Keep in mind that this guy did not buy these items from the shop, but brought them in. Alot of shops will assume you went mail order, losing them some profit.
Shop Labor - Does this sound fair?
- Thread starter mandown
- Start date
yup. i already mention i expected that.
mandown, how did you get the maxle 360 on the boxxer? when i tried it, the size of the threaded part was different.
and what pedals are those?
and what pedals are those?
I bought the fork from a bro. It is a Boxxer Ride w/ team lowers. The axle came w/ the 2006 Boxxer Ride and it worked.
The pedals are DarkCycle Arachnids. They are 450g razors. My shins look like death after only one ride because I went with just knee pads (no shinz). The pins on the back half (when looking down from the top) are set closer to the axle than on other pedlas i've been on. it takes some getting used-to as the sweet spot is different. They grab the 510s with gusto!
The pedals are DarkCycle Arachnids. They are 450g razors. My shins look like death after only one ride because I went with just knee pads (no shinz). The pins on the back half (when looking down from the top) are set closer to the axle than on other pedlas i've been on. it takes some getting used-to as the sweet spot is different. They grab the 510s with gusto!
I did keep that in mind, and in my earlier posts, I stated the fact that our pricing doesnt matter where you get your parts, Price is the same either way. I also pointed out that we will usually beat or match Mail order costs, total cost that is, whats your cost plus shipping. Most items, with some exceptions, we are able to do so. Those expections are usually the OE wholesale parts.
I do not agree with any shop that raises there prices on labor just because you bought your parts elsewhere, I feel that If I do a good job to begin with, next time you need something you will come to me first anyways. Not to mention the first time My Customer has to deal with a warranty issue on a Mailorder part They usually wont want to again!!!
there are so many things wrong with this I don't know where to start.
how about here, I don't know you, and am not making a personal attack on your ideas, beliefs, character, moral whatever, but I feel that your comment exemplifies several misconceptions the bike community I interact with has about paying for (good) labor.
1."having to surrender your bike to shop monkies"
if your shop charges less than $30 an hour for work on a downhill rig, and they aren't just swapping tubes, you should expect "shop monkies" to be doing the work. Sometimes it's worth the extra money spent to have a skilled craftsman tune your ride.
2."less than $100 in tools and brew"
first....please upgrade your beer choice. may I suggest a nice stella, or troegs perhaps? you will be happier in the longrun. But seriously, a bb thread chaser/shell facer is not cheap. A one time service in this regard (once and done for the life of the frame) is well worth upwards of $50 alone, regardless of time spent on it. And who knows what other cool gizmos this shop may employ to improve the quality and speed of their work.
3.peace of mind keeping your bike within sight
if a shop gives you a legitimate reason to not trust them with your ride, they do not deserve your business. If the shop employs the skilled craftsmen I mentioned earlier, they will naturally care for your bike as they would their own.
4.learn to do it in the same ammount of time
if you have never done it, you will not be able to accomplish a job of the same quality in the same ammount of time as a seasoned pro. It is also ludicrous to consider that everyone who rides a bike (of any skill level) is also capable of fixing everything on it as well as a pro wrench can. The first time I tore apart a juicy 5, I spent nearly 2 hours learning every nook and cranny of it. Now I can rebuild one completely in under 20 minutes, and have them functioning better than new. Should I charge less because someone thinks they can do it just as well in 20 minutes? no way.
5.come on guys, support your local bike shop. use common sense as you would in any other form of services you pay for. If they fvck you over, don't go back. If you find a decent shop who earns your trust, have them work on your bike, as well as purchase parts from them. I can walk into my local shop, ask to borrow any tool for any ammount of time, and they're cool with it. Because I support them as often as I can. Does pricepoint sell things for less, sure. Can pricepoint remove my headset cups? Nope.
So that's all from me for a nice 2 a.m. post. I started this about half an hour ago......
don't drink monster after 11 pm kiddies.
once again, not bashing you dude, sorry if you took it that way.
Paul Doty
Downhiller
mechanic
college dropout
1. Yeah you should "expect" shop monkeys to know what they're doing. They rarely do. The only select shop monkeys I EVER trust with my bike are ones I know personally. I usually ride with them and see how they keep their own bikes. The bike could look like hell but would function mechanically PERFECT under a good mechanic. These days, the only service I pay to have done are my wheel builds which aren't even done at a shop, or the occasional brake bleed on a system I don't have access to a bleed kit for.
2. Stella and troegs = swill. I drink beer with taste (probably things you've never heard of if you're suggesting Stella, no offense at all). Try Warsteiner Dunkel sometime or an Alaskan Smoked Porter. I did forget about the BB tools, but everything else is something that you should have on hand and be well under $100.
