get something sorted out that you pay for has become tedious, so ive adopted the methodical approach with the assistance of Arts Cyclery on you tube, next stop for me is workshop stand.

I tend to do most jobs on my bikes and built 2 of them. Am a big fan off turn of the TV , turn on the tunes and have a beer whilst bike faffing. Wheels are bit of a nemesis so leave that to the LBS and the forks and shock go on holiday to TF once a year.