3. Yeah, if. That's a big "if". Almost all real "downhill" shops I've stopped into with my bike would not even know where the hell to begin working on it with all standard modern parts. That said, they don't even get to touch it.
4. Bikes are not complicated at all, including brakes. For the amount of time that the bike is out of sight and out of touch, you could be learning your way around it and if you have any mechanical aptitude at all, probably get it right the first time since the crackhead at the shop will probably be learning his first time too!
5. I support shops around that are cool enough to let me use the non-standard tools and don't have the bike snob attitude. They get my business for stuff that I could order online but want quick. Shops with crap attitude, poor inventory, and scary mechanics/service are far too abundant around here (really, there isn't much to choose from - the shops I'll support are kind of a long ways away).
No offense taken. Just gotta understand there isn't much to choose from around here, and it always seems silly to me for people to pay for the most basic mechanical **** to be done when most people who are into bikes are somewhat mechanically inclined to begin with. As I said, bikes and their underlying systems are not at all complicated, which is probably why there's an absence of qualified labor - they're off working on bigger and better things than nearly minimum wage bicycle work.
2. Stella and troegs = swill. I drink beer with taste (probably things you've never heard of if you're suggesting Stella, no offense at all). Try Warsteiner Dunkel sometime or an Alaskan Smoked Porter. I did forget about the BB tools, but everything else is something that you should have on hand and be well under $100.
3. Yeah, if. That's a big "if". Almost all real "downhill" shops I've stopped into with my bike would not even know where the hell to begin working on it with all standard modern parts. That said, they don't even get to touch it.
4. Bikes are not complicated at all, including brakes. For the amount of time that the bike is out of sight and out of touch, you could be learning your way around it and if you have any mechanical aptitude at all, probably get it right the first time since the crackhead at the shop will probably be learning his first time too!
5. I support shops around that are cool enough to let me use the non-standard tools and don't have the bike snob attitude. They get my business for stuff that I could order online but want quick. Shops with crap attitude, poor inventory, and scary mechanics/service are far too abundant around here (really, there isn't much to choose from - the shops I'll support are kind of a long ways away).
No offense taken. Just gotta understand there isn't much to choose from around here, and it always seems silly to me for people to pay for the most basic mechanical **** to be done when most people who are into bikes are somewhat mechanically inclined to begin with. As I said, bikes and their underlying systems are not at all complicated, which is probably why there's an absence of qualified labor - they're off working on bigger and better things than nearly minimum wage bicycle work.
Again like said before you gotta learn how to do this stuff on you're own atleast the simple stuff.
Best advice, to self-wrench if you have the time to get your hands dirty. Also, having some skills helps out on the trail (unless you're riding with a bike mechanic).
I started by truing my own wheels then building them. Or, building them then constantly truing them.
I started by truing my own wheels then building them. Or, building them then constantly truing them.
what are those pedels!?!?!?!?and the pixorz...
sorry they are crappy, but my battery died before i could get the lights and angles set up well.
i had no idea this thread would grow to 7 pages. i guess this is a hot topic with a bundle of passion.
i'm taking it out today for the first run. assuming everything holds together, i will compliment the shop for doing fine work. one of their DH guys did the wrenching on my bike and he knew what was up. he had plenty of good suggestions for me. we talked about changing the fork and he had done the axle to crown and bb measurements on the bike out of his own interest to know, so he had smart things to say about what a different fork would do (as he knew the axle to crown for the forks i was looking at).
FOXROX - those pedals are Dark Cycles Arachnids. wicked sharp and supa light. they have a death-grip on my 5.10s.
i'm taking it out today for the first run. assuming everything holds together, i will compliment the shop for doing fine work. one of their DH guys did the wrenching on my bike and he knew what was up. he had plenty of good suggestions for me. we talked about changing the fork and he had done the axle to crown and bb measurements on the bike out of his own interest to know, so he had smart things to say about what a different fork would do (as he knew the axle to crown for the forks i was looking at).
FOXROX - those pedals are Dark Cycles Arachnids. wicked sharp and supa light. they have a death-grip on my 5.10s.
Pedals were $150 US shipped to my door. They are money. I wish the rear pins were a bit farther back on the pedal, but I'll deal.
OVERALL - Took the bike out this weekend and railed it. The thing is fast. The new cranks are smooth and stiff. The fork feels great, and it was long overdue for some service. The new bars are sickhouse and I love the supa-wide feel. The brake lines and new pads feel good. The brakes still have the modulation magura is known for, but they feel a bit firmer than before, which is just what i wanted. Overall, I thank the bike shop. Yeah, a bit pricey at $240, but not a complete feeling of having been used for buht-seks against my will.
My thanks to the kids at Cynergy Cycles in Santa Monica. I'll be back to their door again for the big jobs.
edit - and some pixorz. everybody likes pixorz
